Blub paradox

proper noun

The situation where a programmer sees less powerful programming languages than those he/she knows as lacking in important features, but more powerful ones as having bizarre or unnecessary features.

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Meanings

proper nounthe Blub paradox
  1. computingThe situation where a programmer sees less powerful programming languages than those he/she knows as lacking in important features, but more powerful ones as having bizarre or unnecessary features.

Origin

Coined by Paul Graham, who used a hypothetical programming language called Blub as an example.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

Blub paradox. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Blub%20paradox

MLA

“Blub paradox.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Blub%20paradox. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Blub paradox,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Blub%20paradox.

Source: Blub paradox on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.