A language construct that modifies the state of the system. The most common side-effects are assignment, input and output. A language without side-effects is purely-functional - execution consists of the evaluation of an expression and all subexpressions are referentially transparent.
(1995-02-16)
Try this search on Wikipedia, OneLook, Google
Nearby terms: SICS « SICStus Prolog « sidecar « side-effect » Siemens » Siemens Nixdorf Informationssteme, AG » Sierra