Definition of Parameter (programming)

In computer programming, a parameter is a variable which takes on the meaning of a corresponding argument passed in a call to a subroutine. In the most common case, call-by-value, a parameter acts within the subroutine as a local (isolated) copy of the argument, but in other cases, e.g. call-by-reference, the argument supplied by the caller can be affected by actions within the called subroutine (as discussed in evaluation strategy).