$ cat file 
a b c d
e c g h
a b j c
$ awk -v var=c '{for (i=0;i<=NF;i++){if(var == $i){ print "Var "var" found in column "i" line "NR }}}' file
Var c found in column 3 line 1
Var c found in column 2 line 2
Var c found in column 4 line 3