JavaScript quirk 4: unknown variable names create global variables

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[This post is part of a series on JavaScript quirks.]


Normally, JavaScript automatically creates a global variable if you use an unknown variable name:


    > function f() { foo = 123 }
    > f()
    > foo
    123

Thankfully, you get a warning in ECMAScript 5 strict mode [1]:

    > function f() { 'use strict'; foo = 123 }
    > f()
    ReferenceError: foo is not defined

Reference:

  1. JavaScript’s strict mode: a summary


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