PHP function returning two arrays

Question

I have a function and I need it to return two arrays.

I know a function can only return one variable .. is there a way to return my two arrays?

If I concatenate them, how can I separate them cleanly when out of the function?

Answer 1

No need to concatenate: just return array of two arrays, like this:

function foo() {
    return array($firstArray, $secondArray);
}

... then you will be able to assign these arrays to the local variables with list, like this:

list($firstArray, $secondArray) = foo();

And if you work with PHP 5.4, you can use array shortcut syntax here as well:

function foo54() {
    return [$firstArray, $secondArray];
}

Answer 2

I think raina77ow's answer adequately answers your question. Another option to consider is to use write parameters.

function foobar(array &$arr1 = null)
{
    if (null !== $arr1) {
        $arr1 = array(1, 2, 3);
    }

    return array(4, 5, 6);
}

Then, to call:

$arr1 = array();
$arr2 = foobar($arr1);

This won't be useful if you always need to return two arrays, but it can be used to always return one array and return the other only in certain cases.