title: Function-scoped constants in PHP
body: <p>Is it possible to have constants in PHP that are function-scoped?</p>
  
  <p>If not, what's the preferred alternative for the case where we need a constant inside a function (not a method)?</p>
  
  <p><strong>EDIT</strong></p>
  
  <p>My particular use case:</p>
  
  <p>I have a function that works with a db. I'd like to store the table name (and potentially, other information that won't change, such as the field names) in a constant (vs just "hardcoding" it in the connection string). Other functions don't need to know about my table name. </p>