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What is the variable scope in Lua?

In Lua, variable scope refers to the region of the code where a variable is accessible. Lua has two main types of variable scopes: global and local.

  1. Global Scope: Variables declared without the local keyword are considered global. They can be accessed from anywhere in the program.

    Example:

    x = 10  -- Global variable
    function test()
        print(x)  -- Outputs 10
    end
    test()
    
  2. Local Scope: Variables declared with the local keyword are local to the block they are declared in. This includes functions, loops, and conditional statements.

    Example:

    function test()
        local y = 20  -- Local variable
        print(y)  -- Outputs 20
    end
    print(y)  -- Error: attempt to call a nil value (variable 'y' is not defined)
    

When a variable with the same name is declared both globally and locally, the local variable takes precedence within its scope.

Example:

x = 10  -- Global variable
function test()
    local x = 20  -- Local variable
    print(x)  -- Outputs 20
end
test()
print(x)  -- Outputs 10

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