internal representation

noun

UK /ɪnˈtɜː.nəl ˌrep.rɪ.zenˈteɪ.ʃən/

US /ɪnˈtɝː.nəl ˌrep.rɪ.zenˈteɪ.ʃən/

The way your brain or a computer keeps information inside itself.

The program stores the number as an internal representation that the user never sees.

SYNONYMS

mental model inner code internal model encoded form

RELATED WORDS

memory data structure encoding cognition abstraction

OTHER MEANINGS

2. In computing, the way data is stored and structured inside a program or system.

Integers have a different internal representation than floating-point numbers.

3. In psychology, the mental picture or code a person uses to think about something.

Children build an internal representation of the world through play.

4. In cognitive science, the symbolic form information takes inside a mind or machine.

Researchers debated whether the internal representation of language is rule-based.