cyclomatic complexity

noun

A quantitative measure of the number of linearly independent paths (branches) through a program's source code which indicates the complexity of a program or a function.

Similar
McCabe's complexity
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Meanings

nouncyclomatic complexity (countable and uncountable, plural cyclomatic complexities)

plural cyclomatic complexities

  1. countableuncountablecomputingA quantitative measure of the number of linearly independent paths (branches) through a program's source code which indicates the complexity of a program or a function.

    Cyclomatic complexity to us seems to be more of a problem when maintaining and testing code, rather than when originally writing it. As the cyclomatic complexity increases, the difficulty of fixing the code increases.

    2006, Linda M. Laird, M. Carol Brennan, Software Measurement and Estimation: A Practical Approach, John Wiley & Sons, →ISBN, page 61

    Synonyms: McCabe's complexity

Synonyms & antonyms

nounA quantitative measure of the number of linearly independent paths (branches) through a program's source code which indicates the complexity of a program or a function.

Similar
McCabe's complexity
Also see
mccabe's complexity

Translations

German McCabe-Metrik, zyklomatische Komplexität
  • McCabe-Metrikquantitative measure
  • zyklomatische Komplexitätquantitative measure
Indonesian kompleksitas siklomatik
  • kompleksitas siklomatikquantitative measure
Cite this entry
APA

cyclomatic complexity. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cyclomatic%20complexity

MLA

“cyclomatic complexity.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cyclomatic%20complexity. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “cyclomatic complexity,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cyclomatic%20complexity.

Source: cyclomatic complexity on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.