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Software Engineering vocabulary · Programming Concepts

Function

Meaning in software engineering, with examples

/ˈfʌŋkʃən/nounCore term

In software engineering, function means: A named block of code that does one job. It can take input values, and it often returns a result to the code that called it.

In Turkish: fonksiyon, işlev

How it is used

You write, define, call and test functions. In object-oriented code, a function that belongs to a class is usually called a 'method'. Reviewers often say 'This function does too much; can we split it?'

Example sentences

  1. This function is 200 lines long. Let's split it into smaller ones.

  2. The function returns null if the user isn't found.

Common collocations

  • call a function
  • define a function
  • helper function
  • the function returns
  • pure function
  • callTo make a function, method or API run from another part of the code. As a noun, 'a call' is one such request, for example 'an API call'.
  • parameterA named input that a function or method accepts, listed in its definition. The actual value you pass in when you call it is called the argument.
  • variableA name in a program that stores a value, such as a number, text or list, so that the code can use or change that value later.
  • classIn object-oriented programming, a template that defines the data and behavior of a type of object, such as a User or an Invoice.
  • recursionA technique where a function solves a problem by calling itself on a smaller part of the same problem until it reaches a simple case.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Programming Concepts

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