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You have to go through each word and figure out which one is the longest and return not the word, but how many characters it has.

• JS String Length

You should split the string into an array of words.

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You will need to figure out a way to keep track globally of the greatest current length.

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Remember how to get the length of elements on the array? Array[index].length.

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Solution ahead!

function findLongestWord(str) {
  var words = str.split(' ');
  var maxLength = 0;

  for (var i = 0; i < words.length; i++) {
    if (words[i].length > maxLength) {
      maxLength = words[i].length;
    }
  }

  return maxLength;
}

🚀 Run Code

Take the string and convert it into an array of words. Declare a variable to keep track of the maximum length and loop from 0 to the length of the array of words.

Then check for the longest word by comparing the current word to the previous one and storing the new longest word. At the end of the loop just return the number value of the variable maxLength.

• JS String Length
• JS Array.length

Using .reduce()

function findLongestWord(s) {
  return s.split(' ')
    .reduce(function(x, y) {
      return Math.max(x, y.length)
    }, 0);
}

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For more information on reduce click here.
In case you're wondering about that 0 after the callback function, it is used to give an initial value to the x, so that Math.max will know where to start.

• JS Reduce
• JS Reduce Made Easy
• JS Math Max

Using recursiveness

function findLongestWord(str) {

  //split the string into individual words 
  //(important!!, you'll see why later)
  str = str.split(" ");

  //str only has 1 element left that is the longest element, 
  //return the length of that element
  if(str.length == 1){
    return str[0].length;
  }

  //if the first element's length is greater than the second element's (or equal) 
  //remove the second element and recursively call the function)
  if(str[0].length >= str[1].length){
    str.splice(1,1);
    return findLongestWord(str.join(" "));
  }

  //if the second element's length is greater thant the first element's start 
  //call the function past the first element 
  if(str[0].length <= str[1].length){
    // from the first element to the last element inclusive.
    return findLongestWord(str.slice(1,str.length).join(" "));
  }
}

🚀 Run Code

The first line splits the string into individual words. Then we check if str only has 1 element left then that is the longest element and we return it. If the first element's length is greater than the second element's (or equal), we remove the second element and recursively call the function findLongestWord. However, if the second element's length is greater thant the first element's start, then we call the function past the first element.

• JS Functions
• Recursion Basics

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Thanks @Rafase282 @shadowfool @Hallaathrad for your help with Algorithm: Find the Longest Word in a String

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