Anonymous Functions Speak Volumes in Code Anonymous functions, or closures, are functions that seem to cause a lot of stress in people’s lives. Let’s simplify this process. An anonymous function is a function without a name. Let’s look at a regular function. A regular function starts with the function keyword and is followed by the function name; the parameters are enclosed inside of parentheses and the function body is enclosed inside of curly braces. <?php function function_name( $parameter_name ) { // body } ?> The anonymous function drops the function name and assigns the function to a variable. <?php $var_name = function ( $parameter_name ) {