How to use esc_textarea filter in WordPress

esc_textarea filter

Filters a string cleaned and escaped for output in a textarea element.

To use the esc_textarea filter, first you have to register it using add_filter. You can write this code into functions.php of your activated theme or in a custom WordPress Plugin.

We at WePlugins, always prefer to create a custom WordPress Plugin while using hooks so nothing breaks when you update your WordPress Theme in the future.

In the below live example, we have defined a function weplugins_modify_esc_textarea_defaults which takes 2 parameters and we registered using add_filter. The first parameter esc_textarea is the name of the hook, the second parameter weplugins_modify_esc_textarea_defaults is the name of the function which needs to be called, the third parameter is the priority of calling the hook if the same hook is used multiple times and the last parameter is the number of arguments (if any) to be passed in the registered function.

Sometimes, you have to remove a registered hook so you can use remove_filter to remove esc_textarea filter.

Parameters

Below are the 2 parameters required to use this hook.

• $safe_text : (string) The text after it has been escaped.
• $text : (string) The text prior to being escaped.

Live Example 1: Basic Usage

Below is an example of how you can use this hook.

    function weplugins_modify_esc_textarea_defaults($safe_text, $text) { 
        // Update the $safe_text variable according to your website requirements and return this variable. 
        // You can modify the $safe_text variable conditionally too if you want.
        return $safe_text; 
    }
    // add the filter
    add_filter("esc_textarea", "weplugins_modify_esc_textarea_defaults", 10, 2);
    

Live Example 2: Conditional Modification

This example demonstrates conditional modification of the $safe_text variable.

    function weplugins_modify_esc_textarea_conditional($safe_text, $text) { 
        if (strpos($text, 'specific_word') !== false) {
            $safe_text = str_replace('specific_word', 'replacement_word', $safe_text);
        }
        return $safe_text; 
    }
    // add the filter
    add_filter("esc_textarea", "weplugins_modify_esc_textarea_conditional", 10, 2);
    

Live Example 3: Removing the Hook

To remove a hook callback, use the example below.

    function weplugins_remove_esc_textarea_defaults() {
        remove_filter("esc_textarea", "weplugins_modify_esc_textarea_defaults", 10, 2);
    }
    // call the function
    weplugins_remove_esc_textarea_defaults();
    

Please make sure to provide the same callback function name, priority, and number of arguments while removing the hook callback.

Contact Us

If you’re having any trouble using this hook, please contact us and we’d be happy to assist you.