Lambda Lists

ToC

Allegro CL

ANSI Common Lisp

A lambda list is a list that specifies a set of parameters (sometimes called lambda variables) and a protocol for receiving values for those parameters.

There are several kinds of lambda lists.

What Kind of Lambda Lists to Use
Context	Kind of Lambda List
defun form	ordinary lambda list
defmacro form	macro lambda list
lambda expression	ordinary lambda list
flet local function definition	ordinary lambda list
labels local function definition	ordinary lambda list
handler-case clause specification	ordinary lambda list
restart-case clause specification	ordinary lambda list
macrolet local macro definition	macro lambda list
define-method-combination	ordinary lambda list
define-method-combination `:arguments` option	define-method-combination arguments lambda list
defstruct `:constructor` option	boa lambda list
defgeneric form	generic function lambda list
defgeneric method clause	specialized lambda list
defmethod form	specialized lambda list
defsetf form	defsetf lambda list
define-setf-expander form	macro lambda list
deftype form	deftype lambda list
destructuring-bind form	destructuring lambda list
define-compiler-macro form	macro lambda list
define-modify-macro form	define-modify-macro lambda list

The next figure lists some defined names that are applicable to lambda lists.

Defined names applicable to lambda lists
lambda-list-keywords	lambda-parameters-limit