Meanings
plural higher-order functions
- computerA function that takes one or more functions as an input, and returns a function as a result.
A higher-order function is a function that operates on other functions instead of on data values. Some of these take data arguments and manufacture functions to order; others, like the imap() function of Chapter 4, transform one function into another one.
2005, Mark Jason Dominus, Higher-Order Perl: Transforming Programs with Programs, Elsevier, →ISBN, page 325Synonyms: HOF
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA function that takes one or more functions as an input, and returns a function as a result.
Translations
German Funktion höherer Ordnung
- Funktion höherer Ordnunghigh-order function
Cite this entry
higher-order function. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/higher-order%20function
“higher-order function.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/higher-order%20function. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “higher-order function,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/higher-order%20function.
Source: higher-order function on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.