Question

define_method could be used to define methods:

define_method(:m) do |a|
end

which is equivalent to the following:

def m(a)
end

However, what is the equivalent form of the following using define_method:

def m(a=false)
end

Note that I’d need to be able to call m() without giving any argument.

Answer 1

This actually just works like you would expect in Ruby 1.9!

define_method :m do |a = false|
end

If you need 1.8 compatibility, but you don’t necessarily need a closure to define your method with, consider using class_eval with a string argument and a regular call to def:

class_eval <<-EVAL
  def #{"m"}(a = false)
  end
EVAL

Otherwise follow the suggestion in the thread that philippe linked to. Example:

define_method :m do |*args|
  a = args.first
end