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How to Remove Author Name, Date, and Meta Information in Twenty Ten Theme

12 threads Sep 11, 2025 Theme → Twenty ten

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Many users of the Twenty Ten theme want to customize or completely remove the post meta information, such as the author name, publication date, and category links. This is a common request for creating a cleaner design or for privacy reasons. Based on community discussions, here are the most effective methods to achieve this.

Why Remove This Information?

The default Twenty Ten theme displays a line of meta data for each post (e.g., "Posted on [date] by [author]"). Users often wish to hide this to simplify their site's appearance, maintain author anonymity, or prevent usernames from appearing in author link URLs.

Method 1: Using Custom CSS (Recommended)

The simplest and safest method, which works for most users, is to add a few lines of CSS to your theme. This method hides the elements without altering any core theme files, making it update-proof, especially if you use a child theme.

.entry-meta .author, 
.entry-meta .entry-date, 
.entry-meta .cat-links, 
.entry-meta .tag-links, 
.entry-utility .author, 
.entry-utility .entry-date, 
.entry-utility .cat-links, 
.entry-utility .tag-links {
    display: none;
}

/* To also hide the separator '|' characters */
.entry-meta .meta-sep {
    display: none;
}

How to apply this CSS:

  1. In your WordPress dashboard, navigate to Appearance > Customize.
  2. Select the Additional CSS section.
  3. Paste the code above into the CSS editor and press Publish.

Method 2: Targeting Specific Page Types

If you only want to remove this information from specific areas, like Pages but not Posts, you can use more specific CSS selectors. The following code will hide the meta information only on Pages.

/* Remove meta data from Pages only */
.page .entry-meta {
    display: none;
}

Method 3: Editing Theme Files (Advanced)

For more control, you can edit the theme's template files. However, this method is not recommended for beginners, as any changes can be overwritten by a theme update. Always use a child theme if you choose this route.

The meta information is typically located in the theme's loop.php and loop-single.php files. Look for lines of code that contain the PHP function twentyten_posted_on();. Commenting out or deleting this line will remove the entire meta entry section.

// Example of what to look for and remove:
// <?php twentyten_posted_on(); ?>

Troubleshooting Common Issues

  • CSS Not Working: Ensure you are adding the CSS correctly via the Customizer or your child theme's style.css file. If other CSS is overriding your rules, you may need to use the !important declaration (e.g., display: none !important;).
  • Removing Author Links Only: To remove the hyperlink from the author's name but keep the text, more advanced PHP modifications are required, which is beyond the scope of this guide.
  • Plugin Conflicts: Some users reported duplicate author boxes after installing a biography plugin. In such cases, you will need to use CSS to hide the theme's default author bio section.

By following these methods, you can effectively customize the display of post meta information in your Twenty Ten theme.

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