diff --git a/doc/gawk.texi b/doc/gawk.texi
index 4d088fd3..2ed5f131 100644
--- a/doc/gawk.texi
+++ b/doc/gawk.texi
@@ -37019,10 +37019,14 @@ value type, as appropriate.  This behavior is summarized in
 @multitable @columnfractions .50 .50
 @headitem @tab Type of Actual Value
 @end multitable
+@ignore
+@c 12/2023: Texinfo.tex has morphed enough that this produces
+@c bad output, so comment it out.
 @c 10/2014: Thanks to Karl Berry for this bit to reduce the space:
 @tex
 \vglue-1.1\baselineskip
 @end tex
+@end ignore
 @c @multitable @columnfractions .166 .166 .198 .15 .15 .166
 @multitable {Requested} {Undefined} {Number} {Number} {Scalar} {Regex} {Number} {Array} {Undefined}
 @headitem @tab @tab String @tab Strnum @tab Number @tab Regex @tab Bool @tab Array @tab Undefined
@@ -37068,6 +37072,33 @@ value type, as appropriate.  This behavior is summarized in
 @end ifplaintext
 @end float
 
+There are a number of points of note:
+
+@itemize @bullet
+@item
+A request for @code{AWK_UNDEFINED} always returns true, filling in
+the actual type of the particular value.  You can think of this
+as a sort of ``wildcard'' request.
+
+@item
+Requesting an @code{AWK_STRING} causes @command{gawk} to convert any
+scalar value to a string result, and that is what is retuned.
+
+@item
+Requesting an @code{AWK_NUMBER} causes @command{gawk} to convert any
+scalar value, except for a regexp, to a numeric result, and
+that is what is retuned.
+
+Conversion between string and number in the API thus parallels how
+@command{gawk} behaves in running code.
+
+@item
+The API functions do @emph{not} distinguish between @code{"undefined"}
+and @code{"unassigned"} as returned by @code{typeof()} (@pxref{Dynamic
+Typing Gawk}).  @code{AWK_UNDEFINED} serves for both. This is unlikely
+to change, as the documentation and code are already complicated enough.
+@end itemize
+
 @node Accessing Parameters
 @subsection Accessing and Updating Parameters
 
diff --git a/gawkapi.c b/gawkapi.c
index 20d131aa..fe6573e0 100644
--- a/gawkapi.c
+++ b/gawkapi.c
@@ -72,16 +72,17 @@ api_get_argument(awk_ext_id_t id, size_t count,
 	if (arg->type == Node_var_new || arg->type == Node_elem_new) {
 		if (wanted == AWK_UNDEFINED)
 			return awk_true;
-		else if (wanted == AWK_ARRAY) {
+		else if (wanted == AWK_ARRAY)
 			goto array;
-		} else {
+		else
 			goto scalar;
-		}
 	}
 
 	/* at this point, we have real type */
 	if (arg->type == Node_var_array || arg->type == Node_array_ref) {
-		if (wanted != AWK_ARRAY && wanted != AWK_UNDEFINED)
+		if (wanted == AWK_UNDEFINED)
+			return awk_true;
+		else if (wanted != AWK_ARRAY)
 			return awk_false;
 		goto array;
 	} else
@@ -624,11 +625,9 @@ node_to_awk_value(NODE *node, awk_value_t *val, awk_valtype_t wanted)
 				val->val_type = AWK_REGEX;
 				break;
 			case NUMBER|STRING:
-				if (node == Nnull_string) {
-					val->val_type = AWK_UNDEFINED;
-					break;
-				}
-				/* fall through */
+				// this can come from a Node_elem_new, as well as Nnull_string
+				val->val_type = AWK_UNDEFINED;
+				break;
 			default:
 				warning(_("node_to_awk_value detected invalid flags combination `%s'; please file a bug report"), flags2str(node->flags));
 				val->val_type = AWK_UNDEFINED;
@@ -661,11 +660,9 @@ node_to_awk_value(NODE *node, awk_value_t *val, awk_valtype_t wanted)
 				ret = awk_true;
 				break;
 			case NUMBER|STRING:
-				if (node == Nnull_string) {
-					val->val_type = AWK_UNDEFINED;
-					break;
-				}
-				/* fall through */
+				// this can come from a Node_elem_new, as well as Nnull_string
+				val->val_type = AWK_UNDEFINED;
+				break;
 			default:
 				warning(_("node_to_awk_value detected invalid flags combination `%s'; please file a bug report"), flags2str(node->flags));
 				val->val_type = AWK_UNDEFINED;
@@ -691,11 +688,9 @@ node_to_awk_value(NODE *node, awk_value_t *val, awk_valtype_t wanted)
 				val->val_type = AWK_REGEX;
 				break;
 			case NUMBER|STRING:
-				if (node == Nnull_string) {
-					val->val_type = AWK_UNDEFINED;
-					break;
-				}
-				/* fall through */
+				// this can come from a Node_elem_new, as well as Nnull_string
+				val->val_type = AWK_UNDEFINED;
+				break;
 			default:
 				warning(_("node_to_awk_value detected invalid flags combination `%s'; please file a bug report"), flags2str(node->flags));
 				val->val_type = AWK_UNDEFINED;
@@ -727,12 +722,10 @@ node_to_awk_value(NODE *node, awk_value_t *val, awk_valtype_t wanted)
 				ret = awk_true;
 				break;
 			case NUMBER|STRING:
-				if (node == Nnull_string) {
-					val->val_type = AWK_UNDEFINED;
-					ret = awk_true;
-					break;
-				}
-				/* fall through */
+				// this can come from a Node_elem_new, as well as Nnull_string
+				val->val_type = AWK_UNDEFINED;
+				ret = awk_true;
+				break;
 			default:
 				warning(_("node_to_awk_value detected invalid flags combination `%s'; please file a bug report"), flags2str(node->flags));
 				val->val_type = AWK_UNDEFINED;