Operator reference

A complete lookup of every penscript operator, organized by category. Each entry shows the operator name, what it does, and a minimal example. For full documentation and detailed examples, follow the link to the dedicated page.

Logic & conditions

→ Full reference: Logic & comparisons

Operator	Description	Example
`:if` / `:then` / `:else`	Conditional branching	`{ ":if": "{active}", ":then": "Yes", ":else": "No" }`
`:case` / `:when` / `:else`	Switch-style matching	`{ ":case": "{status}", ":when": [["a", "Alpha"]], ":else": "Other" }`
`:cmp`	Comparison with thresholds	`{ ":cmp": "{x}", ":gt": 0, ":lt": 100 }`
`:eq`	Equality test (all values equal)	`{ ":eq": ["{a}", "{b}", 42] }`
`:distinct`	Uniqueness test (all values different)	`{ ":distinct": [1, 2, 3] }`
`:in`	Value exists in list	`{ ":in": ["{role}", ["admin", "manager"]] }`
`:nin`	Value does not exist in list	`{ ":nin": ["{role}", ["banned"]] }`
`:not`	Boolean negation	`{ ":not": "{flag}" }`
`:every`	All items satisfy condition	`{ ":every": ["{arr}", { ":cmp": "@item", ":gt": 0 }] }`
`:some`	At least one item satisfies condition	`{ ":some": ["{arr}", { ":eq": ["@item", "x"] }] }`

Comparison Modifiers (used with `:cmp`)

Modifier	Meaning
`:eq`	Equal to
`:neq`	Not equal to
`:gt`	Greater than
`:gte` / `:ge`	Greater than or equal to
`:lt`	Less than
`:lte` / `:le`	Less than or equal to

Constants

Operator	Result
`:true`	`true`
`:false`	`false`
`:null`	`null`
`:undefined`	`undefined`

Numbers

→ Full reference: Numbers & calculations

Operator	Description	Example
`:sum`	Addition	`{ ":sum": [1, 2, 3] }` → `6`
`:substract`	Subtraction	`{ ":substract": [100, 30] }` → `70`
`:product`	Multiplication	`{ ":product": [5, 3] }` → `15`
`:multiply`	Multiplication (alias)	`{ ":multiply": [5, 3] }` → `15`
`:divide`	Division	`{ ":divide": [100, 4] }` → `25`
`:power`	Exponentiation	`{ ":power": [2, 3] }` → `8`
`:max`	Maximum value from array	`{ ":max": [3, 7, 9, 1] }` → `9`
`:min`	Minimum value from array	`{ ":min": [3, 7, 9, 1] }` → `1`
`:to-fixed`	Fixed decimal places	`{ ":to-fixed": 123.456, ":digits": 1 }` → `"123.5"`
`:number`	Coerce to number	`{ ":number": "123" }` → `123`
`:format-number`	Number formatting	With `:digits` for decimal precision

Arrays & collections

→ Full reference: Loops & arrays

Operator	Description	Example
`:array`	Normalize to array	`{ ":array": "x" }` → `["x"]`
`:array` + `:fill`	Generate array of length N	`{ ":array": 3, ":fill": "{@index}" }`
`:map` / `:to`	Transform each item	`{ ":map": [arr], ":to": expr }`
`:filter`	Remove items by condition	Wraps `:map` with `:if` returning `false`
`:find`	First matching item	`{ ":find": [arr, condition] }`
`:includes`	Array contains value	`{ ":includes": [arr, val] }`
`:intersects`	Arrays share elements	`{ ":intersects": [arr1, arr2] }`
`:count`	Count items	`{ ":count": arr }` with `:where` / `:unless`
`:range-array`	Generate integer range	`{ ":range-array": [0, 5] }` → `[0,1,2,3,4]`
`:flatten`	Deep flatten nested arrays	`{ ":flatten": [[1,[2]]] }` → `[1,2]`
`:increasing`	Strictly increasing check	`{ ":increasing": [1,2,3] }` → `true`

Context Variables (available inside loops)

Variable	Description
`{@item}`	The current item value
`{@index}`	Current index (0, 1, 2…)
`{@position}`	Current position (1, 2, 3…)
`{@first}`	`true` if the current item is the first
`{@last}`	`true` if the current item is the last

Dates & time

→ Full reference: Dates & time

Operator	Description	Example
`:date`	Create / parse a date	`{ ":date": "now" }`
`:format-date`	Format date with pattern	With `:pattern`: `"D/M/Y"`
`:diff`	Difference between dates	With `:comparator`: `"day"`
`:sum` (dates)	Date arithmetic	`{ ":sum": ["{$today}", "2d"] }`

Inline Pipes (dates)

Pipe	Description	Example
`\| age`	Age calculation	`"{data.birthdate \| age}"` → `34`
`\| formatDdMmYyyy`	Format as DD/MM/YYYY	`"{$today \| formatDdMmYyyy}"` → `"27/01/2026"`

Date Pattern Characters

Character	Description
`Y`	Year, 4 digits
`y`	Year, 2–4 digits
`M`	Month, 2 digits
`m`	Month, 1–2 digits
`D`	Day, 2 digits
`d`	Day, 1–2 digits
`x`	Any non-digit separator

Duration Units (for date arithmetic)

Unit	Example
Days	`"2d"`, `"30d"`
Hours	`"72h"`
Years	`"2y"`

Raw numbers = milliseconds. Numeric strings = seconds.

Dynamic evaluation

→ Full reference: Dynamic evaluation & scope

Operator	Description	Example
`:define` / `:in`	Local variable scope	`{ ":define": [{"x": 1}], ":in": "{x}" }`
`:with`	Inline local bindings	`{ ":with": [{"x": 1}, "{x}"] }`
`:raw`	Capture without evaluating	`{ ":raw": "{expr}" }`
`:eval`	Evaluate captured expression	`{ ":eval": "{stored_expr}" }`
`:using`	Define named expressions	Combined with `:eval`
`:pipe`	Sequential transformation	`{ ":pipe": [val, step1, step2] }`

Internationalization

→ Full reference: Internationalization

Operator	Description	Example
`:i18n`	Locale-based string	`{ ":i18n": { "fr": "Bonjour", "en": "Hello" } }`

System variables

Variable	Description
`{$today}`	The current date

What is penscript

Introduction to penscript

How penscript works

Expression modes and composition

Get Started

Workspace

Penbox Agent

Cases

Forms

Penscript

Logic & conditions

Comparison Modifiers (used with `:cmp`)

Constants

Numbers

Arrays & collections

Context Variables (available inside loops)

Dates & time

Inline Pipes (dates)

Date Pattern Characters

Duration Units (for date arithmetic)

Dynamic evaluation

Internationalization

System variables

What is penscript

How penscript works

​Logic & conditions

​Comparison Modifiers (used with :cmp)

​Constants

​Numbers

​Arrays & collections

​Context Variables (available inside loops)

​Dates & time

​Inline Pipes (dates)

​Date Pattern Characters

​Duration Units (for date arithmetic)

​Dynamic evaluation

​Internationalization

​System variables

​Related

What is penscript

How penscript works

Logic & conditions

Comparison Modifiers (used with `:cmp`)

Constants

Numbers

Arrays & collections

Context Variables (available inside loops)

Dates & time

Inline Pipes (dates)

Date Pattern Characters

Duration Units (for date arithmetic)

Dynamic evaluation

Internationalization

System variables

Related