PHP str_word_count() Function

The str_word_count() function counts the number of words in a string.

mixed str_word_count ( string $string [, int $format = 0 [, string $charlist ]] )

Counts the number of words inside string. If the optional format is not specified, then the return value will be an integer representing the number of words found. In the event the format is specified, the return value will be an array, content of which is dependent on the format. The possible value for the format and the resultant outputs are listed below.

For the purpose of this function, 'word' is defined as a locale dependent string containing alphabetic characters, which also may contain, but not start with "'" and "-" characters.

Example -

The above example will output : -

Array
(
    [0] => Hello
    [1] => fri
    [2] => nd
    [3] => you're
    [4] => looking
    [5] => good
    [6] => today
)

Array
(
    [0] => Hello
    [6] => fri
    [10] => nd
    [14] => you're
    [29] => looking
    [46] => good
    [51] => today
)

Array
(
    [0] => Hello
    [1] => fri3nd
    [2] => you're
    [3] => looking
    [4] => good
    [5] => today
)

7

Parameter	Description
string	Required. Specifies the string to check
format	Specify the return value of this function. The current supported values are:
	0 - returns the number of words found
	1 - returns an array containing all the words found inside the string
	2 - returns an associative array, where the key is the numeric position of the word inside the string and the value is the actual word itself
charlist	A list of additional characters which will be considered as 'word'

Returns an array or an integer, depending on the format chosen.