---
gravity_agent_document: 1
document_type: "page"
page_id: "page:wordpress/the-excerpt"
representation_of: "https://www.websitemanual.com.au/wordpress/the-excerpt/"
canonical_html: "https://www.websitemanual.com.au/wordpress/the-excerpt/"
title: "The Excerpt | Website Manual"
summary: "The excerpt is a short summary of a post. Many themes show it on the blog listing and in your site's own search results, in place of the opening lines of t"
language: "en-AU"
page_role: "page"
content_intents: []
source_hash: "sha256:7cd070f5e1f12a890a439bc3d8b62da20d11e50caa0b480cd604cc2e27114985"
primary_entities: []
entity_refs: []
relationships: []
---

# The Excerpt | Website Manual

**The Excerpt**

The excerpt is a short summary of a post.

Coming soon

We are recording a new video for this one.

## Before you finish

Tick them off as you go.

**Not seeing your change?**

Your browser may be showing a copy it saved earlier. Open the page in a private window, or press Ctrl + F5 to reload it fresh (Cmd + Shift + R on a Mac).

If your site has a caching plugin, clear its cache too. There is usually a button for it in the bar along the top of the dashboard. Still the old version after a few minutes? Ask whoever looks after your site to clear the server cache.

### Good to know

The excerpt is a short summary of a post. Many themes show it on the blog listing and in your site's own search results, in place of the opening lines of the post.

If you leave it blank, WordPress takes the first part of the post instead, which can stop mid-sentence. A sentence or two of your own gives readers a clearer reason to click. Some SEO plugins can use the excerpt as the meta description too.

### Up next

- [Add New PostComing soon](/wordpress/add-new-post/)
- [Trash A PostComing soon](/wordpress/trash-a-post/)
- [Restore A PostComing soon](/wordpress/restore-a-post/)
- [CategoriesComing soon](/wordpress/categories/)
- [TagsComing soon](/wordpress/tags/)
- [Quick DraftComing soon](/wordpress/quick-draft/)
- [The ExcerptPlaying](/wordpress/the-excerpt/)

MerlinFX client? [Ask for this task recorded on your own site](https://www.websitemanual.com.au/request-a-recording/?video=the-excerpt#request).

### Another post. Does it connect to anything?

Your website should be handled. Not handed back to you.

[Read: Why more posts won't fix a weak content system](https://merlinfx-website.pages.dev/articles/why-more-blog-posts-wont-fix-a-weak-content-system/)

[Free tool What could go wrong? Pick a situation, say what you know, and get one useful question to ask. Open the tool](https://merlinfx-website.pages.dev/tools/what-could-go-wrong/)