Programming Lingo 📚

Algorithm

Meaning: A step-by-step method to solve a problem.

Example: Making tea is an algorithm.

1) Boil water
2) Add tea leaves
3) Add milk + sugar
4) Serve

Syntax

Meaning: Grammar rules of a programming language.

If you break syntax = code won’t run.

// Wrong (syntax error in Python)
print("Hello"

// Correct
print("Hello")

Variable

Meaning: A named box to store data.

// JavaScript
let age = 20;

// Python
age = 20

Function

Meaning: A reusable block of code that does a job.

# Python
def add(a, b):
    return a + b

print(add(2, 3))

Parameter vs Argument

Parameter: the placeholder name in function definition.

Argument: real value you pass when calling.

# Parameters: a, b
def add(a, b):
    return a + b

# Arguments: 5, 10
add(5, 10)

Loop (for / while)

Meaning: Repeat code multiple times.

// JavaScript
for (let i = 1; i <= 5; i++) {
  console.log(i);
}

Boolean

Meaning: Only 2 values: true / false.

is_logged_in = True
is_admin = False

Bug

Meaning: A mistake in your code that produces wrong results.

Debugging

Meaning: Finding + fixing bugs.

Common technique: printing values.

print("x =", x)

Runtime Error

Meaning: Code runs but crashes during execution.

# Python runtime error
x = 10
y = 0
print(x / y)  # ZeroDivisionError

Exception

Meaning: An error that interrupts normal flow.

try:
    x = 10 / 0
except ZeroDivisionError:
    print("Can't divide by 0")

Frontend vs Backend

• Frontend: what user sees (HTML/CSS/JS)
• Backend: server logic (Python/Node/Java)
• Database: stores data (MySQL, MongoDB)

API

Meaning: A set of rules for software to talk to other software.

Example: an app requests weather from a weather API.

GET /weather?city=Delhi

HTTP Status Codes

• 200 = OK
• 404 = Not Found
• 500 = Server Error