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Software Engineering vocabulary · Programming Concepts

Interface

Meaning in software engineering, with examples

/ˈɪntərfeɪs/nounCommon term

In software engineering, interface means: In programming, a list of methods that a class promises to provide, without saying how they work. More generally, the point where two systems, or a user and a system, meet.

In Turkish: arayüz, interface

How it is used

In Java, C# and TypeScript, a class 'implements an interface'. The word also appears in 'user interface (UI)', 'command-line interface (CLI)' and 'application programming interface (API)'. 'A clean interface' means a simple, well-designed way to use a module.

Example sentences

  1. Both payment providers implement the same interface, so we can switch between them easily.

  2. The module has a small, clean interface: just three public methods.

Common collocations

  • implement an interface
  • clean interface
  • public interface
  • user interface
  • classIn object-oriented programming, a template that defines the data and behavior of a type of object, such as a User or an Invoice.
  • abstractionHiding complex details behind a simpler interface, so you can use something without knowing how it works inside, like calling save() without knowing the database query.
  • object-oriented programmingA style of programming that organizes code into objects that combine data and behavior, built on ideas such as classes, inheritance and encapsulation.
  • APIShort for application programming interface: a set of rules that lets one program ask another program for data or actions in a fixed, documented way.

More terms: Programming Concepts

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