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A syntax error in computer science is an error in the syntax of a coding or programming language, entered by a programmer. Syntax errors are caught by a software program called a compiler, and the programmer must fix them before the program is compiled and then run.
Techopedia Explains Syntax Error
One way to think of a syntax error is that it presents a significant gatekeeping function in the clarity and usability of code. As in other digital technologies such as an email address, the omission or misplacement of just one letter, number or character creates critical problems for a computing system that has to read code in a linear way. It is also helpful to think about the usual causes of syntax errors – either a programmer makes a typographical error, or forgets the format or sequence of some word or command.
Syntax errors are different from errors that affect programs during run time. Many logical errors in computer programming do not get caught by the compiler, because although they may cause grievous errors as the program runs, they do conform to the program’s syntax. In other words, the computer cannot tell whether a logical error is going to create problems, but it can tell when code does not conform to the syntax, because the understanding of that syntax is built into the compiler’s native intelligence.
Another aspect of understanding syntax errors is that they demonstrate how, unlike humans, computers cannot use input that is not perfectly designed. The lack of a period or comma in a sentence or command, or two swapped letters in a word, confounds the compiler and makes its work impossible. On the other hand, human readers can spot typographical errors and understand them in the context of what they are reading. It is likely that as computers evolve through the coming decades, engineers may be able to create compilers and systems that can handle some types of syntax errors; even now, in some compiling environments, tools can auto-correct syntax errors on site.
