What is the meaning of an expression?

Christopher F Clark <christopher.f.clark@compiler-resources.com>
Fri, 14 Jan 2022 22:42:58 +0200

          From comp.compilers

Related articles
What is the meaning of an expression? costello@mitre.org (Roger L Costello) (2022-01-14)
Re: What is the meaning of an expression? anton@mips.complang.tuwien.ac.at (2022-01-14)
What is the meaning of an expression? christopher.f.clark@compiler-resources.com (Christopher F Clark) (2022-01-14)
Re: What is the meaning of an expression? DrDiettrich1@netscape.net (Hans-Peter Diettrich) (2022-01-15)
Re: What is the meaning of an expression? gah4@u.washington.edu (gah4) (2022-01-14)
Re: What is the meaning of an expression? gneuner2@comcast.net (George Neuner) (2022-01-15)
Re: What is the meaning of an expression? matt.timmermans@gmail.com (matt.ti...@gmail.com) (2022-01-15)
Re: What is the meaning of an expression? 0xe2.0x9a.0x9b@gmail.com (Jan Ziak) (2022-01-16)
Re: What is the meaning of an expression? 0xe2.0x9a.0x9b@gmail.com (Jan Ziak) (2022-01-17)
[11 later articles]
| List of all articles for this month |

From: Christopher F Clark <christopher.f.clark@compiler-resources.com>
Newsgroups: comp.compilers
Date: Fri, 14 Jan 2022 22:42:58 +0200
Organization: Compilers Central
Injection-Info: gal.iecc.com; posting-host="news.iecc.com:2001:470:1f07:1126:0:676f:7373:6970"; logging-data="53051"; mail-complaints-to="abuse@iecc.com"
Keywords: semantics
Posted-Date: 14 Jan 2022 16:43:29 EST

I wouldn't use either of the statements in a compiler construction context:


The meaning of an expression is the value of an expression.
The semantics of an expression is the value of an expression.


Although if I had to imagine using one of those two sentences, I could
vaguely imagine using the former? As in "what does 1 + 1 mean?" It
means "add one and one together, the answer being two". But, even in
that case, I wouldn't make it a blanket statement. You have to
contrive an example where you would use a statement like that and it
isn't particularly natural. Most importantly, it isn't something
general.


This is as close as I can imagine coming:
"In a value oriented language, the meaning of an expression is the
value of an expression".


So, I heartily agree with our esteemed moderator. Don't believe
everything you read.
--
******************************************************************************
Chris Clark email: christopher.f.clark@compiler-resources.com
Compiler Resources, Inc. Web Site: http://world.std.com/~compres
23 Bailey Rd voice: (508) 435-5016
Berlin, MA 01503 USA twitter: @intel_chris
------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Post a followup to this message

Return to the comp.compilers page.
Search the comp.compilers archives again.