Meanings
plural lvalues
- computingA value that can be treated as an address or storage location.
im: has identity and can be moved from (e.g. the result of casting an lvalue to a rvalue reference) […] These notions simply don’t exist in Strachey’s world consisting of just rvalues and lvalues.
2010 April 28, Bjarne Stroustrup, “"New" Value Terminology”, in stroustrup.com, pages 2, 31 more example
Clarified that rvalue references to function types produce non-rref lvalues (previously stated in the general wording in 5¶6 but inadvertently contradicted in the detailed wording of 5.2.2, 5.2.9, etc.).
2010 March 12, William M. Miller, “A Taxonomy of Expression Value Categories”, in C++ Standards Committee Papers, page 1Antonyms: rvalue
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA value that can be treated as an address or storage location.
Origin
From L + value, where L stands for left-hand side (of an assignment). In the context of the C programming language it is sometimes re-explained as locator value.
Full word history & related roots →Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
lvalue. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lvalue
“lvalue.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lvalue. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “lvalue,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lvalue.
Source: lvalue on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.