---
title: "Discussion on \"What’s the relationship between require, $LOAD_PATH and $LOADED_FEATURES in Ruby?\" | Hashnode"
description: "Discussion on \"What’s the relationship between require, $LOAD_PATH and $LOADED_FEATURES in Ruby?\". It is common to see require 'something' in a Rails application. But what exactly does require do?\nWhat is require used for in Ruby?\nrequire is used to load external libraries or modules into your program. For example,\nBefore you require the JSON modu..."
url: "https://hashnode.com/posts/whats-the-relationship-between-require-loadpath-and-loadedfeatures-in-ruby/65cb22c3924a9df0acaf14cc"
---

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# [What’s the relationship between require, $LOAD\_PATH and $LOADED\_FEATURES in Ruby?](https://lynnbright.com/whats-the-relationship-between-require-loadpath-and-loadedfeatures-in-ruby?utm_source=hashnode&utm_medium=feed)

It is common to see require 'something' in a Rails application. But what exactly does require do? What is require used for in Ruby? require is used to load external libraries or modules into your program. For example, Before you require the JSON modu...

Feb 13, 2024 · 3 min read · lynnbright.com  
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## Written by

[Lynn Chang](https://hashnode.com/@Lynnbright)

@Lynnbright · Taipei, Taiwan

  
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Rails Developer

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