pairs()

The pairs() function is used to iterate over all key-value pairs in a table, allowing you to access each key and its corresponding value. It returns an iterator function that can be used in a for loop or with the ipairs() function for more structured iteration.

Syntax

pairs(table)

Parameters

Return

Returns an iterator function, which can be used to traverse the table. The iterator yields each key-value pair as a series of calls.

Description

The pairs() function is particularly useful for iterating over non-numeric keys in a table or for tables with a mix of numeric and non-numeric keys. Unlike the ipairs() function, which iterates over only the numeric keys in a table in sequential order, pairs() iterates over all keys in an arbitrary order.

Examples

Iterating over a table with pairs

local myTable = {
  name = "Alice",
  age = 30,
  occupation = "Engineer"
}

for key, value in pairs(myTable) do
  print(key, value)
end

-- Output:
-- name    Alice
-- age     30
-- occupation    Engineer

Using pairs with a mixed table

local mixedTable = {
  [1] = "First",
  [2] = "Second",
  color = "Blue",
  number = 42
}

for key, value in pairs(mixedTable) do
  print(key, value)
end

-- Output:
-- 1      First
-- 2      Second
-- color  Blue
-- number 42

See also

• ipairs(): Iterates over the numeric indices of a table in order.
• next(): Retrieves the next key-value pair from a table iterator.