- var_dump: documentation ( source)
- preg_match: documentation ( source)
<?php
$string = 'this is test';
preg_match('/(?P<test>\w)/', $string, $matches); // basic syntax
var_dump($matches['test']);
preg_match('/(?<test>.+)/', $string, $matches); // alternative
var_dump($matches['test']);
preg_match("/(?'test'.+)/", $string, $matches); // alternative
var_dump($matches['test']);