Share via

Is C # an interpreted language?

Sergio23 271 Reputation points
2021-08-24T06:24:37.307+00:00

C # is an interpreted language, therefore slower than C or C ++.
Why use C Sharp?

Developer technologies | C#
Developer technologies | C#

An object-oriented and type-safe programming language that has its roots in the C family of languages and includes support for component-oriented programming.


Answer accepted by question author

  1. Sam of Simple Samples 5,586 Reputation points
    2021-08-24T18:31:59.893+00:00

    In the context of computer languages, there is no official (or standard) definition of compile, translate and interpret.

    Like Java, C# provides binary portability. See Slashdot | Interviews | C++ Answers From Bjarne Stroustrup (I assume you know who Bjarne Stroustrup is). In that he says:

    The technical hardest problem is probably the lack of a C++ binary interface (ABI).

    C and C++ do not have a binary interface, therefore they do not provide binary portability.

    As has been said, C# is compiled into IL (providing binary portability) then during execution the IL is compiled into machine code. Since it becomes machine language during execution, it is usually as efficient as C++.

    Note that C++ is not used for websites, I assume due to the security risk of the machine language.

    1 person found this answer helpful.

5 additional answers

Sort by: Most helpful
  1. Castorix31 91,871 Reputation points
    2021-08-24T06:29:47.687+00:00

    No, it is compiled to IL :
    What is "managed code"?
    Is C# interpreted?

    1 person found this answer helpful.
    0 comments No comments

  2. Sergio23 271 Reputation points
    2021-08-26T04:39:02.237+00:00

    Thank you SimpleSamples
    Your answer is satisfactory

    0 comments No comments

  3. Karen Payne MVP 35,606 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2021-08-24T10:59:54.72+00:00

    Why is C#? Well it depends on what type of application you are writing, for instance, writing a data centric application C# would be the way to go while writing drivers one would be better using C++. Even when writing interactive code Read–Eval–Print Loop (REPL) C# is compiled as per the example below via VS2019, C# Interactive.

    Gif is set to run once to see again hit browser refresh.
    125967-interactive1.gif

    0 comments No comments

  4. Duane Arnold 3,216 Reputation points
    2021-08-24T09:15:07.457+00:00

    C# is a compiled language. C# is a managed code language, which makes it slower than an unmangaed language like C or C++. However, C++.NET is a managed code language.

    C# is an ECMA standard, which is not owned or controlled by Microsoft. Microsoft is just one company the the ECMA committee that controls C#.

    A interpretive language would be something like JavaScript.


Your answer

Answers can be marked as 'Accepted' by the question author and 'Recommended' by moderators, which helps users know the answer solved the author's problem.