pseudolanguage

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Jump to navigation Jump to search

English

[edit]

Etymology

[edit]

From pseudo- +‎ language.

Pronunciation

[edit]
  • Audio (US):(file)

Noun

[edit]

pseudolanguage (plural pseudolanguages)

  1. Something written or spoken that resembles language but is not a true language.
    • 1991, Leslie Shepard, Lewis Spence, Nandor Fodor, Encyclopedia of occultism and parapsychology, page 540:
      Some mediums have spoken in elaborate pseudolanguages while in a state of trance.
    • 2000, Andrew Chesterman, Natividad Gallardo San Salvador, Yves Gambier, Translation in Context, page 76:
      The existence of such pseudolanguages as pidgin in south-east Asia and the "Spanglish" found in Puerto Rico is due to the total absence of the coercive dimension []
  2. (computing) A means of describing an algorithm in human terms, without the use of a true programming language.
    • 2010, Maurizio Gabbrielli, Simone Martini, Programming Languages: Principles and Paradigms, page 194:
      State what will be printed by the following code fragment written in a pseudolanguage permitting reference parameters (assume Y and J are passed by reference).