symbol table

The table created and maintained by a compiler or assembler relating programmer-defined names to machine addresses. It may also hold information about properties of data, such as data types. When translating a program the compiler or assembler works through the program for the first time replacing some parts with tokens and building the symbol table which contains the actual address in memory of each variable, label or subroutine. The program is then processed a second time when each identifier can be replaced with its actual address in memory.