The if...elseif...else Statement

The if...elseif...else a special statement that is used to combine multiple if...else statements.

Syntax

if(condition){
    // Code to be executed if condition is true
} elseif(condition){
    // Code to be executed if condition is true
} else{
    // Code to be executed if condition is false
}

The following example will output "Have a nice weekend!" if the current day is Friday, and "Have a nice Sunday!" if the current day is Sunday, otherwise it will output "Have a nice day!"

if...elseif...else Statement Example

<?php
$d = date("D");
if($d == "Fri"){
    echo "Have a nice weekend!";
} elseif($d == "Sun"){
    echo "Have a nice Sunday!";
} else{
    echo "Have a nice day!";
}
?>

Output : Have a nice day!

The Ternary Operator

The ternary operator provides a shorthand way of writing the if...else statements. The ternary operator is represented by the question mark (?) symbol and it takes three operands: a condition to check, a result for ture, and a result for false.

To understand how this operator works, consider the following examples:

Ternary Operator Example 1

<?php
$age = 25;
if($age < 18){
    echo "Child"; // Display Child if age is less than 18
} else{
    echo "Adult"; // Display Adult if age is greater than or equal to 18
}
?>

Output : Adult

Using the ternary operator the same code could be written in a more compact way:

Ternary Operator Example 2

<?php 
$age = 15;
echo ($age < 18) ? "Child" : "Adult"; 
?>

Output : Child

The ternary operator in the example above selects the value on the left of the colon (i.e. 'Child') if the condition evaluates to true (i.e. if $age is less than 18), and selects the value on the right of the colon (i.e. 'Adult') if the condition evaluates to false.