Expression vs. Condition — What's the Difference?
By Tayyaba Rehman & Urooj Arif — Updated on April 30, 2024
Expression evaluates to a value, while condition determines a decision path, often as a true or false result.
Difference Between Expression and Condition
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
An expression in programming is a combination of variables, values, and operators that computes to a value. For instance, 5 * 5 or x + y are expressions that evaluate to specific values depending on the variables and operations involved. On the other hand, a condition is used to make decisions within the code, often evaluated in the context of control flow statements like if, while, or for. Conditions return a boolean value (true or false) based on the evaluation of expressions.
Expressions can be as simple as a single literal or variable, or as complex as a series of operations involving multiple operands. For example, x + 5, a * b, or sqrt(x) are all expressions that yield a value. Whereas conditions typically involve relational or logical operators to evaluate the truth of an expression, such as x > 5, y == 10, or a != b.
In terms of usage, expressions are fundamental in any computation within a program, serving as the basic building blocks. They can be used alone or as part of larger expressions in any part of a program. On the other hand, conditions are specifically used in control structures to direct the execution flow, determining which parts of the code are executed based on certain criteria.
A key distinction lies in their outcomes; expressions always produce a value that can be used or stored. Conditions, meanwhile, do not produce standalone values but instead influence the flow of execution by determining which code block is executed next based on their truth value.
Expressions can be used within conditions. For example, in a conditional statement like if (x + y > 10), x + y is an expression used within a broader condition that evaluates whether the sum of x and y exceeds 10. This illustrates how expressions and conditions can interact within programming constructs.
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Comparison Chart
Definition
Computes to a value.
Evaluates to a boolean value.
Usage
Can appear anywhere a value is required.
Used in control structures.
Outcome
Produces a value.
Influences execution flow.
Examples
3 + 4, x * 2, sqrt(16)
X > 4, y == 0, a && b
Interaction
Can be part of a condition.
Contains expressions for evaluation.
Compare with Definitions
Expression
A syntactic entity in programming that can be evaluated to produce a value.
The expression 2 + 3 * 4 evaluates to 14.
Condition
A boolean expression that determines which path of execution a program takes.
In if (x > 0), the condition is x > 0.
Expression
A function call that returns a value.
Math.max(10, 20) is an expression that returns 20.
Condition
Often used in loops to determine when to exit.
In while (x < 10), the condition is x < 10.
Expression
A complex calculation involving operators.
((x + y) / (a - b)) is an expression used in advanced computations.
Condition
Can be a combination of multiple boolean expressions.
In if (x > 5 && y < 20), the condition is x > 5 && y < 20.
Expression
Any single variable or constant.
In int a = 5;, 5 is an expression.
Condition
Utilizes comparison operators like ==, !=, >, <.
A == b checks if a and b are equal.
Expression
A string concatenation.
Hello + world! forms the expression that results in Hello world!.
Condition
May involve logical operators such as && (and), || (or), ! (not).
!(x == y) is a condition checking if x is not equal to y.
Expression
The action of making known one's thoughts or feelings
She accepted his expressions of sympathy
The prisoners developed a dialect as an everyday means of expression
Condition
The state of something with regard to its appearance, quality, or working order
The wiring is in good condition
The bridge is in an extremely dangerous condition
Expression
A look on someone's face that conveys a particular emotion
A sad expression
Condition
The circumstances or factors affecting the way in which people live or work, especially with regard to their well-being
Harsh working conditions
Expression
A word or phrase, especially an idiomatic one, used to convey an idea
We have an expression, ‘You don't get owt for nowt.’
Condition
A situation that must exist before something else is possible or permitted
All personnel should comply with this policy as a condition of employment
For a member to borrow money, three conditions have to be met
Expression
The production of something by pressing it out
Essential oils obtained by distillation or expression
Condition
Have a significant influence on or determine (the manner or outcome of something)
National choices are conditioned by the international political economy
Expression
The appearance in a phenotype of a characteristic or effect attributed to a particular gene
Expression of the TAT gene is restricted to the parenchymal cells
Condition
Bring (something) into the desired state for use
A product for conditioning leather
Expression
The act of expressing, conveying, or representing in words, art, music, or movement; a manifestation
An expression of rural values.
Condition
Apply a conditioner to (the hair)
I condition my hair regularly
Expression
Something that expresses or communicates
Let this plaque serve as an expression of our esteem.
Condition
Set prior requirements on (something) before it can occur or be done
Congressmen have sought to limit and condition military and economic aid
Expression
(Mathematics) A symbol or combination of symbols that represents a quantity or a relationship between quantities.
Condition
A mode or state of being
We bought a used boat in excellent condition.
Expression
The manner in which one expresses oneself, especially in speaking, depicting, or performing.
Condition
Conditions Existing circumstances
Economic conditions have improved. The news reported the latest weather conditions.
Expression
A particular word or phrase
"an old Yankee expression ... 'Stand up and be counted'" (Charles Kuralt).
Condition
(Archaic) Social position; rank.
Expression
The outward manifestation of a mood or a disposition
My tears are an expression of my grief.
Condition
A state of health
Has the patient's condition deteriorated?.
Expression
A facial aspect or a look that conveys a special feeling
An expression of scorn.
Condition
A state of physical fitness
Have you exercised enough to get back into condition?.
Expression
The act of pressing or squeezing out.
Condition
A disease or physical ailment
A heart condition.
Expression
(Genetics) The act or process of expressing a gene.
Condition
One that is indispensable to the appearance or occurrence of another; a prerequisite
Compatibility is a condition of a successful marriage.
Expression
The action of expressing thoughts, ideas, feelings, etc.
Condition
One that restricts or modifies another; a qualification
I'll make you a promise but with one condition.
Expression
A particular way of phrasing an idea.
Condition
(Grammar) The dependent clause of a conditional sentence; protasis.
Expression
A colloquialism or idiom.
The expression "break a leg!" should not be taken literally.
Condition
(Logic) A proposition on which another proposition depends; the antecedent of a conditional proposition.
Expression
A facial appearance usually associated with an emotion.
They stared at the newcomer with a puzzled expression.
The best poker players can tell if the opponents have a good hand by looking at their expression.
Her expression changed from joy to misery after realising her winning lottery ticket had expired.
Condition
A provision making the effect of a legal instrument contingent on the occurrence of an uncertain future event.
Expression
(mathematics) An arrangement of symbols denoting values, operations performed on them, and grouping symbols.
Condition
The event itself.
Expression
(biology) The process of translating a gene into a protein.
Condition
To make dependent on a condition or conditions
Use of the cabin is conditioned on your keeping it clean.
Expression
(programming) A piece of code in a high-level language that returns a value.
Condition
To stipulate as a condition
“He only conditioned that the marriage should not take place before his return” (Jane Austen).
Expression
A specific blend of whisky.
Condition
To cause to be in a certain condition; shape or influence
“Our modern conceptions of historiography [are] conditioned by Western intellectual traditions” (Carol Meyers).
Expression
(biology) (manufacturing) The act of pressing or squeezing out.
Expression from a gland
Breast milk expression can be achieved by hand or with a pump.
However the mechanical expression of juice led to an improvement of the solutes extraction from mash.
Condition
To accustom (oneself or another) to something; adapt
Had to condition herself to long hours of hard work.
Conditioned the troops to marches at high altitudes.
Expression
(music) The tone of voice or sound in music.
Condition
To render fit for work or use
Spent weeks conditioning the old car.
Expression
Emotional involvement or engagement in a text read aloud rendered by the voice of the reciter or the reader
Condition
To improve the physical fitness of (the body, for example), as through repeated sessions of strenuous physical activity.
Expression
The act of expressing; the act of forcing out by pressure; as, the expression of juices or oils; also, of extorting or eliciting; as, a forcible expression of truth.
Condition
(Psychology) To cause (an organism) to respond in a specific manner to a previously unrelated stimulus, as in operant conditioning or classical conditioning.
Expression
The act of declaring or signifying; declaration; utterance; as, an expression of the public will.
With this tone of philosophy were mingled expressions of sympathy.
Condition
To treat (the air in a room, for example) by air-conditioning.
Expression
Lively or vivid representation of meaning, sentiment, or feeling, etc.; significant and impressive indication, whether by language, appearance, or gesture; that manner or style which gives life and suggestive force to ideas and sentiments; as, he reads with expression; her performance on the piano has expression.
The imitators of Shakespeare, fixing their attention on his wonderful power of expression, have directed their imitation to this.
Condition
To replace moisture or oils in (hair, for example) by use of a therapeutic product.
Expression
That which is expressed by a countenance, a posture, a work of art, etc.; look, as indicative of thought or feeling.
It still wore the majesty of expression so conspicuous in his portraits by the inimitable pencil of Titian.
Condition
A logical clause or phrase that a conditional statement uses. The phrase can either be true or false.
Expression
A form of words in which an idea or sentiment is conveyed; a mode of speech; a phrase; as, a common expression; an odd expression.
Condition
A requirement or requisite.
Environmental protection is a condition for sustainability.
What other planets might have the right conditions for life?
The union had a dispute over sick time and other conditions of employment.
Expression
The representation of any quantity or relation by appropriate characters or symbols, usually in a specific order.
Condition
(law) A clause in a contract or agreement indicating that a certain contingency may modify the principal obligation in some way.
Expression
The production of products by a gene that cause the appearance of the corresponding protein or phenotype; - of a gene or of an organism with a specific gene; as, the expression the beta-galactosidase positive phenotype,
Condition
The health status of a medical patient.
My aunt couldn’t walk up the stairs in her condition.
Expression
A combination of characters linked by operators, occurring as part of the code of a computer program, which must be evaluated according to the rules of the computer language in order to produce a resulting value.
Condition
A certain abnormal state of health; a malady or sickness.
Expression
The expression on a person's face;
A sad expression
A look of triumph
An angry face
Condition
The state or quality.
National reports on the condition of public education are dismal.
The condition of man can be classified as civilized or uncivilized.
Expression
Expression without words;
Tears are an expression of grief
The pulse is a reflection of the heart's condition
Condition
A particular state of being.
Hypnosis is a peculiar condition of the nervous system.
Steps were taken to ameliorate the condition of slavery.
Security is defined as the condition of not being threatened.
Aging is a condition over which we are powerless.
Expression
The communication (in speech or writing) of your beliefs or opinions;
Expressions of good will
He helped me find expression for my ideas
Condition
(obsolete) The situation of a person or persons, particularly their social and/or economic class, rank.
A man of his condition has no place to make requests.
Expression
A word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations;
Pardon the expression
Condition
To subject to the process of acclimation.
I became conditioned to the absence of seasons in San Diego.
Expression
The style of expressing yourself;
He suggested a better formulation
His manner of expression showed how much he cared
Condition
To subject to different conditions, especially as an exercise.
They were conditioning their shins in their karate class.
Expression
A group of symbols that make a mathematical statement
Condition
To make dependent on a condition to be fulfilled; to make conditional on.
Expression
(genetics) the process of expressing a gene
Condition
(transitive) To place conditions or limitations upon.
Expression
A group of words that form a constituent of a sentence and are considered as a single unit;
I concluded from his awkward constructions that he was a foreigner
Condition
To shape the behaviour of someone to do something.
The children were conditioned to speak up if they had any disagreements.
Expression
The act of forcing something out by squeezing or pressing;
The expression of milk from her breast
Condition
(transitive) To treat (the hair) with hair conditioner.
Condition
(transitive) To contract; to stipulate; to agree.
Condition
(transitive) To test or assay, as silk (to ascertain the proportion of moisture it contains).
Condition
To put under conditions; to require to pass a new examination or to make up a specified study, as a condition of remaining in one's class or in college.
To condition a student who has failed in some branch of study
Condition
To impose upon an object those relations or conditions without which knowledge and thought are alleged to be impossible.
Condition
Mode or state of being; state or situation with regard to external circumstances or influences, or to physical or mental integrity, health, strength, etc.; predicament; rank; position, estate.
I am in my conditionA prince, Miranda; I do think, a king.
And O, what man's condition can be worseThan his whom plenty starves and blessings curse?
The new conditions of life.
Condition
Essential quality; property; attribute.
It seemed to us a condition and property of divine powers and beings to be hidden and unseen to others.
Condition
Temperament; disposition; character.
The condition of a saint and the complexion of a devil.
Condition
That which must exist as the occasion or concomitant of something else; that which is requisite in order that something else should take effect; an essential qualification; stipulation; terms specified.
I had as lief take her dowry with this condition, to be whipped at the high cross every morning.
Many are apt to believe remission of sins, but they believe it without the condition of repentance.
Condition
A clause in a contract, or agreement, which has for its object to suspend, to defeat, or in some way to modify, the principal obligation; or, in case of a will, to suspend, revoke, or modify a devise or bequest. It is also the case of a future uncertain event, which may or may not happen, and on the occurrence or non-occurrence of which, the accomplishment, recission, or modification of an obligation or testamentary disposition is made to depend.
Condition
To make terms; to stipulate.
Pay me back my credit,And I'll condition with ye.
Condition
To impose upon an object those relations or conditions without which knowledge and thought are alleged to be impossible.
To think of a thing is to condition.
Condition
To invest with, or limit by, conditions; to burden or qualify by a condition; to impose or be imposed as the condition of.
Seas, that daily gain upon the shore,Have ebb and flow conditioning their march.
Condition
To contract; to stipulate; to agree.
It was conditioned between Saturn and Titan, that Saturn should put to death all his male children.
Condition
To put under conditions; to require to pass a new examination or to make up a specified study, as a condition of remaining in one's class or in college; as, to condition a student who has failed in some branch of study.
Condition
To test or assay, as silk (to ascertain the proportion of moisture it contains).
Condition
Train; acclimate.
Condition
A state at a particular time;
A condition (or state) of disrepair
The current status of the arms negotiations
Condition
A mode of being or form of existence of a person or thing;
The human condition
Condition
An assumption on which rests the validity or effect of something else
Condition
(usually plural) a statement of what is required as part of an agreement;
The contract set out the conditions of the lease
The terms of the treaty were generous
Condition
The state of (good) health (especially in the phrases `in condition' or `in shape' or `out of condition' or `out of shape')
Condition
Information that should be kept in mind when making a decision;
Another consideration is the time it would take
Condition
The procedure that is varied in order to estimate a variable's effect by comparison with a control condition
Condition
Establish a conditioned response
Condition
Train by instruction and practice; especially to teach self-control;
Parents must discipline their children
Is this dog trained?
Condition
Specify as a condition or requirement in a contract or agreement; make an express demand or provision in an agreement;
The will stipulates that she can live in the house for the rest of her life
The contract stipulates the dates of the payments
Condition
Put into a better state;
He conditions old cars
Condition
Apply conditioner to in order to make smooth and shiny;
I condition my hair after washing it
Common Curiosities
What is an expression?
An expression is any valid unit of code that resolves to a value.
Can expressions exist without conditions in programming?
Yes, expressions can independently exist and be evaluated in programming without being part of conditions. They are often used for assignments and calculations.
What types of operators are used in conditions?
Conditions typically utilize relational operators (like >, <, >=, <=) and logical operators (&&, ||, !) to evaluate the truth or falsehood of statements.
What is a condition?
A condition is a statement or expression that evaluates to a boolean value, used to control the flow of execution in programming.
Are all expressions also conditions?
No, not all expressions are conditions. While any condition is an expression that evaluates to a boolean value, expressions in general can evaluate to any type, such as integers, strings, or objects.
Can conditions be nested in programming?
Yes, conditions can be nested within other conditions, providing a way to test multiple criteria sequentially or simultaneously, such as in nested if-statements or combined logical conditions.
What are the common mistakes when writing conditions?
Common mistakes include using the wrong operator (e.g., = instead of ==), not properly understanding truthy/falsy values, or incorrectly ordering logical operations which can lead to unexpected outcomes.
How do you use expressions and conditions in an array?
Expressions can be used to compute array indices or values, while conditions can be used to filter elements or control array processing loops.
What is the role of expressions in function calls?
In function calls, expressions can serve as arguments that provide inputs to functions. These expressions are evaluated before the function executes.
How can conditions be simplified in programming?
Conditions can be simplified by using boolean variables, breaking complex conditions into smaller parts, or employing logical equivalences to reduce complexity.
How do conditions affect the flow of a program?
Conditions determine which sections of code are executed in a program. For instance, they control loops, decide whether if-statements execute, and manage cases in switch-statements.
Is there a performance impact when using complex conditions?
Complex conditions, especially those involving multiple logical and relational operators, can impact performance due to the computational cost of evaluating each expression within the condition.
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Written by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
Co-written by
Urooj ArifUrooj is a skilled content writer at Ask Difference, known for her exceptional ability to simplify complex topics into engaging and informative content. With a passion for research and a flair for clear, concise writing, she consistently delivers articles that resonate with our diverse audience.
