Submenu opens on hover only

Why does it matter?

Many older themes open dropdown menus only when the mouse hovers over the parent item. Keyboard users reach the parent link, but the submenu stays hidden, so every page under it is out of reach for them.

Who it affects: Keyboard, screen reader and low-vision users — every visitor meets the page title, language, landmarks, keyboard focus, target sizes and zoom settings on every page.

What does Lumtera flag?

Found by the widget tests (review mode's Keyboard tab, "Test menus and pop-ups"): a submenu in the header or navigation, with no toggle button of its own, that a hover rule or script shows for the mouse but that stays hidden when its parent link takes keyboard focus. Each is for review, up to ten per page.

Check ID page-hover-menu, as shown in review mode and saved results.

How do I fix it in WordPress?

Open the submenu for keyboard users too. The best fix is a toggle button with aria-expanded next to the parent link (the Navigation block in block themes has one). At the least, show the submenu with :focus-within as well as :hover in the theme's CSS. Then Tab through the menu to check every link can be reached.

Example

.main-menu li:hover > .sub-menu { display: block; }

.main-menu li:hover > .sub-menu,
.main-menu li:focus-within > .sub-menu { display: block; }

How do I check the fix?

1. Reload the page in review mode and run the Keyboard tab again (or Test menus and pop-ups for menus, dialogs and tabs). The finding disappears once the page passes.
2. Load the page and press Tab: a "Skip to content" link should appear first, and you should always see where focus is, even under a sticky header. Pinch-zoom on a phone, and check the browser tab shows a meaningful title.