<p>There is no official name for a variable used in a loop because it depends on how it is used and what it is used for. For instance, it could be a state, pointer, iterator, index, counter, flag, variable, etc. Each of these might have a more verbose name and can be used in a different capacity. Other than that, you could refer to it by &quot;the variable used in the loop&quot;, &quot;the loop variable&quot;, or maybe &quot;the loop state&quot;.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-05T23:38:14.937Z
2020-07-05T23:38:14.937Z
tylerh111
<p>This is a question about semantics/vocabulary. I don't like saying &quot;the current value you are looping over/on&quot;. I'm wondering if there is a better term.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-06T08:13:09.197Z
Anecdotally, I've seen 'index' used most often for this, I think. That said, I agree with Tyler's answer, there is no standardized term and it's context dependent.
Trev
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-06T20:47:00.843Z
*loop variable* or *loop counter* (if iterating over numbers). See also Wikipedia [For loop](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/For_loop)
Marzio De Biasi
<semantics>
Is there an official/academic name for the "current value" in a loop?
Niko Bellic
# Is there an official/academic name for the "current value" in a loop?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2020-07-05)

This is a question about semantics/vocabulary. I don't like saying "the current value you are looping over/on". I'm wondering if there is a better term.

**Tags:** semantics

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Anecdotally, I've seen 'index' used most often for this, I think. That said, I agree with Tyler's answer, there is no standardized term and it's context dependent.  
> **username_2**: *loop variable* or *loop counter* (if iterating over numbers). See also Wikipedia [For loop](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/For_loop)  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2020-07-05. Score: 2 | Accepted answer

There is no official name for a variable used in a loop because it depends on how it is used and what it is used for. For instance, it could be a state, pointer, iterator, index, counter, flag, variable, etc. Each of these might have a more verbose name and can be used in a different capacity. Other than that, you could refer to it by "the variable used in the loop", "the loop variable", or maybe "the loop state".


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