Which programming languages are commonly interpreted?

Interpreted programming languages are executed by an interpreter at runtime rather than being compiled into machine code beforehand. This allows for greater flexibility during development, as errors can be identified and corrected without the need to recompile the entire codebase.

Perl and Python are both excellent examples of commonly interpreted languages. They are primarily interpreted, which means that the code is executed line by line. This feature is particularly advantageous for scripting and rapid development, enabling developers to run their programs in a more interactive fashion.

While Java and C# do use an intermediate bytecode that is executed by a virtual machine, they are typically classified as hybrid, as they go through a compilation step before being interpreted. In contrast, languages like C and C++ are usually compiled directly to machine code, and Swift and Go are compiled languages, meaning they are also not interpreted in the traditional sense.

Choosing Perl and Python highlights the essence of interpreted languages and their typical usage in development environments where rapid testing and flexibility are key.