Python

1. Glossary

problem solving

The process of formulating a problem, finding a solution, and expressing the solution.

high-level language

A programming language like Python that is designed to be easy for humans to read and write.

low-level language

A programming language that is designed to be easy for a computer to execute; also called "machine language" or "assembly language."

portability

A property of a program that can run on more than one kind of computer.

interpret

To execute a program in a high-level language by translating it one line at a time.

compile

To translate a program written in a high-level language into a low-level language all at once, in preparation for later execution.

source code

A program in a high-level language before being compiled.

object code

The output of the compiler after it translates the program.

executable

Another name for object code that is ready to be executed.

script

A program stored in a file (usually one that will be interpreted).

program

A set of instructions that specifies a computation.

algorithm

A general process for solving a category of problems.

bug

An error in a program.

debugging

The process of finding and removing any of the three kinds of programming errors.

syntax

The structure of a program.

syntax error

An error in a program that makes it impossible to parse (and therefore impossible to interpret).

runtime error

An error that does not occur until the program has started to execute but that prevents the program from continuing.

exception

Another name for a runtime error.

semantic error

An error in a program that makes it do something other than what the programmer intended.

semantics

The meaning of a program.

natural language

Any one of the languages that people speak that evolved naturally.

formal language

Any one of the languages that people have designed for specific purposes, such as representing mathematical ideas or computer programs; all programming languages are formal languages.

token

One of the basic elements of the syntactic structure of a program, analogous to a word in a natural language.

parse

To examine a program and analyze the syntactic structure.

print statement

An instruction that causes the Python interpreter to display a value on the screen.


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