(PHP 4, PHP 5)
echo — Output one or more strings
Outputs all parameters.
echo() is not actually a function (it is a language construct), so you are not required to use parentheses with it. echo() (unlike some other language constructs) does not behave like a function, so it cannot always be used in the context of a function. Additionally, if you want to pass more than one parameter to echo(), the parameters must not be enclosed within parentheses.
echo() also has a shortcut syntax, where you can immediately follow the opening tag with an equals sign. This short syntax only works with the short_open_tag configuration setting enabled.
I have <?=$foo?> foo.
The parameter to output.
No value is returned.
Example #1 echo() examples
<?php
echo "Hello World";
echo "This spans
multiple lines. The newlines will be
output as well";
echo "This spans\nmultiple lines. The newlines will be\noutput as well.";
echo "Escaping characters is done \"Like this\".";
// You can use variables inside of an echo statement
$foo = "foobar";
$bar = "barbaz";
echo "foo is $foo"; // foo is foobar
// You can also use arrays
$baz = array("value" => "foo");
echo "this is {$baz['value']} !"; // this is foo !
// Using single quotes will print the variable name, not the value
echo 'foo is $foo'; // foo is $foo
// If you are not using any other characters, you can just echo variables
echo $foo; // foobar
echo $foo,$bar; // foobarbarbaz
// Some people prefer passing multiple parameters to echo over concatenation.
echo 'This ', 'string ', 'was ', 'made ', 'with multiple parameters.', chr(This uses the "here document" syntax to output
multiple lines with $variable interpolation. Note
that the here document terminator must appear on a
line with just a semicolon. no extra whitespace!
END;
// Because echo does not behave like a function, the following code is invalid.
($some_var) ? echo 'true' : echo 'false';
// However, the following examples will work:
($some_var) ? print 'true' : print 'false'; // print is also a construct, but
// it behaves like a function, so
// it may be used in this context.
echo $some_var ? 'true': 'false'; // changing the statement around
?>
For a short discussion about the differences between print() and echo(), see this FAQTs Knowledge Base Article: » http://www.faqts.com/knowledge_base/view.phtml/aid/1/fid/40
Note: Because this is a language construct and not a function, it cannot be called using variable functions