PHP is a widely used server-side scripting language that was designed for web development to produce dynamic web pages. PHP frameworks streamline the development of web applications written in PHP by providing basic structures that help promote rapid application development. The general idea behind how a PHP framework works is referred to as the Model-View-Controller pattern, where the model refers to the data, view refers to the presentation layer, and controller refers to the application logic. PHP frameworks should be used when working on projects with tight deadlines or substantial amounts of coding to speed up the development process and make the job less tedious.