Question

Possible Duplicate:
How to remove a property from a javascript object
JavaScript Hashmap Equivalent

I am using jQuery and I am handling a variable this way:

var array = {};

array[an_object]      = something
array[another_object] = something_else
array[...]            = ...

When I try to run the splice method on the array I get a TypeError: array.splice is not a function. My intent is to remove the an_object “key” and all its content from the array variable.

How can I make that?

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Note: When I run the console.log(array[an_object]) (the same is valid for another_object and all other objects) I get:

[Object { label="str1",  value=1 }, Object { label="str2",  value=2 }, { label="strN",  value=N }]

Answer 1

First of all, name your variables what they are. The name array you’re using, is misleading if you use it to create a object.

var myObject = {};

myObject[an_object]      = "xyz";
myObject[another_object] = "abc";

Now, you can delete the entry in the object with the delete statement:

delete myObject[an_object]; // Returns true / false if the deletion is a success / failure
console.log(myObject[an_object]) // Returns undefined

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Now, that said, this will not work like you’d expect. myObject[an_object] will contain “abc”
Don’t use objects as keys. Use strings, instead.
This is because of the fact that any parameter entered in the [] will be converted to string. So actually, you’re entering myObject["[object Object]"]