underflow

Meanings

Noun

• A current flowing below the surface.
• A condition in which the value of a computed quantity is smaller than the smallest non-zero value that can be physically stored; usually treated as an error condition
• The error condition that results from an attempt to retrieve an item from an empty stack

Verb

• To trigger the condition in which the value of a computed quantity is smaller than the smallest non-zero value that can be physically stored.

Origin

• under- + flow, modelled on overflow.