This is a reference document, not a tutorial document. Where possible and convenient, the order of presentation has been chosen so that the more primitive topics precede those that build upon them; however, linear readability has not been a priority.
This document is divided into chapters by topic. Any given chapter might contain conceptual material, dictionary entries, or both.
Defined names within the dictionary portion of a chapter are grouped in a way that brings related topics into physical proximity. Many such groupings were possible, and no deep significance should be inferred from the particular grouping that was chosen. To see defined names grouped alphabetically, consult the index. For a complete list of defined names, see Section 1.9 (Symbols in the COMMON-LISP Package).
In order to compensate for the sometimes-unordered portions of this document, a glossary has been provided; see Chapter 26 (Glossary). The glossary provides connectivity by providing easy access to definitions of terms, and in some cases by providing examples or cross references to additional conceptual material.
For information about notational conventions used in this document, see Section 1.4 (Definitions).
For information about conformance, see Section 1.5 (Conformance).
For information about extensions and subsets, see Section 1.6 (Language Extensions) and Section 1.7 (Language Subsets).
For information about how programs in the language are parsed by the Lisp reader, see Chapter 2 (Syntax).
For information about how programs in the language are compiled and executed, see Chapter 3 (Evaluation and Compilation).
For information about data types, see Chapter 4 (Types and Classes). Not all types and classes are defined in this chapter; many are defined in chapter corresponding to their topic–for example, the numeric types are defined in Chapter 12 (Numbers). For a complete list of standardized types, see Figure 4.2.
For information about general purpose control and data flow, see Chapter 5 (Data and Control Flow) or Chapter 6 (Iteration).