PHPOffice/PHPWord · error · InvalidArgumentException

Invalid type '$type'

Error message

Invalid type '$type'

What it means

Field::setType() validates the requested Word field type (e.g. PAGE, DATE, NUMPAGES) against the hardcoded $fieldsArray whitelist in Field.php. If the type string is not a key of that array, an InvalidArgumentException is thrown and the field type is left unchanged. The library only supports a fixed set of field codes.

Solutions

1. Use one of the supported field codes exactly as defined in Field::$fieldsArray (e.g. 'PAGE', 'DATE', 'NUMPAGES', 'TIME', 'FILESIZE').
2. Check src/PhpWord/Element/Field.php for the $fieldsArray keys to see all valid types.
3. Wrap setType/new Field in a try-catch for InvalidArgumentException if the type comes from user input.
4. If a needed field is missing, add it to $fieldsArray in a subclass or upstream PR.

Example fix

// before
$field = $section->addField('PageNum');
// after
$field = $section->addField('PAGE');

$valid = ['PAGE','DATE','NUMPAGES','TIME','FILESIZE']; // mirror Field::$fieldsArray keys
if (!in_array($type, array_keys(Field::class ? [] : []), true) && !isset($validMap[$type])) { /* reject */ }

function isValidFieldType(?string $type): bool { $r = new \ReflectionClass(\PhpOffice\PhpWord\Element\Field::class); $p = $r->getProperty('fieldsArray'); $p->setAccessible(true); return $type !== null && array_key_exists($type, $p->getValue()); }

try { $field = $section->addField($type); } catch (\InvalidArgumentException $e) { $field = $section->addField('PAGE'); }

When it happens

Trigger: Calling new Field($section, 'NOTAFIELD') or $field->setType('Foo') with any string not present as a top-level key of Field::$fieldsArray (case-sensitive).

Common situations: Typo'd field codes (e.g. 'Page' instead of 'PAGE'), attempting a Word field code the library hasn't whitelisted, or dynamically building field names from user/config input.

Understand the failure class

Background: Invalid enum value errors: "Unknown type", "Invalid scope", "must be one of" — when a string is not on the library's allowed list — this error's family across 23 libraries.

Related errors

• Invalid property '$propkey'
• Invalid option '$optionkey', possible values are ' …
• Invalid value, on of ' . implode(', ', $position) . '…
• Invalid value, on of ' . implode(', ', $restartNumbers) . '…
• Invalid value, dirty or clean possible

AI-assisted analysis of PHPOffice/PHPWord@aef95c0415 (2026-09-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/8f227471bad21110. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at src/PhpWord/Element/Field.php:200

        $this->setOptions($options);
        $this->setText($text);
        $this->setFontStyle($fontStyle);
    }

    /**
     * Set Field type.
     *
     * @param string $type
     *
     * @return string
     */
    public function setType($type = null)
    {
        if (isset($type)) {
            if (isset($this->fieldsArray[$type])) {
                $this->type = $type;
            } else {
                throw new InvalidArgumentException("Invalid type '$type'");
            }
        }

        return $this->type;
    }

    /**
     * Get Field type.
     *
     * @return string
     */
    public function getType()
    {
        return $this->type;
    }

    /**
     * Set Field properties.

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