Break statement with levels in PHP - Interactive Code Practice

Practice - 5 Tasks

1fill in blank

easy

Complete the code to break out of the inner loop only.

PHP

<?php
for ($i = 0; $i < 3; $i++) {
    for ($j = 0; $j < 3; $j++) {
        if ($j == 1) {
            [1];
        }
        echo "$i$j ";
    }
    echo "\n";
}
?>

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Abreak

Bexit

Ccontinue

Dbreak 2

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using break 2 breaks out of both loops, not just the inner one.

The break statement without a number breaks out of the innermost loop only.

2fill in blank

medium

Complete the code to break out of both loops when $j equals 1.

PHP

<?php
for ($i = 0; $i < 3; $i++) {
    for ($j = 0; $j < 3; $j++) {
        if ($j == 1) {
            [1];
        }
        echo "$i$j ";
    }
    echo "\n";
}
?>

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Abreak 2

Bbreak

Ccontinue 2

Dexit

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using break without a number only exits the inner loop.

The break 2 statement breaks out of two nested loops.

3fill in blank

hard

Fix the error in the break statement to exit three nested loops.

PHP

<?php
for ($a = 0; $a < 2; $a++) {
    for ($b = 0; $b < 2; $b++) {
        for ($c = 0; $c < 2; $c++) {
            if ($c == 1) {
                [1];
            }
            echo "$a$b$c ";
        }
    }
    echo "\n";
}
?>

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Abreak 2

Bbreak 3

Cbreak

Dcontinue 3

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using break 2 only exits two loops, not three.

To break out of three nested loops, use break 3.

4fill in blank

hard

Fill both blanks to break out of the correct number of loops and print the last value of $i.

PHP

<?php
for ($i = 0; $i < 5; $i++) {
    for ($j = 0; $j < 5; $j++) {
        if ($j == 2) {
            [1];
        }
    }
}
echo $[2];
?>

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Abreak 2

Bbreak

Ci

Dj

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using break without a number exits only the inner loop.

Printing $j instead of $i after the loops.

break 2 exits both loops when $j equals 2, then echo $i; prints the current value of $i.

5fill in blank

hard

Fill all three blanks to break out of the correct loops and print the sum of $x and $y.

PHP

<?php
for ($x = 0; $x < 4; $x++) {
    for ($y = 0; $y < 4; $y++) {
        if ($y == 3) {
            [1];
        }
        echo "$x$y ";
    }
}
echo [2] + [3];
?>

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Abreak 2

Bx

Cy

Dbreak

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using break without a number exits only the inner loop.

Mixing up which variables to print.

break 2 exits both loops when $y equals 3, then echo $x + $y; prints their sum.

Practice

1.

What does the break statement do in PHP loops?

easy

A. It skips the current iteration and continues the loop.

B. It pauses the loop until a condition is met.

C. It restarts the loop from the beginning.

D. It stops the current loop immediately.

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the purpose of break

   The break statement is used to exit a loop early when a condition is met.

2. Step 2: Compare options

   The description "It stops the current loop immediately." correctly describes break. "It skips the current iteration..." describes continue. Restarting or pausing are incorrect.

3. Final Answer:

   It stops the current loop immediately. -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   break stops loop [OK]

Hint: Break stops loops immediately, no more iterations [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing break with continue
• Thinking break pauses instead of stops
• Assuming break restarts the loop

2.

Which of the following is the correct syntax to break out of 2 nested loops in PHP?

for (...) {
    for (...) {
        // break here
    }
}

easy

A. break;

B. break(2);

C. break 2;

D. break 1;

Solution

1. Step 1: Recall break syntax with levels

   To exit multiple nested loops, PHP uses break n; where n is the number of loops to break out of.

2. Step 2: Identify correct syntax

   break 2; correctly breaks out of 2 loops. break(2); is invalid syntax. A plain break; or break 1; breaks only one loop.

3. Final Answer:

   break 2; -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   break 2; exits 2 loops [OK]

Hint: Use break n; to exit n nested loops in PHP [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using break(2) which is invalid syntax
• Forgetting to specify number for multiple loops
• Using break 1; when 2 loops need exit

3.

What is the output of this PHP code?

$count = 0;
for ($i = 0; $i < 3; $i++) {
    for ($j = 0; $j < 3; $j++) {
        $count++;
        if ($i + $j == 2) {
            break 2;
        }
    }
}
echo $count;

medium

A. 5

B. 3

C. 4

D. 6

Solution

1. Step 1: Trace nested loops and break condition

   Loops run with i and j from 0 to 2. The break triggers when i + j == 2, breaking out of both loops immediately. count++ occurs before the check.

2. Step 2: Simulate iterations

   - i=0,j=0: count=1 (sum=0 !=2)
   - i=0,j=1: count=2 (sum=1 !=2)
   - i=0,j=2: count=3 (sum=2 ==2), break 2; loops stop
   Total count = 3.

3. Final Answer:

   3 -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   3 increments before break 2 exits both loops [OK]

Hint: Count increments before break; break n exits n loops [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Counting increments after break condition
• Ignoring break level effect
• Assuming break only exits inner loop

4.

Find the error in this PHP code snippet:

for ($i = 0; $i < 3; $i++) {
    for ($j = 0; $j < 3; $j++) {
        if ($i == $j) {
            break 3;
        }
        echo "$i,$j\n";
    }
}

medium

A. break 3; is invalid because only 2 loops exist.

B. break 3; should be break 2; to exit both loops.

C. break 3; causes infinite loop.

D. No error, code runs fine.

Solution

1. Step 1: Count nested loops

   There are 2 nested loops: outer and inner.

2. Step 2: Check break level usage

   Using break 3; tries to break out of 3 loops, but only 2 exist, causing a fatal error.

3. Final Answer:

   break 3; is invalid because only 2 loops exist. -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   break n must be ≤ nested loops count [OK]

Hint: Break level cannot exceed nested loops count [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using break level higher than loops
• Assuming break 3 exits 2 loops
• Ignoring PHP fatal error on invalid break level

5.

You want to stop processing nested loops early when a condition is met, but only exit the inner loop sometimes and both loops other times. Which code snippet correctly uses break with levels?

for ($i = 0; $i < 5; $i++) {
    for ($j = 0; $j < 5; $j++) {
        if ($i == 2 && $j == 3) {
            break 2; // exit both loops
        } elseif ($j == 4) {
            break; // exit inner loop only
        }
        echo "$i,$j\n";
    }
}

hard

A. Correct use of break with levels to control loop exit.

B. break 2; should be break 1; to exit both loops.

C. break; cannot be used inside nested loops.

D. break 2; exits only the inner loop.

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand break with levels usage

   break 2; exits two loops, break; exits only the current loop.

2. Step 2: Analyze code logic

   When $i==2 && $j==3, both loops exit with break 2;. When $j==4, only inner loop exits with break;. This matches the requirement.

3. Final Answer:

   Correct use of break with levels to control loop exit. -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   break n exits n loops, break exits current loop [OK]

Hint: Use break n; for multiple loops, break; for single loop exit [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing break 2; with break 1;
• Thinking break; exits all loops
• Misusing break levels causing logic errors