In PHP, a static method is a method that belongs to a class rather than an instance of the class (object). Unlike regular (non-static) methods, static methods can be called directly on the class itself, without the need to create an object of that class. Static methods are denoted with the `static` keyword in the method declaration.

Here's how you define and use a static method in PHP:

php
class MyClass {
    public static function staticMethod() {
        // Code for the static method
    }
}

To call a static method, you don't need to instantiate the class; you can call it directly using the class name followed by `::` and the method name:

php
MyClass::staticMethod();

Static methods are often used for utility functions, factory methods, or methods that don't require access to instance-specific data. Since they are associated with the class itself rather than an object, they cannot use non-static (instance) properties or methods directly. However, they can access other static properties and methods of the class.

Here's an example illustrating the use of static methods:

php
class MathUtils {
    public static function add($a, $b) {
        return $a + $b;
    }

    public static function multiply($a, $b) {
        return $a * $b;
    }
}

// Calling static methods
echo MathUtils::add(5, 3); // Output: 8
echo MathUtils::multiply(2, 4); // Output: 8

In this example, the `MathUtils` class contains two static methods: `add()` and `multiply()`. These methods can be called directly on the class without creating an object. They perform the addition and multiplication operations, respectively, without relying on instance-specific data.

Static methods can be useful when you want to create utility classes that provide common functionality, such as date formatting, string manipulation, or database connection management, without needing to create objects of those classes.

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