syntax error, unexpected identifier “%s”, expecting “function” or “const”

Description

PHP identified a name in the body of a class, although it was not preceded by a keyword.

The error may suggest function, but any definition keyword will do: private, protected, public, var, const, function, use.

Example

<?php

class X {
    publicfunction foo() {}
}

?>

Literal Examples

• syntax error, unexpected identifier “publicfunction”, expecting “function” or “const”

Solutions

• Add a definition keyword before the name.

• Fix the syntax and make a keyword appear at the beginning of the definition.

In more recent PHP versions, this error message is now syntax error, unexpected identifier “%s”, expecting “function”.