PHP OOP - Constructor

PHP - The __construct Function

A constructor allows you to initialize an object's properties upon creation of the object.

If you create a __construct() function, PHP will automatically call this function when you create an object from a class.

Notice that the construct function starts with two underscores (__)!

We see in the example below, that using a constructor saves us from calling the set_name() method which reduces the amount of code:

Example

<?php
class Fruit {
public $name;
public $color;

function __construct($name) {
$this->name = $name;
}
function get_name() {
return $this->name;
}
}

$apple = new Fruit("Apple");
echo $apple->get_name();
?>

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Another example:

Example

<?php
class Fruit {
public $name;
public $color;

function __construct($name, $color) {
    $this->name = $name;
    $this->color = $color;
}
function get_name() {
    return $this->name;
}
function get_color() {
    return $this->color;
}
}

$apple = new Fruit("Apple", "red");
echo $apple->get_name();
echo "<br>";
echo $apple->get_color();
?>

Try it Yourself »

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