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What is the basic syntax of PHP?

PHP's basic syntax is relatively straightforward. A PHP script starts with <?php and ends with ?>. The code written between these tags is executed on the server.

Variables

In PHP, variables start with a $ sign followed by the name of the variable. Variable names are case - sensitive.

<?php
$greeting = "Hello, World!";
echo $greeting;
?>

In this example, we declare a variable $greeting and assign it the value "Hello, World!". Then we use the echo statement to output the value of the variable.

Functions

Functions in PHP are defined using the function keyword.

<?php
function addNumbers($a, $b) {
    return $a + $b;
}

$result = addNumbers(5, 3);
echo $result;
?>

Here, we define a function addNumbers that takes two parameters $a and $b, adds them together, and returns the result. We then call the function with arguments 5 and 3 and store the result in the $result variable.

Conditional Statements

The if - else statement is used for decision - making in PHP.

<?php
$age = 20;
if ($age >= 18) {
    echo "You are an adult.";
} else {
    echo "You are a minor.";
}
?>

This code checks if the value of $age is greater than or equal to 18. If it is, it outputs "You are an adult."; otherwise, it outputs "You are a minor."

Loops

The for loop is used when you know in advance how many times you want to execute a block of code.

<?php
for ($i = 0; $i < 5; $i++) {
    echo $i. "<br>";
}
?>

This for loop starts with $i equal to 0, continues as long as $i is less than 5, and increments $i by 1 after each iteration. It outputs the value of $i on each iteration.

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