What is meant by Source Code?

Source code refers to the set of instructions written in a high-level programming language that is understandable by humans and serves as the foundation for software development. It typically contains the logic, functionality, and operations of a program, allowing programmers to read and modify the code to implement features or fix issues.

When code is written in a high-level programming language, such as Python, Java, or C++, it is user-friendly and can be managed with relative ease compared to lower-level languages or machine code. This human-readable format must be translated into machine code through a process of compilation or interpretation before it can be executed by a computer.

Each of the other options represents different aspects of programming and software but does not accurately capture the definition of source code. For instance, compiled code, executable files, and database input relate to processes and outputs of programming but do not describe the original instructions that programmers work with, which is what source code is.