Can an element of an array return by a function be used without prior assignment?

Question

I have a function returning an array: function foo(){ return array('foo'=>1,'bar'=>2); }

Can I access an element of the return array without assigning it to a temporary variable first (e.g. foo()['bar'])?

The following example returning an object works like a charm:

function foo(){ return (object) array('foo'=>1,'bar'=>2); }
echo foo()->bar;

score 4 · Accepted Answer · edited May 23 '17 at 12:26

4

No, unfortunately PHP's grammar doesn't allow this. There is no good reason for this btw (there are a few discussions about it on PHP mailinglists).

PHP: Access Array Value on the Fly
http://wiki.php.net/rfc/functionarraydereferencing [currently down - Google Cache]

If you really want it, you could consider switching to Python - it not only supports inline access to returned arrays but also many other nice things. ;)

edited May 23 '17 at 12:26

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answered Apr 03 '11 at 08:03

ThiefMaster

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@prodigitalson: I have PHP 5.3.3-7 and it doesn't work either. – emco Apr 03 '11 at 08:06
If I had a choice, I'd use C++, Scala, Python, JavaScript (?) etc., they not only support inline acces to returned arrays but also many other nice things... – tstenner Apr 03 '11 at 08:14

Can an element of an array return by a function be used without prior assignment?

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