What do we call the program statements written in a human-readable form using a formal programming language's rules?

The term that describes program statements written in a human-readable form using the rules of a formal programming language is source code. Source code consists of high-level instructions that a programmer writes using a programming language such as Python, Java, or C++. This code is designed to be easily understood by humans, allowing programmers to read, write, and manage software applications effectively.

Source code serves as the foundation of software development, enabling developers to implement algorithms and logic that ultimately get transformed into executable applications. The process of converting source code into machine language that computers can understand typically involves compiling or interpreting the code.

Other terms, such as executable code, object code, and machine code, refer to different stages or aspects of program execution. Executable code is the final result that a computer can run to perform specific tasks, while object code is an intermediate form generated by a compiler when it compiles the source code, suitable for linking. Machine code refers to the lowest level of binary instructions that the computer's processor can directly execute. These terms highlight the various transformations that source code undergoes but do not describe the human-readable aspect of programming.