PHP ltrim() Function: Removing Leading Characters from a String
This article explains the PHP ltrim() function, its parameters, default character list, return value, and provides multiple code examples demonstrating how to trim whitespace, custom characters, and ASCII control characters from the beginning of strings.
The ltrim() function removes whitespace characters (or other specified characters) from the beginning of a string in PHP.
Parameters
str : The input string.
character_mask (optional): A list of characters to strip; ranges can be specified with .. .
Return value
The function returns the input string with the leftmost characters removed. If character_mask is omitted, the default characters removed are:
Space (ASCII 32)
Tab (ASCII 9)
Newline (ASCII 10)
Carriage return (ASCII 13)
NULL byte (ASCII 0)
Vertical tab (ASCII 11)
Example usage
The above script demonstrates:
Removing default whitespace from $text .
Specifying a custom mask (space, tab, period) to trim additional characters.
Removing ASCII control characters (0–31) from $binary .
Output
string(32) " These are a few words :) ... "
string(16) " Example string\n"
string(11) "Hello World"
string(30) "These are a few words :) ... "
string(30) "These are a few words :) ... "
string(7) "o World"
string(15) "Example string\n"Laravel Tech Community
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