abstract syntax

1 definition found

abstract syntax - Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (26 May 2007) :

  abstract syntax
  
     <language, data> A representation of data (typically either a
     message passing over a communications link or a program being
     compiled) which is independent of machine-oriented structures
     and encodings and also of the physical representation of the
     data (called "concrete syntax" in the case of compilation or
     "transfer syntax" in communications).
  
     A compiler's internal representation of a program will
     typically be specified by an abstract syntax in terms of
     categories such as "statement", "expression" and "identifier".
     This is independent of the source syntax (concrete syntax)
     of the language being compiled (though it will often be very
     similar).  A parse tree is similar to an abstract syntax
     tree but it will typically also contain features such as
     parentheses which are syntactically significant but which are
     implicit in the structure of the abstract syntax tree.
  
     (1998-05-26)