call-by-need in English

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{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "call by need",
      "tags": [
        "alternative"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "call-by-need (uncountable)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Programming",
          "orig": "en:Programming",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "An evaluation strategy in which the arguments to a function are evaluated the first time they are used in that function."
      ],
      "id": "en-call-by-need-en-noun-OW7g6Z7T",
      "links": [
        [
          "programming",
          "programming#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "argument",
          "argument"
        ],
        [
          "function",
          "function"
        ],
        [
          "evaluated",
          "evaluated"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(programming) An evaluation strategy in which the arguments to a function are evaluated the first time they are used in that function."
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "word": "call-by-value"
        },
        {
          "word": "call-by-reference"
        },
        {
          "word": "call-by-name"
        },
        {
          "word": "call-by-future"
        }
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "pass-by-need"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "uncountable"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "computing",
        "engineering",
        "mathematics",
        "natural-sciences",
        "physical-sciences",
        "programming",
        "sciences"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "call-by-need"
}

[Show JSON for raw wiktextract data ▼] [Hide JSON for raw wiktextract data ▲]

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "call by need",
      "tags": [
        "alternative"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "call-by-need (uncountable)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "related": [
    {
      "word": "call-by-value"
    },
    {
      "word": "call-by-reference"
    },
    {
      "word": "call-by-name"
    },
    {
      "word": "call-by-future"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English lemmas",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English nouns",
        "English uncountable nouns",
        "Pages with 1 entry",
        "Pages with entries",
        "en:Programming"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "An evaluation strategy in which the arguments to a function are evaluated the first time they are used in that function."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "programming",
          "programming#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "argument",
          "argument"
        ],
        [
          "function",
          "function"
        ],
        [
          "evaluated",
          "evaluated"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(programming) An evaluation strategy in which the arguments to a function are evaluated the first time they are used in that function."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "pass-by-need"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "uncountable"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "computing",
        "engineering",
        "mathematics",
        "natural-sciences",
        "physical-sciences",
        "programming",
        "sciences"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "call-by-need"
}

This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2025-08-07 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2025-08-02 using wiktextract (8b3c49c and 3c020d2). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.

"call-by-need" meaning in English

Noun

Alternative forms