Title: Using pre_get_posts
Last modified: August 22, 2016

---

# Using pre_get_posts

 *  [vandenb](https://wordpress.org/support/users/vandenb/)
 * (@vandenb)
 * [11 years, 9 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/using-pre_get_posts/)
 * Hi,
 * On [this closed topic](http://wordpress.org/support/topic/exclude-sticky-posts-at-the-top-1?replies=10)
   Chip Bennett advises strongly to use pre_get_posts, but I can’t find out how 
   to combine the function he describes with my Loop.
 * What do I need to change in my Loop? It looks like this now, and Chip will be
   mad at me, but I want to ignore sticky posts, and all other solutions I found
   online break pagination:
 *     ```
       <?php global $query_string; query_posts( $query_string . '&ignore_sticky_posts=1'); ?>
   
        <?php if ( have_posts() ) : while ( have_posts() ) : the_post(); ?>
   
       	<?php get_template_part( 'content', get_post_format() ); ?>
   
       <?php endwhile; else: ?>
       <?php endif; ?>
       ```
   
 * I already put the function Chip describes in my functions.php:
 *     ```
       function breatheout_filter_pre_get_posts( $query ) {
           if ( $query->is_main_query ) {
               $query->set( 'ignore_sticky_posts', '1' );
           }
       }
       add_action( 'pre_get_posts', 'breatheout_filter_pre_get_posts' );
       ```
   
 * Thanks for your time!

Viewing 5 replies - 1 through 5 (of 5 total)

 *  [janet4now](https://wordpress.org/support/users/janet4now/)
 * (@janet4now)
 * [11 years, 9 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/using-pre_get_posts/#post-5175786)
 * Did you look here: [http://codex.wordpress.org/Plugin_API/Action_Reference/pre_get_posts](http://codex.wordpress.org/Plugin_API/Action_Reference/pre_get_posts)
 *  [Chip Bennett](https://wordpress.org/support/users/chipbennett/)
 * (@chipbennett)
 * [11 years, 9 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/using-pre_get_posts/#post-5175787)
 * So, what happens? Nothing? Something?
 * A couple of debugging things:
 * 1) `ignore_sticky_posts` is Boolean, so try this instead:
 *     ```
       $query->set( 'ignore_sticky_posts', true );
       ```
   
 * 2) Be sure to target only the front end, in the correct context:
 * All contexts on the front end:
 *     ```
       if ( ! is_admin() && $query->is_main_query() ) {
   
       }
       ```
   
 * Just the blog posts index:
 *     ```
       if ( $query->is_home() && $query->is_main_query() ) {
   
       }
       ```
   
 * 3) Make sure you remove all references to `query_posts()` in the template, and
   output only the default loop instantiation.
 * p.s. Mad? Nah. Ain’t nobody got time for that!
 *  Thread Starter [vandenb](https://wordpress.org/support/users/vandenb/)
 * (@vandenb)
 * [11 years, 9 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/using-pre_get_posts/#post-5175865)
 * Ah, what happened: I put the code you described in the other post in my functions.
   php and made my Loop ‘normal’, and I saw sticky posts on top of my latest posts.
 * This is my blog: [http://vandenb.com/](http://vandenb.com/)
    And where it says
   at the bottom ‘de goeie stukjes’, i’m showing my stickies. I’m using the dangerous
   code now. But I don’t want to.
 * The problem I have: I’m just beginning with WordPress, have no php-experience,
   and a lot of things that should help me on this forum or in the Codex are pretty
   hard to grasp, because people say: here, use this code. But very often they don’t
   give any context. So I don’t know where to go with that code.
 * I think it’s really really great all these people out here are helping us n00bs,
   but ouch, I feel stupid now, I have to ask:
 * Where do I use the code examples you are giving me? How should my Loop be? And
   my functions.php?
 *  [faeldray](https://wordpress.org/support/users/faeldray/)
 * (@faeldray)
 * [11 years, 9 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/using-pre_get_posts/#post-5175993)
 * I was looking for the same thing as you, Vandenb. In my case, I’m using Sticky
   Posts only to select which posts are to go in a slider on the front page. But
   otherwise I do not want them to appear at the top any time I call The Loop. They
   should be in chronological order with the rest of the posts.
 * So using Chip’s recommendation, I added this to my theme’s functions.php:
 *     ```
       //Makes sure sticky posts don't get placed at the top of The Loop
       function nostickies_filter_pre_get_posts( $query ) {
           if ( ! is_admin() && $query->is_main_query() ) {
               $query->set( 'ignore_sticky_posts', true );
           }
       }
       add_action( 'pre_get_posts', 'nostickies_filter_pre_get_posts' );
       ```
   
 * That way I don’t have to change anything in The Loop, which looks something like
   this:
 *     ```
       <?php if(have_posts()) : ?><?php while(have_posts()) : the_post(); ?>
   
       			<div class="post">
       				<p class="date"><?php the_time('d M Y'); ?></p>
       				<h2 class="posttitle"><a href="<?php the_permalink(); ?>"><?php the_title(); ?></a></h2>
       				<div class="postcontent"><?php the_content(); ?></div>
       			</div>
   
       			<?php endwhile; ?>
       			<?php endif; ?>
       ```
   
 * And it works!
 * I don’t have pagination currently but I’ll implement it to make sure nothing’s
   broken there and let you know the results.
 *  [faeldray](https://wordpress.org/support/users/faeldray/)
 * (@faeldray)
 * [11 years, 9 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/using-pre_get_posts/#post-5175994)
 * I installed the WP-PageNavi plugin and there’s no issue with its pagination that
   I can see. Thanks for the help, Chip!

Viewing 5 replies - 1 through 5 (of 5 total)

The topic ‘Using pre_get_posts’ is closed to new replies.

 * 5 replies
 * 4 participants
 * Last reply from: [faeldray](https://wordpress.org/support/users/faeldray/)
 * Last activity: [11 years, 9 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/using-pre_get_posts/#post-5175994)
 * Status: not resolved

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