Can you explain what is meant by an interpreted programming language?

An interpreted programming language is a language whose source code is executed directly by an interpreter program, without prior compilation into machine code. The interpreter reads the code line by line or in blocks, analyzes, and executes commands during the program's runtime.

For example, Python and JavaScript are interpreted languages. This allows for quick execution and testing of code but may reduce performance compared to compiled languages.

In contrast, compiled languages (such as C# or C++) first convert the entire source code into machine code, which is then executed by the processor.