list Assign variables as if they were an array voidlist mixedvarname mixed... Like array, this is not really a function, but a language construct. list is used to assign a list of variables in one operation. list only works on numerical arrays and assumes the numerical indices start at 0. ]]> Employee name Salary \n" . " $name\n" . " $salary\n" . " \n"; } ?> ]]> list assigns the values starting with the right-most parameter. If you are using plain variables, you don't have to worry about this. But if you are using arrays with indices you usually expect the order of the indices in the array the same you wrote in the list from left to right; which it isn't. It's assigned in the reverse order. ]]> Gives the following output (note the order of the elements compared in which order they were written in the list syntax): string(8) "caffeine" [1]=> string(5) "brown" [0]=> string(6) "coffee" } ]]> See also each, array and extract.