catflap.org Online Dictionary Query

  syntactic sugar
       
          Term coined by Peter Landin for additions to the syntax of a
          language which do not affect its expressiveness but make it
          "sweeter" for humans to use.  Syntactic sugar gives the
          programmer an alternative way of coding that is more succinct
          or more like some familiar notation.  It does not affect the
          expressiveness of the formalism (compare chrome).
       
          Syntactic sugar can be easily translated ("desugared") to
          produce a program in some simpler "core" syntax.  E.g. C's
          "a[i]" notation is syntactic sugar for "*(a + i)".  In a
          (curried) functional language, all operators are really
          functions and the use of infix notation "x+y" is syntactic
          sugar for function application "(+) x y".
       
          Alan Perlis once quipped, "Syntactic sugar causes cancer of
          the semicolon."
       
          The variants "syntactic saccharin" and "syntactic syrup" are
          also recorded.  These denote something even more gratuitous,
          in that they serve no purpose at all.  Compare candygrammar,
          syntactic salt.
       
       

  syntactic sugar n. [coined by Peter Landin] Features added to a
     language or other formalism to make it `sweeter' for humans, but which
     do not affect the expressiveness of the formalism (compare chrome).
     Used esp. when there is an obvious and trivial translation of the
     `sugar' feature into other constructs already present in the notation.
     C's `a[i]' notation is syntactic sugar for `*(a + i)'. "Syntactic sugar
     causes cancer of the semicolon." -- Alan Perlis.
  
     The variants `syntactic saccharin' and `syntactic syrup' are also
     recorded. These denote something even more gratuitous, in that syntactic
     sugar serves a purpose (making something more acceptable to humans), but
     syntactic saccharin or syrup serve no purpose at all. Compare
     candygrammar, syntactic salt.
  
  

  syntactic sugar
     n.
     (lb en computing) Additions to the syntax of a (l en computer
  language) that make (l en code) easier for humans to read or write, but
  that do not change the functionality or expressiveness of the language.

  syntactic sugar
     n.
     (lb en computing) Additions to the syntax of a (l en computer
  language) that make (l en code) easier for humans to read or write, but
  that do not change the functionality or expressiveness of the language.

  syntactic sugar
     n.
     (lb en computing) Additions to the syntax of a (l en computer
  language) that make (l en code) easier for humans to read or write, but
  that do not change the functionality or expressiveness of the language.

  syntactic sugar
     n.
     (lb en computing) Additions to the syntax of a (l en computer
  language) that make (l en code) easier for humans to read or write, but
  that do not change the functionality or expressiveness of the language.

  syntactic sugar /sɪntˈaktɪk ʃˈʊɡə/ 
  syntaktinen sokeri

  syntactic sugar /sɪntˈaktɪk ʃˈʊɡə/ 
  糖衣構文, シンタックス・シュガー, 構文糖, 構文糖衣

  syntactic sugar /sɪntˈaktɪk ʃˈʊɡə/ 
  syntaktiskt socker