PHP list() Function

Assign variables as if they were an array:

<?php
$my_array = array("Dog","Cat","Horse");

list($a, $b, $c) = $my_array;
echo "I have several animals, a $a, a $b and a $c.";
?>

Definition and Usage

The list() function is used to assign values to a list of variables in one operation.

Note: Prior to PHP 7.1, this function only worked on numerical arrays.

list(var1, var2, ...)

Parameter	Description
var1	Required. The first variable to assign a value to
var2,...	Optional. More variables to assign values to

Return Value:	Returns the assigned array
PHP Version:	4+

Using the first and third variables:

<?php
$my_array = array("Dog","Cat","Horse");

list($a, , $c) = $my_array;
echo "Here I only use the $a and $c variables.";
?>