tutorials

Data Types

Lua is a dynamically typed language, so the variables don’t have types, only the values have types. Values can be stored in variables, passed as parameters and returned as results.

In Lua, though we don’t have variable data types, but we have types for the values. The list of data types for values are given below.

Type list

• nil Used to differentiate the value from having some data or no(nil) data.
• boolean Includes true and false as values. Generally used for condition checking.
• number Represents real(double precision floating point) numbers.
• string Represents array of characters.
• function Represents a method that is written in C or Lua.
• userdata Represents arbitrary C data.
• thread Represents independent threads of execution and it is used to implement coroutines.
• table Represent ordinary arrays, symbol tables, sets, records, graphs, trees, etc., and implements associative arrays. It can hold any value (except nil).