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ABS Function

Computes the absolute value of a given numeric value. The value can be a Decimal or Integer literal or a reference to a column containing numeric values.

Wrangle vs. SQL: This function is part of Wrangle, a proprietary data transformation language. Wrangle is not SQL. For more information, see Wrangle Language.

Basic Usage

Column reference example:

<span>abs(MyInteger)</span>

Output: Returns the absolute value of each value found in the MyInteger column.

Numeric literal example:

<span>(</span><span>abs(</span><span>MyInteger</span><span>) </span><span>== 5)</span>

Output: Returns true if the absolute value of the entry in the MyInteger column is 5.

Syntax and Arguments

<span>abs(numeric_value)</span>

Argument

Required?

Data Type

Description

numeric_value

Y

string, decimal, or integer

Name of column or Decimal or Integer literal to apply to the function

For more information on syntax standards, see Language Documentation Syntax Notes.

numeric_value

Name of the column or numeric literal whose absolute value is to be computed.

  • Missing input values generate missing results.

  • Literal numeric values should not be quoted. Quoted values are treated as strings.

  • Multiple columns and wildcards are not supported.

Usage Notes:

Required?

Data Type

Example Value

Yes

String (column reference) or Integer or Decimal value

-10.5

Examples

Dica

For additional examples, see Common Tasks.

Example - Basic ABS function

Source:

Your source data looks like the following, which measures coordinate distances from a fixed point on a grid:

X

Y

-2

4

-6.2

-2

0

-4.2

4

4

15

-0.05

Transform:

You can use the following transform to derive the absolute values of these columns, which now measure distance from the fixed point:

Transformation Name

New formula

Parameter: Formula type

Single row formula

Parameter: Formula

abs(X)

Parameter: New column name

'distanceX'

Transformation Name

New formula

Parameter: Formula type

Single row formula

Parameter: Formula

abs(y)

Parameter: New column name

'distanceY'

Results:

X

Y

distanceX

distanceY

-2

4

2

4

-6.2

-2

6.2

2

0

-4.2

0

4.2

4

4

4

4

15

-0.05

15

0.05

You can then use POW and SQRT functions to compute the total distance.