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8.12 The 'flavor' Function
==========================

The 'flavor' function, like the 'origin' function, does not operate on
the values of variables but rather it tells you something _about_ a
variable.  Specifically, it tells you the flavor of a variable (*note
The Two Flavors of Variables: Flavors.).

   The syntax of the 'flavor' function is:

     $(flavor VARIABLE)

   Note that VARIABLE is the _name_ of a variable to inquire about, not
a _reference_ to that variable.  Therefore you would not normally use a
'$' or parentheses when writing it.  (You can, however, use a variable
reference in the name if you want the name not to be a constant.)

   The result of this function is a string that identifies the flavor of
the variable VARIABLE:

'undefined'

     if VARIABLE was never defined.

'recursive'

     if VARIABLE is a recursively expanded variable.

'simple'

     if VARIABLE is a simply expanded variable.