What causes TypeScript to display an 'Object is potentially undefined' error message when utilizing array.at(-1)?

An issue arises in Typescript with the error message "Object is possibly 'undefined'" when attempting to access an element at a negative index using

array.at(-1).key //array[array.length - 1].key
. This error does not occur in the following code:

class P {
    public x: number
    public constructor(x: number) {
        this.x = x
    }
}

const a = [new P(1)]

console.log(a[a.length - 1].x)

However, the error is triggered when using the code snippet below:

class P {
    public x: number
    public constructor(x: number) {
        this.x = x
    }
}

const a = [new P(1)]

console.log(a.at(-1).x)

The error also occurs when checking if the value is undefined in the example provided:

class P {
    public x: number
    public constructor(x: number) {
        this.x = x
    }
}

const a = [new P(1)]

if (a.at(-1) !== undefined) console.log(a.at(-1).x)

Answer №1

The use of square brackets for array indexing has been a fundamental feature in JavaScript since its inception. Initially, it was the sole method for accessing elements in an array. While it does return undefined for non-existent indexes or keys, TypeScript decided to deviate from strict soundness due to the widespread usage of this operator in all kinds of code. Checking for undefined after each indexing operation would be cumbersome and inelegant.

A recent addition to JavaScript's arsenal is the Array.at() method introduced in ES2022. The current TypeScript compiler enforces strict semantics with this method, requiring explicit checks for undefined.

The code snippet

if (a.at(-1) !== undefined) console.log(a.at(-1).x)
doesn't function as expected due to potential concerns about common subexpression elimination and the possibility of monkey-patching or side effects within the method itself. To ensure proper type-checking, using a temporary variable is recommended to guarantee that the value won't change between checking and usage:

const temp = a.at(-1);
if (temp !== undefined)
    console.log(temp.x);

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