> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://quantumphp.gitbook.io/docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://quantumphp.gitbook.io/docs/packages/lang/helpers.md).

# Helpers

The package exposes three global helpers.

## `current_lang()`

```php
function current_lang(): ?string
```

Returns the current language string from the shared `Lang` instance.

Use it when you need the language code for routing, view logic, or response metadata.

## `t()`

```php
function t(string $key, $params = null): ?string
```

Returns the translated string for a key.

```php
$title = t('custom.test');
$message = t('custom.info', ['new']);
```

Behavior:

* reads from the shared language service used by the current app container
* returns the key unchanged when no translation exists
* applies placeholder substitution when `$params` is provided

`$params` can be a string or an array.

## `_t()`

```php
function _t(string $key, $params = null): void
```

Echoes the result of `t()` directly.

```php
_t('custom.test');
```

This is mainly convenient in views when you want immediate output instead of assigning a variable first.

## Helper caveats

* The helpers do not load translations by themselves. They rely on the shared `Lang` instance already being loaded, which normally happens during web app bootstrap when multilingual support is enabled.
* If translations were not loaded yet, lookups fall back to the key string.
* Helpers use the same shared language instance across the request/container lifecycle, so manual runtime changes to that instance affect later helper calls.


---

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