From 32fce771f340839fdf28ffc6622dd09fc88db016 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Chris Tate <chris@ctate.dev>
Date: Tue, 20 Oct 2026 14:38:45 -0500
Subject: [PATCH] Return undefined from overload calls whose generic body
 misses an index

A call that selects an overload signature of a generic function now
gives its instance the same result type as an implementation-signature
call: when the body can return an indexed read that misses, the result
includes undefined, as in JavaScript. Before, such a call failed at the
missing read instead of returning undefined.
---
 .../frontend/lowering/generic-functions.ts    | 23 +++++++++++--------
 .../corpus/6497-generic-overload-bindings.ts  | 13 +++++++++++
 2 files changed, 27 insertions(+), 9 deletions(-)

diff --git a/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/generic-functions.ts b/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/generic-functions.ts
index 446ffa2bd..ca4664f20 100644
--- a/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/generic-functions.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/generic-functions.ts
@@ -303,14 +303,7 @@ export function genericCallInstance(
     fenceGenericSignatureResult(lowerer, expr, retTs);
     lowerer.badType(expr, retTs);
   }
-  // A body that can return an indexed read that misses returns undefined
-  // there, as in JavaScript, whatever the declared result says. An async
-  // body's promise is always present and settles with undefined there.
-  const returnType = lowerer.runtimeOptionalGenericReturns.has(info.decl)
-    ? mappedReturn.kind === "promise"
-      ? { kind: "promise" as const, inner: lowerer.runtimeOptionalType(mappedReturn.inner) }
-      : lowerer.runtimeOptionalType(mappedReturn)
-    : mappedReturn;
+  const returnType = runtimeReturnType(lowerer, info, mappedReturn);
 
   // keyof-constrained type parameters (`K extends keyof T`): the bound
   // LITERAL is semantic — the instance body reads the named field — so
@@ -417,7 +410,8 @@ function overloadCallInstance(
   if (!returnType) return null;
   // keyof-constrained parameters key their instance on the bound literal,
   // as on the implementation-signature path.
-  return internGenericInstance(lowerer, expr, info, params, returnType, () => bindings, {
+  const runtimeReturn = runtimeReturnType(lowerer, info, returnType);
+  return internGenericInstance(lowerer, expr, info, params, runtimeReturn, () => bindings, {
     ...(keyofConstrainedTypeParams(info).size > 0
       ? { extraKey: keyofLiteralKey(info, tsBindings) }
       : {}),
@@ -425,6 +419,17 @@ function overloadCallInstance(
   });
 }
 
+/** An instance's result type: a body that can return an indexed read
+ * that misses returns undefined there, as in JavaScript, whatever the
+ * declared result says. An async body's promise is always present and
+ * settles with undefined there. */
+function runtimeReturnType(lowerer: Lowerer, info: GenericFnInfo, mapped: IrType): IrType {
+  if (!lowerer.runtimeOptionalGenericReturns.has(info.decl)) return mapped;
+  return mapped.kind === "promise"
+    ? { kind: "promise", inner: lowerer.runtimeOptionalType(mapped.inner) }
+    : lowerer.runtimeOptionalType(mapped);
+}
+
 /** A generic factory whose result is one of its own local classes
  * (`function base<T>(v: T) { return class { value: T = v }; }`). Each
  * instance has its own class, so the instance is keyed on its bindings and
diff --git a/tests/corpus/6497-generic-overload-bindings.ts b/tests/corpus/6497-generic-overload-bindings.ts
index e27e94e20..0d33acaae 100644
--- a/tests/corpus/6497-generic-overload-bindings.ts
+++ b/tests/corpus/6497-generic-overload-bindings.ts
@@ -32,3 +32,16 @@ function read<T, K extends keyof T>(row: T, key: K, fallback?: T[K]): T[K] {
 const row: Row = { a: 1, b: 2, name: "r" };
 console.log(read(row, "a"), read(row, "b"), read(row, "name"));
 console.log(read(row, "b", 0) + read(row, "a", 0));
+
+// An overload call whose implementation returns an indexed read that
+// misses returns undefined, as the implementation's own calls do.
+function at<T>(items: T[], index: number): T;
+function at<T>(items: T[], index: number, label: string): T;
+function at<T>(items: T[], index: number, label?: string): T {
+  if (label !== undefined) console.log(label);
+  return items[index];
+}
+console.log(at([1, 2, 3], 1), at([1, 2, 3], 5));
+console.log(at(["a", "b"], 0, "strings"), at(["a", "b"], 9, "strings"));
+const missing = at([{ id: 1 }], 3);
+console.log(missing === undefined, typeof missing);