What are argument in excel

Arguments are the values that functions use to perform calculations. In spreadsheet programs such as Excel and Google Sheets, functions are just built-in formulas that carry out set calculations and most of these functions require data to be entered, either by the user or another source, in order to return a result.

Contents

  • 1 What is the argument in an Excel function?
  • 2 What are arguments in Excel explain giving example?
  • 3 What is the type argument in Excel?
  • 4 What are the two kinds of arguments in Excel?
  • 5 What are the 3 arguments of the IF function?
  • 6 How do you create an argument in Excel?
  • 7 What is the argument of a story?
  • 8 What is an argument in parentheses?
  • 9 How many arguments can a function have in Excel?
  • 10 What are the 3 types of cell references in Excel?
  • 11 What is a syntax in Excel?
  • 12 How do you access function arguments in Excel?
  • 13 What are the 10 logical functions in Excel?
  • 14 How do you create a logical argument in Excel?
  • 15 How many arguments are required for the SUM function?
  • 16 What is Vlookup in Excel?
  • 17 What does spill mean in Excel?
  • 18 What is the third argument in an IF statement in Excel?
  • 19 What does the rand function do?
  • 20 What is argument explain with example?

What is the argument in an Excel function?

A function argument is a specific input to a function. For example, the VLOOKUP function takes four arguments as follows: =VLOOKUP (value, table, col_index, [range_lookup]) Note most arguments are required, but some are optional. In Excel, optional arguments are denoted with square brackets.

What are arguments in Excel explain giving example?

Most of the functions found in Excel require some input or information in order to calculate correctly. For example, to use the AVERAGE function, you need to give it a range of numbers to average. =AVERAGE(A1:A100) Any input you give to a function is called an argument.

What is the type argument in Excel?

The Excel TYPE function returns a numeric code representing “type” in 5 categories: number = 1, text = 2, logical = 4, error = 16, and array = 64. Use TYPE when the operation of a formula depends on the type of value in a particular cell.

What are the two kinds of arguments in Excel?

The types of arguments that are used in Excel are given below.

  • Numeric data (=SUM(5,10))
  • Text-string data (=UPPER(“siam”))
  • Boolean values (=OR(1+1=2))
  • Error Values (=ISERR(#VALUE!))
  • Other functions (=DATE(YEAR(A2) + B2, MONTH(A2), DAY(A2)))

What are the 3 arguments of the IF function?

There are 3 parts (arguments) to the IF function:

  • TEST something, such as the value in a cell.
  • Specify what should happen if the test result is TRUE.
  • Specify what should happen if the test result is FALSE.

How do you create an argument in Excel?

Follow these steps:

  1. Click the cell with the existing function.
  2. Click the Insert Function button. The Function Argument dialog box appears.
  3. Add, edit, or delete arguments, as follows:
  4. Click OK when you’re finished.

What is the argument of a story?

Argument Definition
An argument is the main statement of a poem, an essay, a short story, or a novel, which usually appears as an introduction, or a point on which the writer will develop his work in order to convince his readers. Literature does not merely entertain. It also intends to shape the outlook of readers.

What is an argument in parentheses?

1. For the initial line of a Sub or Function, you use parentheses to enclose the arguments (if any), e.g. Sub MySubroutine(a As Long, b As String) or. Function MyFunction(a As Long, B As String) As Long.

How many arguments can a function have in Excel?

The concept of additional optional arguments is expressed with ellipses, which appear at the end of the argument list when a function takes multiple optional arguments. The SUM function can actually accept up to 256 arguments total.

What are the 3 types of cell references in Excel?

Relative, Absolute and Mixed
A key element of a formula is the cell reference, and there are three types: Relative. Absolute. Mixed.

What is a syntax in Excel?

The syntax of a function in Excel or Google Sheets refers to the layout and order of the function and its arguments.All functions begin with the equal sign ( = ) followed by the function’s name such as IF, SUM, COUNT, or ROUND.

How do you access function arguments in Excel?

Keyboard shortcut fans might know that you can start typing a formula, like =VLOOKUP(, into a cell and then press Ctrl+A to open the Functions Argument for that function.

What are the 10 logical functions in Excel?

Excel logical functions – overview

Function Description Formula Example
AND Returns TRUE if all of the arguments evaluate to TRUE. =AND(A2>=10, B2<5)
OR Returns TRUE if any argument evaluates to TRUE. =OR(A2>=10, B2<5)
XOR Returns a logical Exclusive Or of all arguments. =XOR(A2>=10, B2<5)

How do you create a logical argument in Excel?

Use the IF function, one of the logical functions, to return one value if a condition is true and another value if it’s false. For example: =IF(A2>B2,”Over Budget”,”OK”) =IF(A2=B2,B4-A4,””)
Syntax.

Argument name Description
value_if_false (optional) The value that you want returned if the result of logical_test is FALSE.

How many arguments are required for the SUM function?

These values can be numbers, cell references, ranges, arrays, and constants, in any combination. SUM can handle up to 255 individual arguments. The SUM function takes multiple arguments in the form number1, number2, number3, etc. up to 255 total.

What is Vlookup in Excel?

VLOOKUP stands for ‘Vertical Lookup’. It is a function that makes Excel search for a certain value in a column (the so called ‘table array’), in order to return a value from a different column in the same row.

What does spill mean in Excel?

#SPILL errors are returned when a formula returns multiple results, and Excel cannot return the results to the grid.

What is the third argument in an IF statement in Excel?

The IF Function has 3 arguments: Logical test. This is where we can compare data or see if a condition is met. Value if true.

What does the rand function do?

RAND returns an evenly distributed random real number greater than or equal to 0 and less than 1. A new random real number is returned every time the worksheet is calculated. Note: As of Excel 2010, Excel uses the Mersenne Twister algorithm (MT19937) to generate random numbers.

What is argument explain with example?

For example, consider the argument that because bats can fly (premise=true), and all flying creatures are birds (premise=false), therefore bats are birds (conclusion=false). If we assume the premises are true, the conclusion follows necessarily, and it is a valid argument.

If you’re new to Excel for the web, you’ll soon find that it’s more than just a grid in which you enter numbers in columns or rows. Yes, you can use Excel for the web to find totals for a column or row of numbers, but you can also calculate a mortgage payment, solve math or engineering problems, or find a best case scenario based on variable numbers that you plug in.

Excel for the web does this by using formulas in cells. A formula performs calculations or other actions on the data in your worksheet. A formula always starts with an equal sign (=), which can be followed by numbers, math operators (such as a plus or minus sign), and functions, which can really expand the power of a formula.

For example, the following formula multiplies 2 by 3 and then adds 5 to that result to come up with the answer, 11.

=2*3+5

This next formula uses the PMT function to calculate a mortgage payment ($1,073.64), which is based on a 5 percent interest rate (5% divided by 12 months equals the monthly interest rate) over a 30-year period (360 months) for a $200,000 loan:

=PMT(0.05/12,360,200000)

Here are some additional examples of formulas that you can enter in a worksheet.

  • =A1+A2+A3    Adds the values in cells A1, A2, and A3.

  • =SQRT(A1)    Uses the SQRT function to return the square root of the value in A1.

  • =TODAY()    Returns the current date.

  • =UPPER(«hello»)     Converts the text «hello» to «HELLO» by using the UPPER worksheet function.

  • =IF(A1>0)    Tests the cell A1 to determine if it contains a value greater than 0.

The parts of a formula

A formula can also contain any or all of the following: functions, references, operators, and constants.

Parts of a formula

1. Functions: The PI() function returns the value of pi: 3.142…

2. References: A2 returns the value in cell A2.

3. Constants: Numbers or text values entered directly into a formula, such as 2.

4. Operators: The ^ (caret) operator raises a number to a power, and the * (asterisk) operator multiplies numbers.

Using constants in formulas

A constant is a value that is not calculated; it always stays the same. For example, the date 10/9/2008, the number 210, and the text «Quarterly Earnings» are all constants. An expression or a value resulting from an expression is not a constant. If you use constants in a formula instead of references to cells (for example, =30+70+110), the result changes only if you modify the formula.

Using calculation operators in formulas

Operators specify the type of calculation that you want to perform on the elements of a formula. There is a default order in which calculations occur (this follows general mathematical rules), but you can change this order by using parentheses.

Types of operators

There are four different types of calculation operators: arithmetic, comparison, text concatenation, and reference.

Arithmetic operators

To perform basic mathematical operations, such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division; combine numbers; and produce numeric results, use the following arithmetic operators.

Arithmetic operator

Meaning

Example

+ (plus sign)

Addition

3+3

– (minus sign)

Subtraction
Negation

3–1
–1

* (asterisk)

Multiplication

3*3

/ (forward slash)

Division

3/3

% (percent sign)

Percent

20%

^ (caret)

Exponentiation

3^2

Comparison operators

You can compare two values with the following operators. When two values are compared by using these operators, the result is a logical value — either TRUE or FALSE.

Comparison operator

Meaning

Example

= (equal sign)

Equal to

A1=B1

> (greater than sign)

Greater than

A1>B1

< (less than sign)

Less than

A1<B1

>= (greater than or equal to sign)

Greater than or equal to

A1>=B1

<= (less than or equal to sign)

Less than or equal to

A1<=B1

<> (not equal to sign)

Not equal to

A1<>B1

Text concatenation operator

Use the ampersand (&) to concatenate (join) one or more text strings to produce a single piece of text.

Text operator

Meaning

Example

& (ampersand)

Connects, or concatenates, two values to produce one continuous text value

«North»&»wind» results in «Northwind»

Reference operators

Combine ranges of cells for calculations with the following operators.

Reference operator

Meaning

Example

: (colon)

Range operator, which produces one reference to all the cells between two references, including the two references.

B5:B15

, (comma)

Union operator, which combines multiple references into one reference

SUM(B5:B15,D5:D15)

(space)

Intersection operator, which produces one reference to cells common to the two references

B7:D7 C6:C8

The order in which Excel for the web performs operations in formulas

In some cases, the order in which a calculation is performed can affect the return value of the formula, so it’s important to understand how the order is determined and how you can change the order to obtain the results you want.

Calculation order

Formulas calculate values in a specific order. A formula always begins with an equal sign (=). Excel for the web interprets the characters that follow the equal sign as a formula. Following the equal sign are the elements to be calculated (the operands), such as constants or cell references. These are separated by calculation operators. Excel for the web calculates the formula from left to right, according to a specific order for each operator in the formula.

Operator precedence

If you combine several operators in a single formula, Excel for the web performs the operations in the order shown in the following table. If a formula contains operators with the same precedence—for example, if a formula contains both a multiplication and division operator— Excel for the web evaluates the operators from left to right.

Operator

Description

: (colon)

(single space)

, (comma)

Reference operators

Negation (as in –1)

%

Percent

^

Exponentiation

* and /

Multiplication and division

+ and –

Addition and subtraction

&

Connects two strings of text (concatenation)

=
< >
<=
>=
<>

Comparison

Use of parentheses

To change the order of evaluation, enclose in parentheses the part of the formula to be calculated first. For example, the following formula produces 11 because Excel for the web performs multiplication before addition. The formula multiplies 2 by 3 and then adds 5 to the result.

=5+2*3

In contrast, if you use parentheses to change the syntax, Excel for the web adds 5 and 2 together and then multiplies the result by 3 to produce 21.

=(5+2)*3

In the following example, the parentheses that enclose the first part of the formula force Excel for the web to calculate B4+25 first and then divide the result by the sum of the values in cells D5, E5, and F5.

=(B4+25)/SUM(D5:F5)

Using functions and nested functions in formulas

Functions are predefined formulas that perform calculations by using specific values, called arguments, in a particular order, or structure. Functions can be used to perform simple or complex calculations.

The syntax of functions

The following example of the ROUND function rounding off a number in cell A10 illustrates the syntax of a function.

Structure of a function

1. Structure. The structure of a function begins with an equal sign (=), followed by the function name, an opening parenthesis, the arguments for the function separated by commas, and a closing parenthesis.

2. Function name. For a list of available functions, click a cell and press SHIFT+F3.

3. Arguments. Arguments can be numbers, text, logical values such as TRUE or FALSE, arrays, error values such as #N/A, or cell references. The argument you designate must produce a valid value for that argument. Arguments can also be constants, formulas, or other functions.

4. Argument tooltip. A tooltip with the syntax and arguments appears as you type the function. For example, type =ROUND( and the tooltip appears. Tooltips appear only for built-in functions.

Entering functions

When you create a formula that contains a function, you can use the Insert Function dialog box to help you enter worksheet functions. As you enter a function into the formula, the Insert Function dialog box displays the name of the function, each of its arguments, a description of the function and each argument, the current result of the function, and the current result of the entire formula.

To make it easier to create and edit formulas and minimize typing and syntax errors, use Formula AutoComplete. After you type an = (equal sign) and beginning letters or a display trigger, Excel for the web displays, below the cell, a dynamic drop-down list of valid functions, arguments, and names that match the letters or trigger. You can then insert an item from the drop-down list into the formula.

Nesting functions

In certain cases, you may need to use a function as one of the arguments of another function. For example, the following formula uses a nested AVERAGE function and compares the result with the value 50.

Nested functions

1. The AVERAGE and SUM functions are nested within the IF function.

Valid returns    When a nested function is used as an argument, the nested function must return the same type of value that the argument uses. For example, if the argument returns a TRUE or FALSE value, the nested function must return a TRUE or FALSE value. If the function doesn’t, Excel for the web displays a #VALUE! error value.

Nesting level limits    A formula can contain up to seven levels of nested functions. When one function (we’ll call this Function B) is used as an argument in another function (we’ll call this Function A), Function B acts as a second-level function. For example, the AVERAGE function and the SUM function are both second-level functions if they are used as arguments of the IF function. A function nested within the nested AVERAGE function is then a third-level function, and so on.

Using references in formulas

A reference identifies a cell or a range of cells on a worksheet, and tells Excel for the web where to look for the values or data you want to use in a formula. You can use references to use data contained in different parts of a worksheet in one formula or use the value from one cell in several formulas. You can also refer to cells on other sheets in the same workbook, and to other workbooks. References to cells in other workbooks are called links or external references.

The A1 reference style

The default reference style    By default, Excel for the web uses the A1 reference style, which refers to columns with letters (A through XFD, for a total of 16,384 columns) and refers to rows with numbers (1 through 1,048,576). These letters and numbers are called row and column headings. To refer to a cell, enter the column letter followed by the row number. For example, B2 refers to the cell at the intersection of column B and row 2.

To refer to

Use

The cell in column A and row 10

A10

The range of cells in column A and rows 10 through 20

A10:A20

The range of cells in row 15 and columns B through E

B15:E15

All cells in row 5

5:5

All cells in rows 5 through 10

5:10

All cells in column H

H:H

All cells in columns H through J

H:J

The range of cells in columns A through E and rows 10 through 20

A10:E20

Making a reference to another worksheet    In the following example, the AVERAGE worksheet function calculates the average value for the range B1:B10 on the worksheet named Marketing in the same workbook.

Sheet reference example

1. Refers to the worksheet named Marketing

2. Refers to the range of cells between B1 and B10, inclusively

3. Separates the worksheet reference from the cell range reference

The difference between absolute, relative and mixed references

Relative references    A relative cell reference in a formula, such as A1, is based on the relative position of the cell that contains the formula and the cell the reference refers to. If the position of the cell that contains the formula changes, the reference is changed. If you copy or fill the formula across rows or down columns, the reference automatically adjusts. By default, new formulas use relative references. For example, if you copy or fill a relative reference in cell B2 to cell B3, it automatically adjusts from =A1 to =A2.

Copied formula with relative reference

Absolute references    An absolute cell reference in a formula, such as $A$1, always refer to a cell in a specific location. If the position of the cell that contains the formula changes, the absolute reference remains the same. If you copy or fill the formula across rows or down columns, the absolute reference does not adjust. By default, new formulas use relative references, so you may need to switch them to absolute references. For example, if you copy or fill an absolute reference in cell B2 to cell B3, it stays the same in both cells: =$A$1.

Copied formula with absolute reference

Mixed references    A mixed reference has either an absolute column and relative row, or absolute row and relative column. An absolute column reference takes the form $A1, $B1, and so on. An absolute row reference takes the form A$1, B$1, and so on. If the position of the cell that contains the formula changes, the relative reference is changed, and the absolute reference does not change. If you copy or fill the formula across rows or down columns, the relative reference automatically adjusts, and the absolute reference does not adjust. For example, if you copy or fill a mixed reference from cell A2 to B3, it adjusts from =A$1 to =B$1.

Copied formula with mixed reference

The 3-D reference style

Conveniently referencing multiple worksheets    If you want to analyze data in the same cell or range of cells on multiple worksheets within a workbook, use a 3-D reference. A 3-D reference includes the cell or range reference, preceded by a range of worksheet names. Excel for the web uses any worksheets stored between the starting and ending names of the reference. For example, =SUM(Sheet2:Sheet13!B5) adds all the values contained in cell B5 on all the worksheets between and including Sheet 2 and Sheet 13.

  • You can use 3-D references to refer to cells on other sheets, to define names, and to create formulas by using the following functions: SUM, AVERAGE, AVERAGEA, COUNT, COUNTA, MAX, MAXA, MIN, MINA, PRODUCT, STDEV.P, STDEV.S, STDEVA, STDEVPA, VAR.P, VAR.S, VARA, and VARPA.

  • 3-D references cannot be used in array formulas.

  • 3-D references cannot be used with the intersection operator (a single space) or in formulas that use implicit intersection.

What occurs when you move, copy, insert, or delete worksheets    The following examples explain what happens when you move, copy, insert, or delete worksheets that are included in a 3-D reference. The examples use the formula =SUM(Sheet2:Sheet6!A2:A5) to add cells A2 through A5 on worksheets 2 through 6.

  • Insert or copy    If you insert or copy sheets between Sheet2 and Sheet6 (the endpoints in this example), Excel for the web includes all values in cells A2 through A5 from the added sheets in the calculations.

  • Delete     If you delete sheets between Sheet2 and Sheet6, Excel for the web removes their values from the calculation.

  • Move    If you move sheets from between Sheet2 and Sheet6 to a location outside the referenced sheet range, Excel for the web removes their values from the calculation.

  • Move an endpoint    If you move Sheet2 or Sheet6 to another location in the same workbook, Excel for the web adjusts the calculation to accommodate the new range of sheets between them.

  • Delete an endpoint    If you delete Sheet2 or Sheet6, Excel for the web adjusts the calculation to accommodate the range of sheets between them.

The R1C1 reference style

You can also use a reference style where both the rows and the columns on the worksheet are numbered. The R1C1 reference style is useful for computing row and column positions in macros. In the R1C1 style, Excel for the web indicates the location of a cell with an «R» followed by a row number and a «C» followed by a column number.

Reference

Meaning

R[-2]C

A relative reference to the cell two rows up and in the same column

R[2]C[2]

A relative reference to the cell two rows down and two columns to the right

R2C2

An absolute reference to the cell in the second row and in the second column

R[-1]

A relative reference to the entire row above the active cell

R

An absolute reference to the current row

When you record a macro, Excel for the web records some commands by using the R1C1 reference style. For example, if you record a command, such as clicking the AutoSum button to insert a formula that adds a range of cells, Excel for the web records the formula by using R1C1 style, not A1 style, references.

Using names in formulas

You can create defined names to represent cells, ranges of cells, formulas, constants, or Excel for the web tables. A name is a meaningful shorthand that makes it easier to understand the purpose of a cell reference, constant, formula, or table, each of which may be difficult to comprehend at first glance. The following information shows common examples of names and how using them in formulas can improve clarity and make formulas easier to understand.

Example Type

Example, using ranges instead of names

Example, using names

Reference

=SUM(A16:A20)

=SUM(Sales)

Constant

=PRODUCT(A12,9.5%)

=PRODUCT(Price,KCTaxRate)

Formula

=TEXT(VLOOKUP(MAX(A16,A20),A16:B20,2,FALSE),»m/dd/yyyy»)

=TEXT(VLOOKUP(MAX(Sales),SalesInfo,2,FALSE),»m/dd/yyyy»)

Table

A22:B25

=PRODUCT(Price,Table1[@Tax Rate])

Types of names

There are several types of names that you can create and use.

Defined name    A name that represents a cell, range of cells, formula, or constant value. You can create your own defined name. Also, Excel for the web sometimes creates a defined name for you, such as when you set a print area.

Table name    A name for an Excel for the web table, which is a collection of data about a particular subject that is stored in records (rows) and fields (columns). Excel for the web creates a default Excel for the web table name of «Table1», «Table2», and so on, each time you insert an Excel for the web table, but you can change these names to make them more meaningful.

Creating and entering names

You create a name by using Create a name from selection. You can conveniently create names from existing row and column labels by using a selection of cells in the worksheet.

Note: By default, names use absolute cell references.

You can enter a name by:

  • Typing     Typing the name, for example, as an argument to a formula.

  • Using Formula AutoComplete    Use the Formula AutoComplete drop-down list, where valid names are automatically listed for you.

Using array formulas and array constants

Excel for the web doesn’t support creating array formulas. You can view the results of array formulas created in Excel desktop application, but you can’t edit or recalculate them. If you have the Excel desktop application, click Open in Excel to work with arrays.

The following array example calculates the total value of an array of stock prices and shares, without using a row of cells to calculate and display the individual values for each stock.

Array formula that produces a single result

When you enter the formula ={SUM(B2:D2*B3:D3)} as an array formula, it multiples the Shares and Price for each stock, and then adds the results of those calculations together.

To calculate multiple results    Some worksheet functions return arrays of values, or require an array of values as an argument. To calculate multiple results with an array formula, you must enter the array into a range of cells that has the same number of rows and columns as the array arguments.

For example, given a series of three sales figures (in column B) for a series of three months (in column A), the TREND function determines the straight-line values for the sales figures. To display all the results of the formula, it is entered into three cells in column C (C1:C3).

Array formula that produces multiple results

When you enter the formula =TREND(B1:B3,A1:A3) as an array formula, it produces three separate results (22196, 17079, and 11962), based on the three sales figures and the three months.

Using array constants

In an ordinary formula, you can enter a reference to a cell containing a value, or the value itself, also called a constant. Similarly, in an array formula you can enter a reference to an array, or enter the array of values contained within the cells, also called an array constant. Array formulas accept constants in the same way that non-array formulas do, but you must enter the array constants in a certain format.

Array constants can contain numbers, text, logical values such as TRUE or FALSE, or error values such as #N/A. Different types of values can be in the same array constant — for example, {1,3,4;TRUE,FALSE,TRUE}. Numbers in array constants can be in integer, decimal, or scientific format. Text must be enclosed in double quotation marks — for example, «Tuesday».

Array constants cannot contain cell references, columns or rows of unequal length, formulas, or the special characters $ (dollar sign), parentheses, or % (percent sign).

When you format array constants, make sure you:

  • Enclose them in braces ( { } ).

  • Separate values in different columns by using commas (,). For example, to represent the values 10, 20, 30, and 40, you enter {10,20,30,40}. This array constant is known as a 1-by-4 array and is equivalent to a 1-row-by-4-column reference.

  • Separate values in different rows by using semicolons (;). For example, to represent the values 10, 20, 30, and 40 in one row and 50, 60, 70, and 80 in the row immediately below, you enter a 2-by-4 array constant: {10,20,30,40;50,60,70,80}.

=AND(A2>=10, B2 =10, B2 =10, B2 How do you create a logical argument in Excel?

Use the IF function, one of the logical functions, to return one value if a condition is true and another value if it’s false. For example: =IF(A2>B2,”Over Budget”,”OK”) =IF(A2=B2,B4-A4,””)
Syntax.

Argument name Description
value_if_false (optional) The value that you want returned if the result of logical_test is FALSE.

How many arguments are required for the SUM function?

These values can be numbers, cell references, ranges, arrays, and constants, in any combination. SUM can handle up to 255 individual arguments. The SUM function takes multiple arguments in the form number1, number2, number3, etc. up to 255 total.

What is Vlookup in Excel?

VLOOKUP stands for ‘Vertical Lookup’. It is a function that makes Excel search for a certain value in a column (the so called ‘table array’), in order to return a value from a different column in the same row.

What does spill mean in Excel?

#SPILL errors are returned when a formula returns multiple results, and Excel cannot return the results to the grid.

What is the third argument in an IF statement in Excel?

The IF Function has 3 arguments: Logical test. This is where we can compare data or see if a condition is met. Value if true.

What does the rand function do?

RAND returns an evenly distributed random real number greater than or equal to 0 and less than 1. A new random real number is returned every time the worksheet is calculated. Note: As of Excel 2010, Excel uses the Mersenne Twister algorithm (MT19937) to generate random numbers.

What is argument explain with example?

For example, consider the argument that because bats can fly (premise=true), and all flying creatures are birds (premise=false), therefore bats are birds (conclusion=false). If we assume the premises are true, the conclusion follows necessarily, and it is a valid argument.

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VBA Optional Arguments and Default Values

September 04, 2021

When creating your VBA subs and functions, you may come across a time where you want to have an optional parameter — something that the calling procedure doesn’t have to specify, but can if they like. You may also want to have that optional argument have a default value in case nothing is supplied. So how do we do this? It’s easier than you think.

Here’s an example of a function that takes a name, a salutation, and outputs a greeting:

Let’s make the salutation part optional:

All we did was add the Optional keyword at the beginning of the parameter definition.

So what happens if we don’t pass anything to it?

Since we didn’t specify a value for salutation , the default value for a string was used (which is a blank string).

Let’s now add a default value for salutation :

Now let’s re-run the function:

Great, it works as expected.

Here’s our full code sample so far:

List Optional Parameters at the End of the Procedure Definition

Optional parameters must be listed at the end of the procedure definition. This means that the procedure definition will have a set of required parameters, followed by a set of optional ones (or, you can have only optional parameters).

For example, say you have a procedure with 2 required parameters and 2 optional ones:

You cannot have the optional arguments in any position except the end of the definition. For example, this wouldn’t work:

Even though there is an optional argument at the end ( myOptionalArg2 ), there is an optional argument before a required one ( myOptionalArg1 is before required2 ) and that syntax is invalid.

Optional Arguments can be any Type Except a UDT

Optional parameters can be any type except a User Defined Type. If you specify a user defined type, when the code compiles, you will receive this error:

Detecting a Missing Parameter

If you want to know if a parameter was passed in by the caller or not, you can use the IsMissing function. This will return True if the parameter was not supplied to the procedure, but only under certain conditions:

  1. There cannot be a default value for the parameter in the procedure definition.
  2. The type for the parameter must be Variant . Simple types like Long , Boolean , String will always have IsMissing return False , this is because for simple types, a default value is already supplied (for Long , it’s 0 , Boolean is False , String is «» ).

Because we defined our salutation parameter as a string and we gave it a default value, our current code will not work:

In order for the IsMissing function to return True , we need to remove the default value and change the type to Variant :

Now, salutation is an undefined Variant object and IsMissing(salutation) will return True . However, because it’s missing, VBA doesn’t have anything to refer to when we try to access it, so when we try to return salutation & «, » & name & «!» , it will throw an error.

One way to fix this is to avoid using the salutation variable when it’s not supplied:

Another way to fix it would be to supply a default value later in the code:

For our example, it would be better to change salutation to be a String and supply a default value for it. However, you may have a specific scenario where you need to know if a parameter was intentionally left out, in which case, you can use the IsMissing function as we did above.

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How do I supply one optional parameter out of two?

If you have multiple optional parameters and only want to specify some of them, you can do so using a feature called named arguments. We’ll have another blog post on this topic in more depth, but for now, we’ll explain its usage briefly.

To use named arguments, when calling the procedure, you specify the variable you want to supply a value to by using a colon followed by an equal sign in this format:

Here’s a quick example:

Here, we have two arguments: salutationStart and salutationEnd . We made the type Variant and left out a default value, allowing us to make use of the IsMissing function.

When we call CreateGreeting with just the name and salutationEnd :

We are telling VBA that the second parameter we listed is specifically for the salutationEnd argument in the procedure definition of CreateGreeting . This means that the salutationStart variable is not supplied and when we call IsMissing(salutationStart) it will return True .

Again, we’ll dive into named arguments in a later post, but for now, this is how you can specify optional arguments when you don’t want to (or can’t) supply them all.

Wow, you read the whole article! You know, people who make it this far are true learners. And clearly, you value learning. Would you like to learn more about Excel? Please consider supporting me by buying me a coffee (it takes a lot of coffee to write these articles!).

Written by Joseph who loves teaching about Excel.

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Understanding named arguments and optional arguments

When you call a Sub or Function procedure, you can supply arguments positionally, in the order that they appear in the procedure’s definition, or you can supply the arguments by name without regard to position.

For example, the following Sub procedure takes three arguments.

You can call this procedure by supplying its arguments in the correct position, each delimited by a comma, as shown in the following example.

You can also call this procedure by supplying named arguments, delimiting each with a comma.

A named argument consists of an argument name followed by a colon and an equal sign (:=), followed by the argument value.

Named arguments are especially useful when you are calling a procedure that has optional arguments. If you use named arguments, you don’t have to include commas to denote missing positional arguments. Using named arguments makes it easier to keep track of which arguments you passed and which you omitted.

Optional arguments are preceded by the Optional keyword in the procedure definition. You can also specify a default value for the optional argument in the procedure definition. For example:

When you call a procedure with an optional argument, you can choose whether or not to specify the optional argument. If you don’t specify the optional argument, the default value, if any, is used. If no default value is specified, the argument would be for any variable of the specified type.

The following procedure includes two optional arguments, the varRegion and varCountry variables. The IsMissing function determines whether an optional Variant argument has been passed to the procedure.

You can call this procedure by using named arguments as shown in the following example.

See also

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A function with an optional argument

Many Excel built-in worksheet functions use optional arguments. An example is the LEFT function, which returns characters from the left side of a string. Its official syntax follows:

The first argument is required, but the second is optional. If you omit the optional argument, Excel assumes a value of 1. Therefore, the following formulas return the same result:

The custom functions you develop in VBA also can have optional arguments. You specify an optional argument by preceding the argument’s name with the keyword Optional, followed by an equal sign and the default value. If the optional argument is missing, the code uses the default value.

Debugging custom functions

Debugging a Function procedure can be a bit more challenging than debugging a Sub procedure. If you develop a function for use in worksheet formulas, you find that an error in the Function procedure simply results in an error display in the formula cell (usually #VALUE!). In other words, you don’t receive the normal runtime error message that helps you locate the offending statement.

You can choose among three methods for debugging custom functions:

I Place MsgBox functions at strategic locations to monitor the value of specific variables. Fortunately, message boxes in Function procedures pop up when you execute the procedure. Make sure that only one formula in the worksheet uses your function, or the message boxes appear for each formula that’s evaluated — which could get very annoying.

I Test the procedure by calling it from a Sub procedure. Run-time errors appear normally in a pop-up window, and you can either correct the problem (if you know it) or jump right into the debugger.

I Set a breakpoint in the function and then use the Excel debugger to step through the function. You can then access all of the usual debugging tools. Refer to Chapter 13 to find out about the debugger.

Function DrawOne(InRange, Optional Recalc =

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detectorThe following example shows a custom function using an optional argument:

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Function Arguments in Excel

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Function Arguments in Excel

Arguments in Excel Functions are input values to an Excel Function. Most of the Excel Functions will take one or more arguments, will be used in the function programs as input data and return the outputs. For example, Trim Function will take a string as input (argument) and returned the output by removing the extra spaces from the string.

Data Types of Parameters

Optional Arguments

Required Arguments

Functions with no Arguments

Functions with One Arguments

Functions with Multiple Arguments

Arguments Separator

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A function argument is a specific input to a function. For example, the VLOOKUP function takes four arguments as follows:

=VLOOKUP (value, table, col_index, [range_lookup])

Note most arguments are required, but some are optional. In Excel, optional arguments are denoted with square brackets. For example, the fourth argument in VLOOKUP function, range_lookup, is optional and appears in square brackets as shown above.

Finally, many Excel functions accept multiple optional arguments, which are denoted with an ellipses (…)

For example, the COUNTIFS function accepts multiple and optional range and criteria pairs, which can be represented like this:

=COUNTIFS(range1,criteria1,[range2,criteria2],...)

This means you can optionally add additional arguments in pairs: range3/criteria3, range4/criteria4, etc.

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