code golf

noun

A recreational computer programming competition in which participants attempt to write the shortest possible source code to implement a given algorithm.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nouncode golf (uncountable)
  1. uncountablecomputingA recreational computer programming competition in which participants attempt to write the shortest possible source code to implement a given algorithm.

Origin

By analogy with the sport of golf, in which players aim to sink the ball in the hole in the fewest strokes possible.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

code golf. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/code%20golf

MLA

“code golf.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/code%20golf. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “code golf,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/code%20golf.

Source: code golf on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.