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Questions on the evaluation and properties of limits in the sense of analysis and related fields. For limits in the sense of category theory, use the tag “limits-colimits” instead.

In mathematics, a limit is the value that a function or sequence "approaches" as the input or index approaches some value. Limits are essential to (and mathematical analysis in general) and are used to define continuity, derivatives, and integrals.

The formal $\varepsilon$-$\delta$ definition of a finite limit at a point $a\in \mathbb{R}$ is:

$$\Big(\lim_{x\rightarrow a} f(x) = L \Big)\iff \Big(\forall \varepsilon >0\, \exists \delta > 0: \forall x\in D\quad 0<\vert x-a\vert <\delta \implies \vert f(x)-L\vert <\varepsilon \Big).$$

The concept of a limit of a sequence is further generalized to the concept of a limit of a topological net, and is closely related to the concepts of limit and direct limit in category theory.