wp_authenticate

Function Name: wp_authenticate

Explanation: The wp_authenticate function is a crucial function in WordPress that is responsible for authenticating a user’s login credentials. It takes the user’s login information (username and password) as input and verifies whether the provided credentials are valid. This function is commonly used during the login process to ensure that only authorized users are granted access to the WordPress website.

Usage Example:

<?php
// Custom login form submission
if ( isset( $_POST['submit'] ) ) {
    $username = $_POST['username'];
    $password = $_POST['password'];

    // Perform user authentication
    $user = wp_authenticate( $username, $password );

    if ( is_wp_error( $user ) ) {
        // Authentication failed
        echo 'Invalid username or password.';
    } else {
        // Authentication successful
        echo 'Welcome, ' . $user->user_login . '!';
    }
}
?>

In the above example, we have a custom login form submission handling code. It retrieves the submitted username and password from the $_POST superglobal and passes them to the wp_authenticate function. If the authentication is successful, it retrieves the authenticated user object and displays a welcome message. Otherwise, it outputs an error message indicating that the provided credentials are invalid.

Learn More on WordPress.org