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View Definition: precedence lossage
precedence lossage /pre's*-dens los'*j/ [C programmers] n.
Coding error in an expression due to unexpected grouping of
arithmetic or logical operators by the compiler. Used esp. of
certain common coding errors in C due to the nonintuitively low
precedence levels of `&', `|', `^', `<<',
and `>>' (for this reason, experienced C programmers
deliberately forget the language's
baroque precedence
hierarchy and parenthesize defensively). Can always be avoided by
suitable use of parentheses.
LISP fans enjoy pointing out
that this can't happen in *their* favorite language, which
eschews precedence entirely, requiring one to use explicit
parentheses everywhere. See
aliasing bug ,
memory leak ,
memory smash ,
smash the stack ,
fandango on core ,
overrun screw .
