Lua Academy · Lesson

Single Inheritance with __index Chaining

Set a parent class as a metatable's __index to inherit methods.

Lesson 1 of 412 steps

Single Inheritance with __index Chaining is a free Lua Academy lesson on CoddyKit. This is lesson 1 of 4. Any 3 lessons of this learning path are free to read in full — after that, CoddyKit PRO unlocks every lesson, plus hands-on practice with a built-in code editor and a 24/7 AI tutor. It is part of the Lua Academy learning path, and your progress syncs across the web and the CoddyKit app. The Lua Academy course includes 4 lessons in total.

Prototype Chain

Single inheritance works by setting a child class's __index to the parent class. When a method is not found in the child, Lua looks in the parent. This creates a prototype chain.

local Base={}
Base.__index=Base
function Base.new() return setmetatable({},Base) end
function Base:greet() print("Hello from Base") end

local Child={}
Child.__index=Child
setmetatable(Child,{__index=Base})  -- Child inherits Base

function Child.new() return setmetatable({},Child) end

local c=Child.new()
c:greet()  -- Hello from Base (inherited)

Method Resolution Order

When calling a method on an instance: (1) look in instance table, (2) look in Child (via __index), (3) look in Base (via Child's metatable __index). The first match wins.

local Base={}
Base.__index=Base
function Base:who() print("I am Base") end

local Child={}
Child.__index=Child
setmetatable(Child,{__index=Base})
function Child:who() print("I am Child") end  -- override

local b=setmetatable({},Base)
local c=setmetatable({},Child)
b:who()  -- I am Base
c:who()  -- I am Child (overrides)

Inheriting Constructors

Child classes can reuse parent constructors by calling them, or define their own that extend the parent's initialization.

local Animal={}
Animal.__index=Animal
function Animal.new(name,sound)
  return setmetatable({name=name,sound=sound},Animal)
end
function Animal:speak() print(self.name..": "..self.sound) end

local Dog={}
Dog.__index=Dog
setmetatable(Dog,{__index=Animal})

function Dog.new(name)
  local self = Animal.new(name,"Woof")
  return setmetatable(self,Dog)
end
function Dog:fetch(item) print(self.name.." fetches "..item) end

local d=Dog.new("Rex")
d:speak(); d:fetch("ball")

Checking Ancestry

Walk up the metatable chain to check if an object's class inherits from a given base. This is how instanceof works in Lua.

local function instanceof(obj, cls)
  local mt = getmetatable(obj)
  while mt do
    if mt == cls then return true end
    mt = getmetatable(mt)
  end
  return false
end

Super Call

Call the parent version of an overridden method by accessing it directly through the parent class table.

local Base={}
Base.__index=Base
function Base:init(x) self.x=x end
function Base:value() return self.x end

local Child={}
Child.__index=Child
setmetatable(Child,{__index=Base})
function Child:init(x,y)
  Base.init(self,x)  -- call parent
  self.y=y
end
function Child:value() return Base.value(self)+self.y end

local c=setmetatable({},Child)
c:init(3,4)
print(c:value())  -- 7

Deep Chain

Build a three-level hierarchy: A → B → C. Method lookup traverses the full chain until found.

local A={}
A.__index=A
function A:aMethod() print("A method") end

local B={}
B.__index=B
setmetatable(B,{__index=A})
function B:bMethod() print("B method") end

local C={}
C.__index=C
setmetatable(C,{__index=B})

local c=setmetatable({},C)
c:bMethod()  -- from B
c:aMethod()  -- from A

Overriding Fields

An instance can override class-level fields by setting them directly. The class field is not changed — just shadowed for that instance.

local Creature={}
Creature.__index=Creature
Creature.hp=100
Creature.speed=10

function Creature.new()
  return setmetatable({},Creature)
end

local fast=Creature.new()
fast.speed=20  -- override for this instance

local normal=Creature.new()

print(fast.speed,normal.speed,Creature.speed)  -- 20  10  10

Class-Level Inheritance

Setting setmetatable(Child, {__index=Parent}) makes class-level lookups fall through to the parent. This means Child.classMethod() finds methods on the parent class if not overridden.

local Vehicle={}
Vehicle.__index=Vehicle
Vehicle.maxSpeed=120
function Vehicle.describe() print("Vehicle") end

local Car={}
Car.__index=Car
setmetatable(Car,{__index=Vehicle})

Car.describe()  -- Vehicle (inherited class method)
print(Car.maxSpeed)  -- 120 (inherited class field)

Initialization Chain

For proper initialization, child constructors call parent constructors to ensure parent state is set up. Chain initialization up the hierarchy.

local Base={}
Base.__index=Base
function Base:_init(name) self.name=name end

local Mid={}
Mid.__index=Mid
setmetatable(Mid,{__index=Base})
function Mid:_init(name,level)
  Base._init(self,name)
  self.level=level
end

local Top={}
Top.__index=Top
setmetatable(Top,{__index=Mid})
function Top.new(name,level,role)
  local self=setmetatable({},Top)
  Mid._init(self,name,level)
  self.role=role
  return self
end

local t=Top.new("Alice",5,"admin")
print(t.name,t.level,t.role)

Abstract Base Classes

Make a base class with unimplemented methods that error. Subclasses must override these methods. This enforces interface contracts in Lua's dynamic type system.

local Serializer={}
Serializer.__index=Serializer
function Serializer:encode(data)
  error(self._type.." must implement encode()",2)
end
function Serializer:decode(str)
  error(self._type.." must implement decode()",2)
end

local JSONSerializer={_type="JSON"}
setmetatable(JSONSerializer,{__index=Serializer})
function JSONSerializer:encode(data)
  return "{"..tostring(data.key).."}"
end

local j=setmetatable({_type="JSON"},JSONSerializer)
print(j:encode({key="val"}))

Inheritance Question

What enables single inheritance in Lua?

Answer it in the interactive lesson

Recap: Single Inheritance

Set setmetatable(Child, {__index = Parent}) to inherit methods. The __index chain provides automatic delegation. Override by defining methods in Child; call parent explicitly with Parent.method(self).

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is the “Single Inheritance with __index Chaining” lesson free?

Yes — any 3 lessons of the Lua Academy learning path, including “Single Inheritance with __index Chaining”, are free to read in full here on the web. After that, CoddyKit PRO unlocks every lesson, plus interactive practice with a built-in code editor and a 24/7 AI tutor. The Lua Academy course includes 4 lessons in total.

What will I learn in “Single Inheritance with __index Chaining”?

Set a parent class as a metatable's __index to inherit methods. You practise Lua Academy with hands-on code you run directly in the browser, and a 24/7 AI tutor answers your questions as you work through the lesson.

Do I need any experience to start Lua Academy?

No prior experience is required. Lua Academy on CoddyKit is structured for beginners through advanced learners, so you can start here or from the beginning and move at your own pace. This is lesson 1 of 4.

How long does the “Single Inheritance with __index Chaining” lesson take?

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All lessons in this course

Single Inheritance with __index Chaining
Calling Parent Methods with super
Mixin Patterns
Overriding and Polymorphism

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