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Base Functions

Core R functions available in base R.

abs()

Compute absolute values for numeric vectors. Converts negative numbers to positive, leaving zeros unchanged. Essential for distance and error calculations.

abs(x)

apply()

Apply a function over the margins of an array or matrix in R. A core base R function for iterative operations on rectangular data structures.

apply(X, MARGIN, FUN, ...)

c()

Combine values into a vector or list. This is the most fundamental function in R for creating vectors, used extensively in data manipulation and programming.

c(..., recursive = FALSE, USE.NAMES = TRUE)

cat()

Concatenate and print objects to a file or connection, with minimal formatting.

cat(... , file = "", sep = " ", fill = FALSE, labels = NULL, append = FALSE)

ceiling()

Round numeric values up to the nearest integer in R.

ceiling(x)

class()

Get or set the class attribute of an R object. Returns the class vector for an object, or can be used to assign a new class.

class(x)

colnames()

Get or set the column names of a matrix, data frame, or other R object.

colnames(x) <- value

cos()

Compute the trigonometric cosine of values in R.

cos(x)

cummax()

Compute the cumulative maximum of a vector in R.

cummax(x)

cummin()

Compute the cumulative minimum of a vector in R.

cummin(x)

cumprod()

Compute the cumulative product of a vector in R.

cumprod(x)

cumsum()

Compute the cumulative sum of a vector in R.

cumsum(x)

diff()

Calculate lagged differences between elements in a vector, useful for detecting changes, trends, and rate of change in sequential data.

diff(x, lag = 1, differences = 1)

dim()

Get or set the dimensions of an object (matrix, data frame, array).

dim(x)

duplicated()

Identify duplicate elements in R objects.

duplicated(x, incomparables = FALSE, MARGIN = 1, fromLast = FALSE, ...)

exp()

Compute the exponential of values in R (e^x).

exp(x)

expm1()

Compute exp(x) - 1 for small values of x, providing numerical stability.

expm1(x)

floor()

Round numeric values down to the nearest integer in R.

floor(x)

head()

Return the first or last parts of a vector, matrix, table, data frame or function.

head(x, n = 6L, ...)

ifelse()

Transform elements based on a condition, returning one value if TRUE and another if FALSE.

ifelse(test, yes, no)

intersect()

Return the intersection of two vectors — elements common to both vectors.

intersect(x, y)

is.na()

Test for missing values (NA) in R objects.

is.na(x)

is.nan()

Test for NaN (Not a Number) values in R.

is.nan(x)

is.null()

Test whether an object is NULL in R.

is.null(x)

is.numeric()

Test whether an object has numeric type in R.

is.numeric(x)

lapply()

Apply a function to each element of a list or vector, returning a list.

lapply(X, FUN, ...)

length()

Get or set the length of a vector, list, or other R object in R

length(x)

log()

Compute the natural logarithm (base e) of values in R.

log(x, base = exp(1))

log10()

Compute the logarithm of values in base 10.

log10(x)

log1p()

Compute the natural logarithm of (1 + x) for small values of x, providing numerical stability.

log1p(x)

log2()

Compute the logarithm of values in base 2.

log2(x)

match()

Find element positions in a vector, returning indices of first matches.

match(x, table, nomatch = NA_integer_, incomparables = FALSE)

max()

Find the maximum value in a vector or across multiple arguments.

max(..., na.rm = FALSE, na.last = TRUE, type = c("ordinary", "ordered"))

mean()

Compute the arithmetic mean of a numeric vector, with optional trimming and NA handling.

mean(x, trim = 0, na.rm = FALSE, ...)

min()

Find the minimum value in a vector or across multiple arguments.

min(..., na.rm = FALSE, na.last = TRUE, type = c("ordinary", "ordered"))

ncol()

Get the number of columns in a matrix, array, or data frame. Returns NULL for vectors.

ncol(x)

nrow()

Get the number of rows in a matrix, array, or data frame. Returns NULL for vectors.

nrow(x)

on.exit

Register an expression to be evaluated when the enclosing function exits.

order()

Return the permutation that sorts a vector, or sort multiple vectors by one.

order(..., na.last = TRUE, decreasing = FALSE)

paste()

Concatenate strings with a separator, converting vectors to character and optionally collapsing into a single string.

paste(..., sep = " ", collapse = NULL, recycle0 = FALSE)

paste0()

Concatenate strings end-to-end without inserting separators between elements.

paste0(..., collapse = NULL)

print()

Print objects to the console or output connection. Generic function with methods for different object types.

print(x, ...)

range()

Returns the minimum and maximum values of a numeric vector, or the smallest and largest strings alphabetically.

range(..., na.rm = FALSE)

readline()

Read a line from the console or a connection for interactive user input in R scripts.

readline(prompt = NULL)

rep()

Replicate elements of a vector or list a specified number of times, creating repeated sequences.

rep(x, times = 1, length.out = NA, each = 1)

rm()

Remove objects from the specified environment by name, freeing memory and reducing namespace clutter.

rm(..., list = character(), envir = as.environment(pos))

round()

Round numeric values to a specified number of decimal places.

round(x, digits = 0)

rownames()

Get or set the row names of a matrix, data frame, or other R object.

rownames(x) <- value

sample()

Sample random elements from a vector or take a random subset of elements for simulation, testing, or resampling.

sample(x, size, replace = FALSE, prob = NULL)

sapply()

Apply a function to each element of a vector or list, simplifying the result to a vector or matrix when possible.

sapply(X, FUN, ..., simplify = TRUE, USE.NAMES = TRUE)

sd()

Compute the standard deviation of numeric vectors in R.

sd(x, na.rm = FALSE)

seq()

Generate regular sequences of numbers with customizable start, end, length, and increment.

seq(from = 1, to = 1, by = ((to - from)/(length.out - 1)), length.out = NULL, along.with = NULL)

setdiff()

Return elements in the first vector but not in the second — set difference operation.

setdiff(x, y)

sin()

Compute the trigonometric sine of values in R.

sin(x)

sort()

Sort a vector into ascending or descending order. Returns the input vector with elements arranged from smallest to largest.

sort(x, decreasing = FALSE, na.last = NA)

sprintf()

Format strings using C-style sprintf formatting to insert values into text templates.

sprintf(fmt, ...)

sqrt()

Compute the square root of values in R.

sqrt(x)

substr()

Extract or replace substrings in a character vector

substr(x, start, stop)

sum()

Calculate the sum of all elements in a vector or matrix, with optional handling of missing values.

sum(..., na.rm = FALSE)

Sys.sleep

Pause R execution for a specified number of seconds. Simple, side-effect-only delay for loops, retries, and rate-limiting.

Sys.sleep(time)

system2

Execute external commands from R, capturing output and exit status

system2(command, args = character(), stdout = "", stderr = "", stdin = "", input = NULL, env = character(), wait = TRUE, timeout = 0)

table()

Create contingency tables showing frequency counts for categorical variables, cross-tabulating one or more factors into a table of counts.

table(..., exclude = NA, useNA = c("no", "ifany", "always"))

tan()

Compute the trigonometric tangent of values in R.

tan(x)

tapply()

Apply a function to each level of a factor or group in a vector, creating grouped summaries.

tapply(X, INDEX, FUN = NULL, ..., default = NA, simplify = TRUE)

trunc()

Truncate numeric values toward zero in R.

trunc(x)

union()

Return the union of two vectors — all unique elements from both vectors.

union(x, y)

unique()

Extract unique values from a vector or remove duplicated rows in R objects.

unique(x, incomparables = FALSE, MARGIN = 1, fromLast = FALSE, ...)

var()

Compute the variance of numeric vectors in R.

var(x, y = NULL, na.rm = FALSE, use)

which.max / which.min()

Find the index of the minimum or maximum value in a vector, essential for locating extreme values in R.

which.min(x) / which.max(x)

which()

Return the indices of elements that satisfy a logical condition, enabling efficient filtering and subsetting in R.

which(x, arr.ind = FALSE, useNames = TRUE)

withCallingHandlers()

Register calling handlers for warnings, messages, and errors in R while preserving access to the call stack.

withCallingHandlers(expr, ..., finally = NULL)