underflow

A current flowing below the surface.

Noun

  1. A current flowing below the surface.
  2. A condition in which the value of a computed quantity is smaller than the smallest non-zero value that can be physically stored; usually treated as an error condition.
  3. The error condition that results from an attempt to retrieve an item from an empty stack.

Origin

From under- + flow, modelled on overflow.

Forms

underflows

Related

overflow

Verb

  1. To trigger the condition in which the value of a computed quantity is smaller than the smallest non-zero value that can be physically stored.
  2. To trigger the error condition resulting from attempting to retrieve a value from an empty stack.
    • Upon an attempt to pop an empty stack, the stack underflows […] - 2022, Thomas H. Cormen, Charles E. Leiserson, Ronald L. Rivest, Introduction to Algorithms, fourth edition, page 255:

Forms

underflows underflowing underflowed