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2.7 PHP Magic Constants

  • PHP Predefined Constants

    • PHP has nine predefined constants that change value depending on where they are used, and therefor they are called "magic constants".
    • These magic constants are written with a double underscore at the start and the end, except for the ClassName::class constant.

    Magic Constants

    Here are the magic constants, with descriptions and examples:

    Constant Description
    __CLASS__ If used inside a class, the class name is returned. Try it
    __DIR__ The directory of the file. Try it
    __FILE__ The file name including the full path. Try it
    __FUNCTION__ If inside a function, the function name is returned. Try it
    __LINE__ The current line number. Try it
    __METHOD__ If used inside a function that belongs to a class, both class and function name is returned. Try it
    __NAMESPACE__ If used inside a namespace, the name of the namespace is returned. Try it
    __TRAIT__ If used inside a trait, the trait name is returned. Try it
    ClassName::class Returns the name of the specified class and the name of the namespace, if any. Try it
    • Note:
    • The magic constants are case-insensitive, meaning __LINE__ returns the same as __line__.
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