What Does This Mean in PHP -> or =>

Question

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where we use object operator “->” in php
Reference - What does this symbol mean in PHP?

I see these in PHP all the time but I don't have a clue as to what they actually mean. What does -> do and what does => do. And I'm not talking about the operators. They're something else, but nobody seems to know...

Answer 1

The double arrow operator, =>, is used as an access mechanism for arrays. This means that what is on the left side of it will have a corresponding value of what is on the right side of it in array context. This can be used to set values of any acceptable type into a corresponding index of an array. The index can be associative (string based) or numeric.

$myArray = array(
    0 => 'Big',
    1 => 'Small',
    2 => 'Up',
    3 => 'Down'
);

The object operator, ->, is used in object scope to access methods and properties of an object. It’s meaning is to say that what is on the right of the operator is a member of the object instantiated into the variable on the left side of the operator. Instantiated is the key term here.

// Create a new instance of MyObject into $obj
$obj = new MyObject();
// Set a property in the $obj object called thisProperty
$obj->thisProperty = 'Fred';
// Call a method of the $obj object named getProperty
$obj->getProperty();