Global variable is a variable that's accessible from anywhere in the code, kind of like that coworker who always seems to be in everyone's business. It's generally frowned upon because it can make the codebase harder to understand and maintain, but sometimes it's just too convenient to resist.

How to use it in a sentence

• "I know using a global variable for this is hacky, but I'm on a tight deadline and I just need to ship this feature before the CEO's yacht party next week."

• "Sure, we could refactor this to avoid the global variable, but that sounds like a problem for future me - right now, I just want to get this merged so I can go play Minecraft."

If you actually want to learn more...

• Syntactic Noise: This article discusses the concept of syntactic noise in programming languages and its impact on code readability and clarity, which is relevant when considering the use of global variables.

• Uniform Access Principle: This post explains Bertrand Meyer's principle that services offered by a module should be accessible through a uniform notation, regardless of implementation details - a principle that's often violated by the use of global variables.

• Protected Data: This article explores whether using protected access modifiers in Object-Oriented (OO) design is a good practice, which is related to the broader question of data encapsulation and the risks of global variables.

Note: the Developer Dictionary is in Beta. Please direct feedback to skye@statsig.com.