stvalue

Stvalue, short for stored value, is a term used in discussions of value semantics to denote the actual data content stored in an object. It contrasts with the object's location (its memory address) and with its identity as a distinct object or reference. In languages such as C++, lvalues denote objects or locations that can designate storage; the stored value is the data currently held at that location. The concept is often used in explanations of value categories to distinguish between the site of storage and the data it contains.

In modern C++ literature, the standard defines value categories such as glvalue, prvalue, and xvalue. The stored value is typically discussed in the context of reading an object's content via the lvalue-to-rvalue conversion, which yields a prvalue equal to the object's current data. For example, if an int object holds 5, its stvalue is 5; if the object's content changes, the stvalue changes accordingly.

Stvalue is commonly used in pedagogical descriptions and some formal discussions to help reason about temporaries, moves, and value semantics without committing to a formal category in every context. It is not an official standalone category in the current standard, but remains a helpful conceptual tool for understanding how data resides in memory versus how that data is accessed or transferred. See also lvalue, glvalue, prvalue, xvalue, value category, and lvalue-to-rvalue conversion.