---
name: "Return::MultiLevel"
section: "3pm"
platform: "linux"
package: "perl-return-multilevel"
version: "0.08-8"
release: "Arch Linux 2026-11-01"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/Return::MultiLevel"
---

# Return::MultiLevel(3pm)

Return across multiple call levels

## NAME

Return::MultiLevel - Return across multiple call levels

## VERSION

version 0.08

## SYNOPSIS

```
  use Return::MultiLevel qw(with_return);
  sub inner {
    my ($f) = @_;
    $f->(42);  # implicitly return from 'with_return' below
    print "You don't see this\n";
  }
  sub outer {
    my ($f) = @_;
    inner($f);
    print "You don't see this either\n";
  }
  my $result = with_return {
    my ($return) = @_;
    outer($return);
    die "Not reached";
  };
  print $result, "\n";  # 42
```

## DESCRIPTION

This module provides a way to return immediately from a deeply nested call stack. This is similar to exceptions, but exceptions don't stop automatically at a target frame (and they can be caught by intermediate stack frames using `"eval"`). In other words, this is more like [**setjmp**(3)](/setjmp/3.md)/[**longjmp**(3)](/longjmp/3.md) than `"die"`.

Another way to think about it is that the "multi-level return" coderef represents a single-use/upward-only continuation.

### Functions

The following functions are available (and can be imported on demand).

- with\_return BLOCK

  Executes *BLOCK*, passing it a code reference (called `$return` in this description) as a single argument. Returns whatever *BLOCK* returns.

  If `$return` is called, it causes an immediate return from `"with_return"`. Any arguments passed to `$return` become `"with_return"`'s return value (if `"with_return"` is in scalar context, it will return the last argument passed to `$return`).

  It is an error to invoke `$return` after its surrounding *BLOCK* has finished executing. In particular, it is an error to call `$return` twice.

## DEBUGGING

This module uses `"unwind"` from `"Scope::Upper"` to do its work. If `"Scope::Upper"` is not available, it substitutes its own pure Perl implementation. You can force the pure Perl version to be used regardless by setting the environment variable `"RETURN_MULTILEVEL_PP"` to 1.

If you get the error message `"Attempt to re-enter dead call frame"`, that means something has called a `$return` from outside of its `"with_return { ... }"` block. You can get a stack trace of where that `"with_return"` was by setting the environment variable `"RETURN_MULTILEVEL_DEBUG"` to 1.

## CAVEATS

You can't use this module to return across implicit function calls, such as signal handlers (like `$SIG{ALRM}`) or destructors (`"sub DESTROY { ... }"`). These are invoked automatically by perl and not part of the normal call chain.

## AUTHORS

- •

  Lukas Mai

- •

  Graham Ollis \<plicease@cpan.org\>

## COPYRIGHT AND LICENSE

This software is copyright (c) 2013,2014,2021 by Lukas Mai.

This is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the same terms as the Perl 5 programming language system itself.