Special Form Entry: SETQ

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Special Form Entry: SETQ

Name

setq

Class

Special Form

Syntax

(setq sym expr [sym expr] ...)

Arguments and Values

  • sym: a symbol; not evaluated
  • expr: an expression

Description

Assigns values to variables.

Evaluation Rules

  • symbols are taken literally
  • expressions are evaluated left to right
  • assignments occur left to right

Return Values

Returns the value of the last expr.

Side Effects

Establishes or changes variable bindings. Writes the supplied value into the symbol's single binding cell (see chapter 7, "Single-Cell Symbol Binding"); a previous defun on the same symbol is therefore overwritten.

Exceptional Situations

Malformed syntax or invalid assignment targets are erroneous.

Examples

  • (setq A 10) => 10
  • (setq A 1 B 2) => 2
  • (defun foo (x) x) (setq foo 42) — foo evaluates to 42; (foo 5) then signals no function definition.

Compatibility

Stable across vendors.

Notes

set differs by evaluating the symbol designator. AutoLISP is Lisp-1: setq and defun share the same per-symbol binding cell; the most recent write wins (chapter 7).

Availability

  • AutoCAD 2026: documented (per Autodesk reference page).
  • BricsCAD V26: presumed compatible (no contradicting page found).
  • Status: AutoCAD documented; BricsCAD presumed-both pending Phase 4 verification.