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The keyword used to define a variable that is limited to the class in Unity is "private." When a variable is declared as private, it means that it can only be accessed and modified within the same class in which it is defined. This encapsulation of data promotes better data management and prevents unintended interference from other classes, which is a key principle in object-oriented programming.

Using private variables is particularly useful for maintaining control over the state and behavior of a class, ensuring that its internal data is protected from external access. This helps developers maintain a clean and organized codebase, and reduces the likelihood of bugs caused by external manipulation of class properties.

In contrast, the public keyword allows access from any other class, protected allows access from the class and its subclasses, and static refers to class-level variables or methods that are shared across all instances of a class, rather than being instance-specific.