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Dictionary¶

A built-in data structure that holds key-value pairs.

Description¶

Dictionaries are associative containers that contain values referenced by unique keys. Dictionaries will preserve the insertion order when adding new entries. In other programming languages, this data structure is often referred to as a hash map or an associative array.

You can define a dictionary by placing a comma-separated list of key: value pairs inside curly braces {}.

Creating a dictionary:

var my_dict = {} # Creates an empty dictionary.

var dict_variable_key = "Another key name"
var dict_variable_value = "value2"
var another_dict = {
    "Some key name": "value1",
    dict_variable_key: dict_variable_value,
}

var points_dict = {"White": 50, "Yellow": 75, "Orange": 100}

# Alternative Lua-style syntax.
# Doesn't require quotes around keys, but only string constants can be used as key names.
# Additionally, key names must start with a letter or an underscore.
# Here, `some_key` is a string literal, not a variable!
another_dict = {
    some_key = 42,
}

var myDict = new Godot.Collections.Dictionary(); // Creates an empty dictionary.
var pointsDict = new Godot.Collections.Dictionary
{
    {"White", 50},
    {"Yellow", 75},
    {"Orange", 100}
};

You can access a dictionary's value by referencing its corresponding key. In the above example, points_dict["White"] will return 50. You can also write points_dict.White, which is equivalent. However, you'll have to use the bracket syntax if the key you're accessing the dictionary with isn't a fixed string (such as a number or variable).

@export_enum("White", "Yellow", "Orange") var my_color: String
var points_dict = {"White": 50, "Yellow": 75, "Orange": 100}
func _ready():
    # We can't use dot syntax here as `my_color` is a variable.
    var points = points_dict[my_color]

[Export(PropertyHint.Enum, "White,Yellow,Orange")]
public string MyColor { get; set; }
private Godot.Collections.Dictionary _pointsDict = new Godot.Collections.Dictionary
{
    {"White", 50},
    {"Yellow", 75},
    {"Orange", 100}
};

public override void _Ready()
{
    int points = (int)_pointsDict[MyColor];
}

In the above code, points will be assigned the value that is paired with the appropriate color selected in my_color.

Dictionaries can contain more complex data:

var my_dict = {
    "First Array": [1, 2, 3, 4] # Assigns an Array to a String key.
}

var myDict = new Godot.Collections.Dictionary
{
    {"First Array", new Godot.Collections.Array{1, 2, 3, 4}}
};

To add a key to an existing dictionary, access it like an existing key and assign to it:

var points_dict = {"White": 50, "Yellow": 75, "Orange": 100}
points_dict["Blue"] = 150 # Add "Blue" as a key and assign 150 as its value.

var pointsDict = new Godot.Collections.Dictionary
{
    {"White", 50},
    {"Yellow", 75},
    {"Orange", 100}
};
pointsDict["Blue"] = 150; // Add "Blue" as a key and assign 150 as its value.

Finally, dictionaries can contain different types of keys and values in the same dictionary:

# This is a valid dictionary.
# To access the string "Nested value" below, use `my_dict.sub_dict.sub_key` or `my_dict["sub_dict"]["sub_key"]`.
# Indexing styles can be mixed and matched depending on your needs.
var my_dict = {
    "String Key": 5,
    4: [1, 2, 3],
    7: "Hello",
    "sub_dict": {"sub_key": "Nested value"},
}

// This is a valid dictionary.
// To access the string "Nested value" below, use `((Godot.Collections.Dictionary)myDict["sub_dict"])["sub_key"]`.
var myDict = new Godot.Collections.Dictionary {
    {"String Key", 5},
    {4, new Godot.Collections.Array{1,2,3}},
    {7, "Hello"},
    {"sub_dict", new Godot.Collections.Dictionary{{"sub_key", "Nested value"}}}
};

The keys of a dictionary can be iterated with the for keyword:

var groceries = {"Orange": 20, "Apple": 2, "Banana": 4}
for fruit in groceries:
    var amount = groceries[fruit]

var groceries = new Godot.Collections.Dictionary{{"Orange", 20}, {"Apple", 2}, {"Banana", 4}};
foreach (var (fruit, amount) in groceries)
{
    // `fruit` is the key, `amount` is the value.
}

Note: Dictionaries are always passed by reference. To get a copy of a dictionary which can be modified independently of the original dictionary, use duplicate.

Note: Erasing elements while iterating over dictionaries is not supported and will result in unpredictable behavior.

Tutorials¶

Constructors¶

Dictionary	Dictionary ( )
Dictionary	Dictionary ( Dictionary from )

Methods¶

void	clear ( )
Dictionary	duplicate ( bool deep=false ) const
bool	erase ( Variant key )
Variant	find_key ( Variant value ) const
Variant	get ( Variant key, Variant default=null ) const
bool	has ( Variant key ) const
bool	has_all ( Array keys ) const
int	hash ( ) const
bool	is_empty ( ) const
bool	is_read_only ( ) const
Array	keys ( ) const
void	make_read_only ( )
void	merge ( Dictionary dictionary, bool overwrite=false )
int	size ( ) const
Array	values ( ) const

Operators¶

bool	operator != ( Dictionary right )
bool	operator == ( Dictionary right )
Variant	operator [] ( Variant key )

Constructor Descriptions¶

Dictionary Dictionary ( )

Constructs an empty Dictionary.

Dictionary Dictionary ( Dictionary from )

Returns the same dictionary as from. If you need a copy of the dictionary, use duplicate.

Method Descriptions¶

void clear ( )

Clears the dictionary, removing all entries from it.

Dictionary duplicate ( bool deep=false ) const

Creates and returns a new copy of the dictionary. If deep is true, inner Dictionary and Array keys and values are also copied, recursively.

bool erase ( Variant key )

Removes the dictionary entry by key, if it exists. Returns true if the given key existed in the dictionary, otherwise false.

Note: Do not erase entries while iterating over the dictionary. You can iterate over the keys array instead.

Variant find_key ( Variant value ) const

Finds and returns the first key whose associated value is equal to value, or null if it is not found.

Note: null is also a valid key. If inside the dictionary, find_key may give misleading results.

Variant get ( Variant key, Variant default=null ) const

Returns the corresponding value for the given key in the dictionary. If the key does not exist, returns default, or null if the parameter is omitted.

bool has ( Variant