numeric overflow

noun

UK /njuːˈmɛrɪk ˈəʊvəfləʊ/

US /nuːˈmɛrɪk ˈoʊvərfloʊ/

A computer problem where a number gets too big for the space it has and wraps around to a wrong value.

The game's score hit numeric overflow and suddenly showed a tiny number instead of a huge one.

SYNONYMS

integer overflow arithmetic overflow number overflow value overflow

RELATED WORDS

underflow bit width data type wrap-around overflow error

OTHER MEANINGS

2. The condition in which a calculation produces a result larger than the maximum value a storage format can hold.

Adding one to the largest 8-bit number causes numeric overflow.

3. A programming bug where a counter exceeds its allowed range and resets unexpectedly.

The loop counter suffered numeric overflow after 255 steps.

4. In floating-point math, a result too large to represent, often becoming infinity.

Multiplying two huge floats caused numeric overflow and returned infinity.