Adding an instance variable to a class in Ruby

Question

How can I add an instance variable to a defined class at runtime, and later get and set its value from outside of the class?

I\'m looking for a metaprogramming so

Answer 1

You can use attribute accessors:

class Array
  attr_accessor :var
end

Now you can access it via:

array = []
array.var = 123
puts array.var

---

Note that you can also use attr_reader or attr_writer to define just getters or setters or you can define them manually as such:

class Array
  attr_reader :getter_only_method
  attr_writer :setter_only_method

  # Manual definitions equivalent to using attr_reader/writer/accessor
  def var
    @var
  end

  def var=(value)
    @var = value
  end
end

---

You can also use singleton methods if you just want it defined on a single instance:

array = []

def array.var
  @var
end

def array.var=(value)
  @var = value
end

array.var = 123
puts array.var

---

FYI, in response to the comment on this answer, the singleton method works fine, and the following is proof:

irb(main):001:0> class A
irb(main):002:1>   attr_accessor :b
irb(main):003:1> end
=> nil
irb(main):004:0> a = A.new
=> #
irb(main):005:0> a.b = 1
=> 1
irb(main):006:0> a.b
=> 1
irb(main):007:0> def a.setit=(value)
irb(main):008:1>   @b = value
irb(main):009:1> end
=> nil
irb(main):010:0> a.setit = 2
=> 2
irb(main):011:0> a.b
=> 2
irb(main):012:0> 

As you can see, the singleton method setit will set the same field, @b, as the one defined using the attr_accessor... so a singleton method is a perfectly valid approach to this question.