call: Function Calls
In robertzk/monadicbase: The R Base Package

Description Usage Arguments Details Warning References See Also Examples

Create or test for objects of mode "call".

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call(name, ...)
is.call(x)
as.call(x)

`name`	a non-empty character string naming the function to be called.
`...`	arguments to be part of the call.
`x`	an arbitrary R object.

call returns an unevaluated function call, that is, an unevaluated expression which consists of the named function applied to the given arguments (name must be a quoted string which gives the name of a function to be called). Note that although the call is unevaluated, the arguments ... are evaluated.

call is a primitive, so the first argument is taken as name and the remaining arguments as arguments for the constructed call: if the first argument is named the name must partially match name.

is.call is used to determine whether x is a call (i.e., of mode "call").

Objects of mode "list" can be coerced to mode "call". The first element of the list becomes the function part of the call, so should be a function or the name of one (as a symbol; a quoted string will not do).

All three are primitive functions.

call should not be used to attempt to evade restrictions on the use of .Internal and other non-API calls.

Becker, R. A., Chambers, J. M. and Wilks, A. R. (1988) The New S Language. Wadsworth & Brooks/Cole.

do.call for calling a function by name and argument list; Recall for recursive calling of functions; further is.language, expression, function.

is.call(call) #-> FALSE: Functions are NOT calls

## set up a function call to round with argument 10.5
cl <- call("round", 10.5)
is.call(cl) # TRUE
cl
## such a call can also be evaluated.
eval(cl) # [1] 10

A <- 10.5
call("round", A)        # round(10.5)
call("round", quote(A)) # round(A)
f <- "round"
call(f, quote(A))       # round(A)
## if we want to supply a function we need to use as.call or similar
f <- round
## Not run: call(f, quote(A))  # error: first arg must be character
(g <- as.call(list(f, quote(A))))
eval(g)
## alternatively but less transparently
g <- list(f, quote(A))
mode(g) <- "call"
g
eval(g)
## see also the examples in the help for do.call