Parsing Glossary

Browse 22 parsing terms defined in plain English, from the cultural dictionary of computing.

22 Parsing Terms

Abstract Syntax Tree
A tree representation of source code where each node represents a syntactic construct (expressions, statements, declarations). Unlike a parse tree, an AST...
Argument Parser
A library or component that interprets command-line flags, positional parameters, defaults, and validation rules for a program. Argument parsers make CLI tools...
Capture Group
A parenthesized subpattern in a regular expression whose matched text is retained so it can be referenced later by index or name. Capture groups are useful for...
CLI Parser
A library or component that interprets command-line arguments, options, defaults, and help text for a command-line interface. CLI parsers make tools easier to...
Code Parser
A parser that reads source code and produces a structured representation such as a parse tree or abstract syntax tree. Code parsers are foundational in...
Comment Parser
A parser that reads structured comments or annotations and extracts meaning from them, often for documentation generation, linting, or code transformation....
Config Parser
A parser that reads configuration files or text and converts them into structured values an application can validate and use. Config parsers often handle...
Custom Parser
A parser built for a specific input format, language, or domain instead of using a generic off-the-shelf parser unchanged. Custom parsers are common when data...
Formal Grammar
Formal Grammar is a set of production rules that precisely defines the syntax of a language by specifying how strings of symbols can be generated from a start...
Lexer
The first stage of a compiler or interpreter that converts raw source code text into a stream of tokens (keywords, identifiers, operators, literals). Also...
Log Format
The structure and syntax used to record log entries, including field order, timestamp style, identifiers, and message content. Consistent log formats are...
Lookahead
A parsing technique that examines upcoming tokens or characters in the input stream without consuming them, used to make decisions about which grammar rule to...
Operator Precedence
The set of rules that determines the order in which operators are evaluated in an expression when parentheses are absent — for example, `*` binds tighter than...
Output Parsing
The process of reading and interpreting AI output so it can be consumed by software or validation layers. Output parsing is especially important when models...
Parser
A component that takes a stream of tokens from the lexer and builds a structured representation (AST or parse tree) according to a formal grammar. Types...
Parser Combinator
A higher-order function that takes simple parsers (matching a character, a string, a regex) and combines them into more complex parsers using operations like...
Parser Generator
A tool that takes a formal grammar specification (typically in BNF or PEG notation) and automatically produces source code for a parser that can recognize and...
Parse Tree
A tree data structure that represents the syntactic structure of source code (or any input) according to a formal grammar, where internal nodes correspond to...
Regex Engine
The runtime component that compiles and executes regular expression patterns against input strings. The two major implementation strategies are NFA-based...
Syntax
The set of rules that defines the valid structure and arrangement of tokens — keywords, operators, identifiers, literals — in a programming language. Code that...
URL Parser
A component that decomposes a URL string into its constituent parts — scheme, authority (host and port), path, query parameters, and fragment — according to...
XML Parser
A library or component that reads raw XML text and converts it into a usable in-memory structure. The two main approaches are DOM parsers, which load the...

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