Group Use declarations in PHP 7

In PHP 7, Group Use declarations provide a more readable way to import classes, constants, and functions from the same namespace. This feature reduces code verbosity and makes it easier to identify multiple imported entities that belong to the same module.

Group Use declarations allow you to import multiple structures from a namespace in a single statement, eliminating redundant code and improving maintainability.

Syntax

The basic syntax for Group Use declarations is −

use namespace\{ClassA, ClassB, ClassC};
use function namespace\{function1, function2, function3};
use const namespace\{CONST1, CONST2, CONST3};

Before PHP 7 (Traditional Approach)

Before PHP 7, you had to write separate use statements for each class, function, and constant −

<?php
   use com\India\ClassX;
   use com\India\ClassY;
   use com\India\ClassZ as Z;

   use function com\India\fn_x;
   use function com\India\fn_y;
   use function com\India\fn_z;

   use const com\India\ConstX;
   use const com\India\ConstY;
   use const com\India\ConstZ;
?>

PHP 7+ Group Use Declarations

With PHP 7, the same imports can be written more concisely using Group Use declarations −

<?php
   use com\India\{ClassX, ClassY, ClassZ as Z};
   use function com\India\{fn_x, fn_y, fn_z};
   use const com\India\{ConstX, ConstY, ConstZ};
?>

Practical Example

Here's a complete example demonstrating Group Use declarations −

<?php
// Simulating namespace structure with classes
namespace MyProject\Database {
    class Connection {
        public static function connect() {
            return "Database connected";
        }
    }
    
    class Query {
        public static function select() {
            return "SELECT query executed";
        }
    }
    
    const DB_HOST = "localhost";
    const DB_PORT = 3306;
    
    function sanitize($input) {
        return htmlspecialchars($input);
    }
}

namespace MyProject\Main {
    // Group Use declaration
    use MyProject\Database\{Connection, Query};
    use function MyProject\Database\sanitize;
    use const MyProject\Database\{DB_HOST, DB_PORT};
    
    echo Connection::connect() . "<br>";
    echo Query::select() . "<br>";
    echo "Host: " . DB_HOST . "<br>";
    echo "Port: " . DB_PORT . "<br>";
    echo "Sanitized: " . sanitize("<script>alert('test')</script>");
}
?>

Database connected
SELECT query executed
Host: localhost
Port: 3306
Sanitized: <script>alert('test')</script>

Benefits

Conclusion

Group Use declarations in PHP 7 significantly improve code readability by reducing redundant use statements. They make it easier to manage imports from the same namespace and provide a cleaner way to organize your code dependencies.