What is the difference between call, apply, and bind?

these three (call, apply, and bind) are JavaScript function methods that let you explicitly set the value of this when calling a function. The main difference is how arguments are passed and when the function is executed.

🔹 1. call()

• Executes the function immediately.
• Arguments are passed individually (comma-separated).

function greet(greeting, punctuation) {
  console.log(greeting + " " + this.name + punctuation);
}

const person = { name: "Himanshu" };

greet.call(person, "Hello", "!");  
// Output: Hello Himanshu!

🔹 2. apply()

• Executes the function immediately.
• Arguments are passed as an array (or array-like object).

greet.apply(person, ["Hi", "!!"]);  
// Output: Hi Himanshu!!

🔹 3. bind()

• Does NOT execute the function immediately.
• Returns a new function with this bound and arguments pre-set (if any).
• You call the returned function later.

const boundGreet = greet.bind(person, "Hey");
boundGreet("?");  
// Output: Hey Himanshu?

✅ Key Differences

👉 Quick analogy:

• call = “Call me now with these arguments.”
• apply = “Apply this array of arguments and call me now.”
• bind = “Bind me to this object and arguments, but don’t call yet — save me for later.”