backward reference
[/ˈbækwərd ˈrɛfərəns/]
nounpl: backward references
referência retroativa
1. In linguistics and grammar, a reference to something mentioned earlier in the text or discourse; an anaphoric reference
In the sentence 'John arrived late, but he was still welcome,' the pronoun 'he' is a backward reference to 'John'.
Na frase 'João chegou atrasado, mas ele ainda era bem-vindo,' o pronome 'ele' é uma referência retroativa a 'João'.
2. In computer science and regular expressions, a reference to a previously matched pattern or captured group within the same expression
The regex pattern uses a backward reference to match repeated words like 'the the'.
O padrão de expressão regular usa uma referência retroativa para encontrar palavras repetidas como 'o o'.
3. In programming, a reference to a variable or function defined earlier in the code
The backward reference to the variable x allows the function to access its previous value.
A referência retroativa à variável x permite que a função acesse seu valor anterior.
This term is primarily used in academic and technical contexts (linguistics, computer science, programming) rather than in everyday conversation. In Brazil, it's commonly encountered in university courses on linguistics, formal writing, and software development. The concept is universal across English-speaking and Portuguese-speaking academic communities.
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