13.6. MySQL Compound-Statement Syntax

13.6.1. BEGIN ... ENDCompound-Statement Syntax
13.6.2. Statement Label Syntax
13.6.3. DECLARE Syntax
13.6.4. Variables in Stored Programs
13.6.5. Flow Control Statements
13.6.6. Cursors
13.6.7. Condition Handling

This section describes the syntax for the BEGIN ... END compound statement and other statements that can be used in the body of stored programs: Stored procedures and functions, triggers, and events. These objects are defined in terms of SQL code that is stored on the server for later invocation (see Chapter 19, Stored Programs and Views).

A compound statement is a block that can contain other blocks; declarations for variables, condition handlers, and cursors; and flow control constructs such as loops and conditional tests.