metacircularity

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noun

The property of an interpreter that is written in the same programming language that it interprets, and that exploits homoiconicity to reuse the existing facilities of the parent interpreter rather than reimplementing them.

Scrabble 24
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Meanings

nounmetacircularity (uncountable)
  1. uncountablecomputingThe property of an interpreter that is written in the same programming language that it interprets, and that exploits homoiconicity to reuse the existing facilities of the parent interpreter rather than reimplementing them.

Origin

From meta- + circularity.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

“metacircularity.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/metacircularity. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “metacircularity,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/metacircularity.

Source: metacircularity on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.