list_combine: Combine a list of vectors

In vctrs: Vector Helpers

Combine a list of vectors

Description

list_combine() is a more powerful version of vec_c(). While vec_c() is used for sequential combination, list_combine() takes a list of indices that specify where to place each element in the output.

If you have a list of vectors and just need to combine them sequentially, you'll still want to use vec_c(!!!x).

Usage

list_combine(
  x,
  ...,
  indices,
  size,
  default = NULL,
  unmatched = "default",
  multiple = "last",
  slice_x = FALSE,
  ptype = NULL,
  name_spec = NULL,
  name_repair = c("minimal", "unique", "check_unique", "universal", "unique_quiet",
    "universal_quiet"),
  x_arg = "x",
  indices_arg = "indices",
  default_arg = "default",
  error_call = current_env()
)

Arguments

x	A list of vectors. If slice_x = FALSE, each element must be size 1 or the same size as its corresponding index in indices after that index has been converted to a positive integer location vector with vec_as_location(). If slice_x = TRUE, each element must be size 1 or size size.
...	These dots are for future extensions and must be empty.
indices	A list of indices. Indices can be provided in one of two forms: Positive integer vectors of locations less than or equal to size. Each vector can be any size. Logical vectors of size size where TRUE denotes the location in the output to assign to, and the location from the x element to pull from. Both NA and FALSE are considered unmatched. The size of indices must match the size of x.
size	The output size.
default	If NULL, a missing value is used for locations unmatched by indices, otherwise the provided default is used. If provided, default must be size 1 or size size. Can only be set when unmatched = "default".
unmatched	Handling of locations in the output unmatched by indices. One of: "default" to use default in unmatched locations. "error" to error when there are unmatched locations.
multiple	Handling of locations in the output matched by multiple indices. "last" uses the value from the last matched index. "first" uses the value from the first matched index. Note that multiple only applies across indices. Within a single index if there are overlapping locations, then the last will always win. This can only occur with integer indices, as you can't overlap within an index when using logical indices.
slice_x	A boolean. If TRUE, each element of x is sliced by its corresponding index from indices before being assigned into the output, which is effectively the same as map2(list(x, indices), function(x, index) vec_slice(x, index)), but is optimized to avoid materializing the slices. See the slice_value argument of vec_assign() for more examples.
ptype	If NULL, the output type is determined by computing the common type across all elements of x and default. Alternatively, you can supply ptype to give the output a known type.
name_spec	A name specification for combining inner and outer names. This is relevant for inputs passed with a name, when these inputs are themselves named, like outer = c(inner = 1), or when they have length greater than 1: outer = 1:2. By default, these cases trigger an error. You can resolve the error by providing a specification that describes how to combine the names or the indices of the inner vector with the name of the input. This specification can be: A function of two arguments. The outer name is passed as a string to the first argument, and the inner names or positions are passed as second argument. An anonymous function as a purrr-style formula. A glue specification of the form "{outer}_{inner}". "inner", in which case outer names are ignored, and inner names are used if they exist. Note that outer names may still be used to provide informative error messages. An rlang::zap() object, in which case both outer and inner names are ignored and the result is unnamed. See the name specification topic.
name_repair	How to repair names, see repair options in vec_as_names().
x_arg, indices_arg, default_arg	An argument name as a string. This argument will be mentioned in error messages as the input that is at the origin of a problem.
error_call	The execution environment of a currently running function, e.g. caller_env(). The function will be mentioned in error messages as the source of the error. See the call argument of abort() for more information.

Value

A vector of type vec_ptype_common(!!!x), or ptype, if specified.

The size of the output is determined by size.

Examples

# Combine a list of vectors using
# a list of `indices`
x <- list(
  1:3,
  4:6,
  7:8
)
indices <- list(
  c(1, 3, 7),
  c(8, 6, 5),
  c(2, 4)
)
list_combine(x, indices = indices, size = 8)

# Overlapping `indices` are allowed.
# The last match "wins" by default.
x <- list(
  1:3,
  4:6
)
indices <- list(
  c(1, 2, 3),
  c(1, 2, 6)
)
list_combine(x, indices = indices, size = 6)

# Use `multiple` to force the first match to win.
# This is similar to how `dplyr::case_when()` works.
list_combine(x, indices = indices, size = 6, multiple = "first")

# Works with data frames as well.
# Now how index 2 is not assigned to.
x <- list(
  data.frame(x = 1:2, y = c("a", "b")),
  data.frame(x = 3:4, y = c("c", "d"))
)
indices <- list(
  c(4, 1),
  c(3, NA)
)
list_combine(x, indices = indices, size = 4)

# You can use `size` to combine into a larger object than you have values for
list_combine(list(1:2, 4:5), indices = list(1:2, 4:5), size = 8)

# Additionally specifying `default` allows you to control the value used in
# unfilled locations
list_combine(
  list(1:2, 4:5),
  indices = list(1:2, 4:5),
  size = 8,
  default = 0L
)

# Alternatively, if you'd like to assert that you've covered all output
# locations through `indices`, set `unmatched = "error"`.
# Here, we've set the size to 5 but missed location 3:
try(list_combine(
  list(1:2, 4:5),
  indices = list(1:2, 4:5),
  size = 5,
  unmatched = "error"
))

vctrs documentation built on Jan. 16, 2026, 5:16 p.m.