Machine code
set of instructions executed directly by a computer's central processing unit (CPU)
In computing, machine code is data encoded and structured to control a computer's central processing unit (CPU) via its programmable interface. A computer program consists primarily of sequences of machine-code instructions. Machine code is classified as native with respect to its host CPU since it is the language that the CPU interprets directly. Some software interpreters translate the programming language that they interpret into a virtual machine code (bytecode) and process it with a P-code machine.
A machine-code instruction causes the CPU to perform a specific task such as:
Load a word from memory to a CPU register
Execute an arithmetic logic unit (ALU) operation on one or more registers or memory locations
Jump or skip to an instruction that is not the next one
An instruction set architecture (ISA) defines the interface to a CPU and varies by groupings or families of CPU design such as x86 and ARM. Generally, machine code compatible with one family is not with others, but there are exceptions. The VAX architecture includes optional support of the PDP-11 instruction set. The IA-64 architecture includes optional support of the IA-32 instruction set. And, the PowerPC 615 can natively process both PowerPC and x86 instructions.
Assembly language
Assembly language provides a relatively direct mapping from a human-readable source code to machine code. The assembly language source code represents numerical codes in machine code, as mnemonics and labels.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Machine code” as set of instructions executed directly by a computer's central processing unit (CPU). Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
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The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as set of instructions executed directly by a computer's central processing unit (CPU). Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 21, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q55813. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
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This entry incorporates text from “Machine code” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.