Example
Add backslashes in front of the predefined characters:
<?php
$str = "Hello world. (can you hear me?)";
echo quotemeta($str);
?>
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Definition and Usage
The quotemeta() function adds backslashes in front of some predefined characters in a string.
The predefined characters are:
- period (.)
- backslash (\)
- plus sign (+)
- asterisk (*)
- question mark (?)
- brackets ([])
- caret (^)
- dollar sign ($)
- parenthesis (())
Tip: This function can be used to escape characters with special meanings, such as ( ), [ ], and * in SQL.
Note: This function is binary-safe.
Syntax
quotemeta(string)
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| string | Required. Specifies the string to check |
Technical Details
| Return Value: | Returns the string with meta characters quoted |
|---|---|
| PHP Version: | 4+ |
More Examples
Example 1
Add backslashes in front of many predefined characters:
<?php
$str1 = "1 + 1 = 2";
$str2 = "1 * 1 = 1";
$str3 = "Could you
borrow me 5$?";
$str4 = "Are you not entertained? (I am..)";
$str5 =
"The caret [ ^ ] Looks like a hat!";
echo quotemeta($str1)."<br>";
echo quotemeta($str2)."<br>";
echo quotemeta($str3)."<br>";
echo
quotemeta($str4)."<br>";
echo quotemeta($str5)."<br>";
?>
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< PHP String Reference