Overcomplicating Naming Leads to Chaos TL;DR: Naming is hard, don't make it harder with unnecessary accidental complexity. Problems Unclear, misleading, vague, and ambiguous names
Redundant terminology
Confusing abstractions
Cryptic abbreviations Solutions Simplify naming conventions
Ensure consistency
Avoid unnecessary jargon
Use descriptive names based on behavior
Maintain consistent terminology Context Ludwig Wittgenstein argued that much confusion arises from language misuse. This happens when you overcomplicate names, mix metaphors, or use inconsistent terminology. When you name classes, methods, or variables without clarity, you create a linguistic maze that others struggle to navigate. This causes bugs, makes maintenance harder, and leads to team frustration. Sample Code Wrong public class AbstractDataHandlerManager {
    private String dtStr;
    
    public void execProcessingOps(String input) {
        if (dtStr != null && !dtStr.isEmpty()) {
            // process
        }
    }
} Right public class SETIProcessor {
    
    public void processSignal(String input) {      
            // process
        }
    }
} Detection [x]Manual You can detect this smell when names start to get long, or when you see "Abstract", "Manager," "Handler," "Helper", or "Data" too often. Another sign is when you must explain what a name means to other developers for example in a code review. Tag(s) Naming Level [x]Beginner AI Generation AI generators often create this smell by producing verbose and generic names that attempt to cover every possible context. They are experts in many domains and write code, but frequently they don't do both at once unless instructed. AI Detection AI generators can sometimes fix this smell with simple refactoring instructions like "simplify names" or "remove redundant terms," but struggle with deeper contextual understanding. Conclusion Linguistic confusion in code leads to unnecessary complexity. Use clear, consistent, and straightforward naming to make your code easier to read and maintain. Related Reading https://hackernoon.com/how-to-find-the-stinky-parts-of-your-code-part-v-evj3zs9 https://hackernoon.com/how-to-find-the-stinky-parts-of-your-code-part-viii-8mn3352 https://hackernoon.com/how-to-find-the-stinky-parts-of-your-code-part-xxxx https://hackernoon.com/how-to-find-the-stinky-parts-of-your-code-part-xxiii More Info https://the-philosophers-shirt.com/en-int/blogs/philosophical-dictionary/wittgenstein-linguistic-confusion?embedable=true https://hackernoon.com/what-is-wrong-with-software-uh8j3y7k?embedable=true https://hackernoon.com/what-exactly-is-a-name-the-quest-part-i-fmw3udc?embedable=true https://hackernoon.com/what-exactly-is-a-name-rehab-part-ii-4st3uph?embedable=true Disclaimer: Code Smells are my opinion. Credits: Photo by Mimi Thian on Unsplash The greatest enemy of clear language is insincerity. George Orwell https://hackernoon.com/400-thought-provoking-software-engineering-quotes?embedable=true This article is part of the CodeSmell Series on HackerNoon: How to Find the Stinky Parts of your Code Overcomplicating Naming Leads to Chaos TL;DR: Naming is hard, don't make it harder with unnecessary accidental complexity. TL;DR: Naming is hard, don't make it harder with unnecessary accidental complexity. Problems Unclear, misleading, vague, and ambiguous names Redundant terminology Confusing abstractions Cryptic abbreviations Unclear, misleading, vague, and ambiguous names Redundant terminology Confusing abstractions Cryptic abbreviations Solutions Simplify naming conventions Ensure consistency Avoid unnecessary jargon Use descriptive names based on behavior Maintain consistent terminology Simplify naming conventions Ensure consistency Avoid unnecessary jargon jargon Use descriptive names based on behavior descriptive names Maintain consistent terminology Context Ludwig Wittgenstein argued that much confusion arises from language misuse. Ludwig Wittgenstein This happens when you overcomplicate names, mix metaphors, or use inconsistent terminology. When you name classes, methods, or variables without clarity, you create a linguistic maze that others struggle to navigate. This causes bugs, makes maintenance harder, and leads to team frustration. Sample Code Wrong public class AbstractDataHandlerManager {
    private String dtStr;
    
    public void execProcessingOps(String input) {
        if (dtStr != null && !dtStr.isEmpty()) {
            // process
        }
    }
} public class AbstractDataHandlerManager {
    private String dtStr;
    
    public void execProcessingOps(String input) {
        if (dtStr != null && !dtStr.isEmpty()) {
            // process
        }
    }
} Right public class SETIProcessor {
    
    public void processSignal(String input) {      
            // process
        }
    }
} public class SETIProcessor {
    
    public void processSignal(String input) {      
            // process
        }
    }
} Detection [x]Manual [x] Manual [x] You can detect this smell when names start to get long, or when you see " Abstract ", "Manager," "Handler," " Helper ", or " Data " too often. Abstract Helper Data Another sign is when you must explain what a name means to other developers for example in a code review. Tag(s) Naming Level [x]Beginner [x] Beginner [x] AI Generation AI generators often create this smell by producing verbose and generic names that attempt to cover every possible context. They are experts in many domains and write code, but frequently they don't do both at once unless instructed. both at once AI Detection AI generators can sometimes fix this smell with simple refactoring instructions like "simplify names" or "remove redundant terms," but struggle with deeper contextual understanding. Conclusion Linguistic confusion in code leads to unnecessary complexity. Use clear, consistent, and straightforward naming to make your code easier to read and maintain. Related Reading https://hackernoon.com/how-to-find-the-stinky-parts-of-your-code-part-v-evj3zs9 https://hackernoon.com/how-to-find-the-stinky-parts-of-your-code-part-v-evj3zs9 https://hackernoon.com/how-to-find-the-stinky-parts-of-your-code-part-viii-8mn3352 https://hackernoon.com/how-to-find-the-stinky-parts-of-your-code-part-viii-8mn3352 https://hackernoon.com/how-to-find-the-stinky-parts-of-your-code-part-xxxx https://hackernoon.com/how-to-find-the-stinky-parts-of-your-code-part-xxxx https://hackernoon.com/how-to-find-the-stinky-parts-of-your-code-part-xxiii https://hackernoon.com/how-to-find-the-stinky-parts-of-your-code-part-xxiii More Info https://the-philosophers-shirt.com/en-int/blogs/philosophical-dictionary/wittgenstein-linguistic-confusion?embedable=true https://the-philosophers-shirt.com/en-int/blogs/philosophical-dictionary/wittgenstein-linguistic-confusion?embedable=true https://hackernoon.com/what-is-wrong-with-software-uh8j3y7k?embedable=true https://hackernoon.com/what-is-wrong-with-software-uh8j3y7k?embedable=true https://hackernoon.com/what-exactly-is-a-name-the-quest-part-i-fmw3udc?embedable=true https://hackernoon.com/what-exactly-is-a-name-the-quest-part-i-fmw3udc?embedable=true https://hackernoon.com/what-exactly-is-a-name-rehab-part-ii-4st3uph?embedable=true https://hackernoon.com/what-exactly-is-a-name-rehab-part-ii-4st3uph?embedable=true Disclaimer: Code Smells are my opinion. Disclaimer: Code Smells are my opinion . opinion Credits: Photo by Mimi Thian on Unsplash Credits: Photo by Mimi Thian on Unsplash Mimi Thian Unsplash The greatest enemy of clear language is insincerity. The greatest enemy of clear language is insincerity. George Orwell George Orwell https://hackernoon.com/400-thought-provoking-software-engineering-quotes?embedable=true https://hackernoon.com/400-thought-provoking-software-engineering-quotes?embedable=true This article is part of the CodeSmell Series on HackerNoon: How to Find the Stinky Parts of your Code This article is part of the CodeSmell Series on HackerNoon: How to Find the Stinky Parts of your Code How to Find the Stinky Parts of your Code

Walkthroughs, tutorials, guides, and tips. This story will teach you how to do something new or how to do something better.

Code Smell 266 - Collection Aliasing

Code Smell 264 - Hanlon's Razor

Buy My Book

Code Smell 265 - Linguistic Confusion

About Author

Comments

TOPICS

THIS ARTICLE WAS FEATURED IN

Related Stories

Untitled Story

10 Predictions About the Future of Finance

106 Stories To Learn About Clean Code

100 Pieces of Programming Advice from the Book Clean Code by Robert Martin

110 Stories To Learn About Refactoring

3 Things Coding And Prose Writing Have In Common According To Cory House

10 Predictions About the Future of Finance

106 Stories To Learn About Clean Code

100 Pieces of Programming Advice from the Book Clean Code by Robert Martin

110 Stories To Learn About Refactoring

3 Things Coding And Prose Writing Have In Common According To Cory House

Light-Mode

Classic

Newspaper

Dark-Mode

Neon Noir

Minty

HN StartUps