underflow

plural underflows

1. countableuncountableA current flowing below the surface.
2. countableuncountablecomputingA condition in which the value of a computed quantity is smaller than the smallest value that can be physically stored; usually treated as an error condition.
3. countableuncountablecomputingThe error condition that results from an attempt to retrieve an item from an empty stack.

present singular third person underflows · participle present underflowing · participle past underflowed · past underflowed

1. computingTo trigger the condition in which the value of a computed quantity is smaller than the smallest value that can be physically stored.
2. computingTo trigger the error condition resulting from attempting to retrieve a value from an empty stack.

   Upon an attempt to pop an empty stack, the stack underflows […]

   2022, Thomas H. Cormen, Charles E. Leiserson, Ronald L. Rivest, Introduction to Algorithms, fourth edition, page 255