object Predef extends LowPriorityImplicits
The Predef
object provides definitions that are accessible in all Scala
compilation units without explicit qualification.
Commonly Used Types
Predef provides type aliases for types which are commonly used, such as the immutable collection types scala.collection.immutable.Map and scala.collection.immutable.Set.
Console Output
For basic console output, Predef
provides convenience methods print and println,
which are aliases of the methods in the object scala.Console.
Assertions
A set of assert
functions are provided for use as a way to document
and dynamically check invariants in code. Invocations of assert
can be elided
at compile time by providing the command line option -Xdisable-assertions
,
which raises -Xelide-below
above elidable.ASSERTION
, to the scalac
command.
Variants of assert
intended for use with static analysis tools are also
provided: assume
, require
and ensuring
. require
and ensuring
are
intended for use as a means of design-by-contract style specification
of pre- and post-conditions on functions, with the intention that these
specifications could be consumed by a static analysis tool. For instance,
def addNaturals(nats: List[Int]): Int = { require(nats forall (_ >= 0), "List contains negative numbers") nats.foldLeft(0)(_ + _) } ensuring(_ >= 0)
The declaration of addNaturals
states that the list of integers passed should
only contain natural numbers (i.e. non-negative), and that the result returned
will also be natural. require
is distinct from assert
in that if the
condition fails, then the caller of the function is to blame rather than a
logical error having been made within addNaturals
itself. ensuring
is a
form of assert
that declares the guarantee the function is providing with
regards to its return value.
Implicit Conversions
A number of commonly applied implicit conversions are also defined here, and in the parent type scala.LowPriorityImplicits. Implicit conversions are provided for the "widening" of numeric values, for instance, converting a Short value to a Long value as required, and to add additional higher-order functions to Array values. These are described in more detail in the documentation of scala.Array.
- Source
- Predef.scala
- Grouped
- Alphabetic
- By Inheritance
- Predef
- LowPriorityImplicits
- LowPriorityImplicits2
- AnyRef
- Any
- Hide All
- Show All
- Public
- Protected
Type Members
- final class ArrayCharSequence extends CharSequence
- implicit final class ArrowAssoc[A] extends AnyVal
- type Class[T] = java.lang.Class[T]
- implicit final class Ensuring[A] extends AnyVal
- type Function[-A, +B] = (A) => B
- type Manifest[T] = reflect.Manifest[T]
- Annotations
- @implicitNotFound()
- type Map[K, +V] = collection.immutable.Map[K, V]
- type OptManifest[T] = reflect.OptManifest[T]
- final class SeqCharSequence extends CharSequence
- type Set[A] = collection.immutable.Set[A]
- type String = java.lang.String
The
String
type in Scala has all the methods of the underlying java.lang.String, of which it is just an alias.The
String
type in Scala has all the methods of the underlying java.lang.String, of which it is just an alias.In addition, extension methods in scala.collection.StringOps are added implicitly through the conversion augmentString.
- implicit final class StringFormat[A] extends AnyVal
Deprecated Type Members
- implicit final class any2stringadd[A] extends AnyVal
Injects String concatenation operator
+
to any classes.Injects String concatenation operator
+
to any classes.- Annotations
- @deprecated
- Deprecated
(Since version 2.13.0) Implicit injection of + is deprecated. Convert to String to call +
Value Members
- final def !=(arg0: Any): Boolean
Test two objects for inequality.
Test two objects for inequality.
- returns
true
if !(this == that), false otherwise.
- Definition Classes
- AnyRef → Any
- final def ##: Int
Equivalent to
x.hashCode
except for boxed numeric types andnull
.Equivalent to
x.hashCode
except for boxed numeric types andnull
. For numerics, it returns a hash value which is consistent with value equality: if two value type instances compare as true, then ## will produce the same hash value for each of them. Fornull
returns a hashcode wherenull.hashCode
throws aNullPointerException
.- returns
a hash value consistent with ==
- Definition Classes
- AnyRef → Any
- implicit def $conforms[A]: (A) => A
An implicit of type
A => A
is available for allA
because it can always be implemented using the identity function.An implicit of type
A => A
is available for allA
because it can always be implemented using the identity function. This also means that an implicit of typeA => B
is always available whenA <: B
, because(A => A) <: (A => B)
. - val ->: Tuple2.type
Allows destructuring tuples with the same syntax as constructing them.
Allows destructuring tuples with the same syntax as constructing them.
val tup = "foobar" -> 3 val c = tup match { case str -> i => str.charAt(i) }
Example: - final def ==(arg0: Any): Boolean
The expression
x == that
is equivalent toif (x eq null) that eq null else x.equals(that)
.The expression
x == that
is equivalent toif (x eq null) that eq null else x.equals(that)
.- returns
true
if the receiver object is equivalent to the argument;false
otherwise.
- Definition Classes
- AnyRef → Any
- def ???: Nothing
???
can be used for marking methods that remain to be implemented.???
can be used for marking methods that remain to be implemented.- Exceptions thrown
NotImplementedError
when???
is invoked.
- def ArrayCharSequence(arrayOfChars: Array[Char]): ArrayCharSequence
- implicit def Boolean2boolean(x: java.lang.Boolean): Boolean
- implicit def Byte2byte(x: java.lang.Byte): Byte
- implicit def Character2char(x: Character): Char
- implicit def Double2double(x: java.lang.Double): Double
- implicit def Float2float(x: java.lang.Float): Float
- implicit def Integer2int(x: Integer): Int
- implicit def Long2long(x: java.lang.Long): Long
- val Manifest: reflect.Manifest.type
- val Map: collection.immutable.Map.type
- val NoManifest: reflect.NoManifest.type
- def SeqCharSequence(sequenceOfChars: collection.IndexedSeq[Char]): SeqCharSequence
- val Set: collection.immutable.Set.type
- implicit def Short2short(x: java.lang.Short): Short
- final def asInstanceOf[T0]: T0
Forces the compiler to treat the receiver object as having type
T0
, even though doing so may violate type safety.Forces the compiler to treat the receiver object as having type
T0
, even though doing so may violate type safety.This method is useful when you believe you have type information the compiler doesn't, and it also isn't possible to check the type at runtime. In such situations, skipping type safety is the only option.
It is platform dependent whether
asInstanceOf
has any effect at runtime. It might do a runtime type test on the erasure ofT0
, insert a conversion (such as boxing/unboxing), fill in a default value, or do nothing at all.In particular,
asInstanceOf
is not a type test. It does **not** mean:this match { case x: T0 => x case _ => throw ClassCastException("...")
Use pattern matching or isInstanceOf for type testing instead.
Situations where
asInstanceOf
is useful:- when flow analysis fails to deduce
T0
automatically - when down-casting a type parameter or an abstract type member (which cannot be checked at runtime due to type erasure) If there is any doubt and you are able to type test instead, you should do so.
Be careful of using
asInstanceOf
whenT0
is a primitive type. WhenT0
is primitive,asInstanceOf
may insert a conversion instead of a type test. If your intent is to convert, use atoT
method (x.toChar
,x.toByte
, etc.).- returns
the receiver object.
- Definition Classes
- Any
- Exceptions thrown
ClassCastException
if the receiver is not an instance of the erasure ofT0
, if that can be checked on this platform
- when flow analysis fails to deduce
- final def assert(assertion: Boolean, message: => Any): Unit
Tests an expression, throwing an
AssertionError
if false. - def assert(assertion: Boolean): Unit
Tests an expression, throwing an
AssertionError
if false. - final def assume(assumption: Boolean, message: => Any): Unit
Tests an expression, throwing an
AssertionError
if false.Tests an expression, throwing an
AssertionError
if false. This method differs from assert only in the intent expressed: assert contains a predicate which needs to be proven, while assume contains an axiom for a static checker. Calls to this method will not be generated if-Xelide-below
is greater thanASSERTION
.- assumption
the expression to test
- message
a String to include in the failure message
- def assume(assumption: Boolean): Unit
Tests an expression, throwing an
AssertionError
if false.Tests an expression, throwing an
AssertionError
if false. This method differs from assert only in the intent expressed: assert contains a predicate which needs to be proven, while assume contains an axiom for a static checker. Calls to this method will not be generated if-Xelide-below
is greater thanASSERTION
.- assumption
the expression to test
- implicit def augmentString(x: String): StringOps
- Annotations
- @inline()
- implicit def boolean2Boolean(x: Boolean): java.lang.Boolean
- implicit def booleanArrayOps(xs: Array[Boolean]): ArrayOps[Boolean]
- Annotations
- @inline()
- implicit def booleanWrapper(x: Boolean): RichBoolean
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- Annotations
- @inline()
- implicit def byte2Byte(x: Byte): java.lang.Byte
- implicit def byteArrayOps(xs: Array[Byte]): ArrayOps[Byte]
- Annotations
- @inline()
- implicit def byteWrapper(x: Byte): RichByte
We prefer the java.lang.* boxed types to these wrappers in any potential conflicts.
We prefer the java.lang.* boxed types to these wrappers in any potential conflicts. Conflicts do exist because the wrappers need to implement ScalaNumber in order to have a symmetric equals method, but that implies implementing java.lang.Number as well.
Note - these are inlined because they are value classes, but the call to xxxWrapper is not eliminated even though it does nothing. Even inlined, every call site does a no-op retrieval of Predef's MODULE$ because maybe loading Predef has side effects!
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- Annotations
- @inline()
- implicit def char2Character(x: Char): Character
- implicit def charArrayOps(xs: Array[Char]): ArrayOps[Char]
- Annotations
- @inline()
- implicit def charWrapper(c: Char): RichChar
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- Annotations
- @inline()
- def classOf[T]: Class[T]
Retrieve the runtime representation of a class type.
Retrieve the runtime representation of a class type.
classOf[T]
is equivalent to the class literalT.class
in Java.- returns
The runtime Class representation of type
T
.
val listClass = classOf[List[_]] // listClass is java.lang.Class[List[_]] = class scala.collection.immutable.List val mapIntString = classOf[Map[Int,String]] // mapIntString is java.lang.Class[Map[Int,String]] = interface scala.collection.immutable.Map
Example: - def clone(): AnyRef
Create a copy of the receiver object.
Create a copy of the receiver object.
The default implementation of the
clone
method is platform dependent.- returns
a copy of the receiver object.
- implicit def double2Double(x: Double): java.lang.Double
- implicit def doubleArrayOps(xs: Array[Double]): ArrayOps[Double]
- Annotations
- @inline()
- implicit def doubleWrapper(x: Double): RichDouble
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- Annotations
- @inline()
- final def eq(arg0: AnyRef): Boolean
Tests whether the argument (
that
) is a reference to the receiver object (this
).Tests whether the argument (
that
) is a reference to the receiver object (this
).The
eq
method implements an equivalence relation on non-null instances ofAnyRef
, and has three additional properties:- It is consistent: for any non-null instances
x
andy
of typeAnyRef
, multiple invocations ofx.eq(y)
consistently returnstrue
or consistently returnsfalse
. - For any non-null instance
x
of typeAnyRef
,x.eq(null)
andnull.eq(x)
returnsfalse
. null.eq(null)
returnstrue
.
When overriding the
equals
orhashCode
methods, it is important to ensure that their behavior is consistent with reference equality. Therefore, if two objects are references to each other (o1 eq o2
), they should be equal to each other (o1 == o2
) and they should hash to the same value (o1.hashCode == o2.hashCode
).- returns
true
if the argument is a reference to the receiver object;false
otherwise.
- Definition Classes
- AnyRef
- It is consistent: for any non-null instances
- def equals(arg0: AnyRef): Boolean
The equality method for reference types.
- def finalize(): Unit
Called by the garbage collector on the receiver object when there are no more references to the object.
Called by the garbage collector on the receiver object when there are no more references to the object.
The details of when and if the
finalize
method is invoked, as well as the interaction betweenfinalize
and non-local returns and exceptions, are all platform dependent.- Attributes
- protected[lang]
- Definition Classes
- AnyRef
- Annotations
- @throws(classOf[java.lang.Throwable])
- Note
not specified by SLS as a member of AnyRef
- implicit def float2Float(x: Float): java.lang.Float
- implicit def floatArrayOps(xs: Array[Float]): ArrayOps[Float]
- Annotations
- @inline()
- implicit def floatWrapper(x: Float): RichFloat
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- Annotations
- @inline()
- implicit def genericArrayOps[T](xs: Array[T]): ArrayOps[T]
- Annotations
- @inline()
- implicit def genericWrapArray[T](xs: Array[T]): ArraySeq[T]
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- final def getClass(): java.lang.Class[_ <: AnyRef]
Returns the runtime class representation of the object.
- def hashCode(): Int
The hashCode method for reference types.
- def identity[A](x: A): A
A method that returns its input value.
A method that returns its input value.
- A
type of the input value x.
- x
the value of type
A
to be returned.- returns
the value
x
.
- Annotations
- @inline()
- def implicitly[T](implicit e: T): T
Summon an implicit value of type
T
.Summon an implicit value of type
T
. Usually, the argument is not passed explicitly.- T
the type of the value to be summoned
- returns
the implicit value of type
T
- Annotations
- @inline()
- implicit def int2Integer(x: Int): Integer
- implicit def intArrayOps(xs: Array[Int]): ArrayOps[Int]
- Annotations
- @inline()
- implicit def intWrapper(x: Int): RichInt
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- Annotations
- @inline()
- final def isInstanceOf[T0]: Boolean
Test whether the dynamic type of the receiver object has the same erasure as
T0
.Test whether the dynamic type of the receiver object has the same erasure as
T0
.Depending on what
T0
is, the test is done in one of the below ways:T0
is a non-parameterized class type, e.g.BigDecimal
: this method returnstrue
if the value of the receiver object is aBigDecimal
or a subtype ofBigDecimal
.T0
is a parameterized class type, e.g.List[Int]
: this method returnstrue
if the value of the receiver object is someList[X]
for anyX
. For example,List(1, 2, 3).isInstanceOf[List[String]]
will return true.T0
is some singleton typex.type
or literalx
: this method returnsthis.eq(x)
. For example,x.isInstanceOf[1]
is equivalent tox.eq(1)
T0
is an intersectionX with Y
orX & Y: this method is equivalent to
x.isInstanceOf[X] && x.isInstanceOf[Y]T0
is a unionX | Y
: this method is equivalent tox.isInstanceOf[X] || x.isInstanceOf[Y]
T0
is a type parameter or an abstract type member: this method is equivalent toisInstanceOf[U]
whereU
isT0
's upper bound,Any
ifT0
is unbounded. For example,x.isInstanceOf[A]
whereA
is an unbounded type parameter will return true for any value ofx
.
This is exactly equivalent to the type pattern
_: T0
- returns
true
if the receiver object is an instance of erasure of typeT0
;false
otherwise.
- Definition Classes
- Any
- Note
due to the unexpectedness of
List(1, 2, 3).isInstanceOf[List[String]]
returning true andx.isInstanceOf[A]
whereA
is a type parameter or abstract member returning true, these forms issue a warning.
- def locally[T](x: T): T
Used to mark code blocks as being expressions, instead of being taken as part of anonymous classes and the like.
Used to mark code blocks as being expressions, instead of being taken as part of anonymous classes and the like. This is just a different name for identity.
- Annotations
- @inline()
Separating code blocks from
new
:val x = new AnyRef { val y = ... println(y) } // the { ... } block is seen as the body of an anonymous class val x = new AnyRef { val y = ... println(y) } // an empty line is a brittle "fix" val x = new AnyRef locally { val y = ... println(y) } // locally guards the block and helps communicate intent
Example: - implicit def long2Long(x: Long): java.lang.Long
- implicit def longArrayOps(xs: Array[Long]): ArrayOps[Long]
- Annotations
- @inline()
- implicit def longWrapper(x: Long): RichLong
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- Annotations
- @inline()
- def manifest[T](implicit m: Manifest[T]): Manifest[T]
- final def ne(arg0: AnyRef): Boolean
Equivalent to
!(this eq that)
.Equivalent to
!(this eq that)
.- returns
true
if the argument is not a reference to the receiver object;false
otherwise.
- Definition Classes
- AnyRef
- final def notify(): Unit
Wakes up a single thread that is waiting on the receiver object's monitor.
Wakes up a single thread that is waiting on the receiver object's monitor.
- Definition Classes
- AnyRef
- Annotations
- @native()
- Note
not specified by SLS as a member of AnyRef
- final def notifyAll(): Unit
Wakes up all threads that are waiting on the receiver object's monitor.
Wakes up all threads that are waiting on the receiver object's monitor.
- Definition Classes
- AnyRef
- Annotations
- @native()
- Note
not specified by SLS as a member of AnyRef
- def optManifest[T](implicit m: OptManifest[T]): OptManifest[T]
- def print(x: Any): Unit
Prints an object to
out
using itstoString
method.Prints an object to
out
using itstoString
method.- x
the object to print; may be null.
- def printf(text: String, xs: Any*): Unit
Prints its arguments as a formatted string to the default output, based on a string pattern (in a fashion similar to printf in C).
Prints its arguments as a formatted string to the default output, based on a string pattern (in a fashion similar to printf in C).
The interpretation of the formatting patterns is described in java.util.Formatter.
Consider using the f interpolator as more type safe and idiomatic.
- text
the pattern for formatting the arguments.
- xs
the arguments used to instantiate the pattern.
- Exceptions thrown
java.lang.IllegalArgumentException
if there was a problem with the format string or arguments- See also
- def println(x: Any): Unit
Prints out an object to the default output, followed by a newline character.
Prints out an object to the default output, followed by a newline character.
- x
the object to print.
- def println(): Unit
Prints a newline character on the default output.
- implicit def refArrayOps[T <: AnyRef](xs: Array[T]): ArrayOps[T]
- Annotations
- @inline()
- final def require(requirement: Boolean, message: => Any): Unit
Tests an expression, throwing an
IllegalArgumentException
if false.Tests an expression, throwing an
IllegalArgumentException
if false. This method is similar toassert
, but blames the caller of the method for violating the condition.- requirement
the expression to test
- message
a String to include in the failure message
- Annotations
- @inline()
- def require(requirement: Boolean): Unit
Tests an expression, throwing an
IllegalArgumentException
if false.Tests an expression, throwing an
IllegalArgumentException
if false. This method is similar toassert
, but blames the caller of the method for violating the condition.- requirement
the expression to test
- implicit def short2Short(x: Short): java.lang.Short
- implicit def shortArrayOps(xs: Array[Short]): ArrayOps[Short]
- Annotations
- @inline()
- implicit def shortWrapper(x: Short): RichShort
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- Annotations
- @inline()
- final def synchronized[T0](arg0: => T0): T0
Executes the code in
body
with an exclusive lock onthis
.Executes the code in
body
with an exclusive lock onthis
.- returns
the result of
body
- Definition Classes
- AnyRef
- def toString(): java.lang.String
Creates a String representation of this object.
Creates a String representation of this object. The default representation is platform dependent. On the java platform it is the concatenation of the class name, "@", and the object's hashcode in hexadecimal.
- returns
a String representation of the object.
- Definition Classes
- AnyRef → Any
- implicit def tuple2ToZippedOps[T1, T2](x: (T1, T2)): Ops[T1, T2]
- implicit def tuple3ToZippedOps[T1, T2, T3](x: (T1, T2, T3)): Ops[T1, T2, T3]
- implicit def unitArrayOps(xs: Array[Unit]): ArrayOps[Unit]
- Annotations
- @inline()
- def valueOf[T](implicit vt: ValueOf[T]): T
Retrieve the single value of a type with a unique inhabitant.
Retrieve the single value of a type with a unique inhabitant.
- Annotations
- @inline()
object Foo val foo = valueOf[Foo.type] // foo is Foo.type = Foo val bar = valueOf[23] // bar is 23.type = 23
Example: - final def wait(): Unit
See https://docs.oracle.com/javase/8/docs/api/java/lang/Object.html#wait--.
- Definition Classes
- AnyRef
- Annotations
- @throws(classOf[java.lang.InterruptedException])
- Note
not specified by SLS as a member of AnyRef
- final def wait(arg0: Long, arg1: Int): Unit
See https://docs.oracle.com/javase/8/docs/api/java/lang/Object.html#wait-long-int-
- Definition Classes
- AnyRef
- Annotations
- @throws(classOf[java.lang.InterruptedException])
- Note
not specified by SLS as a member of AnyRef
- final def wait(arg0: Long): Unit
See https://docs.oracle.com/javase/8/docs/api/java/lang/Object.html#wait-long-.
- implicit def wrapBooleanArray(xs: Array[Boolean]): ofBoolean
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- implicit def wrapByteArray(xs: Array[Byte]): ofByte
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- implicit def wrapCharArray(xs: Array[Char]): ofChar
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- implicit def wrapDoubleArray(xs: Array[Double]): ofDouble
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- implicit def wrapFloatArray(xs: Array[Float]): ofFloat
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- implicit def wrapIntArray(xs: Array[Int]): ofInt
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- implicit def wrapLongArray(xs: Array[Long]): ofLong
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- implicit def wrapRefArray[T <: AnyRef](xs: Array[T]): ofRef[T]
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- implicit def wrapShortArray(xs: Array[Short]): ofShort
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- implicit def wrapString(s: String): WrappedString
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
- implicit def wrapUnitArray(xs: Array[Unit]): ofUnit
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits
Deprecated Value Members
- implicit def copyArrayToImmutableIndexedSeq[T](xs: Array[T]): IndexedSeq[T]
- Definition Classes
- LowPriorityImplicits2
- Annotations
- @deprecated
- Deprecated
(Since version 2.13.0) implicit conversions from Array to immutable.IndexedSeq are implemented by copying; use
toIndexedSeq
explicitly if you want to copy, or use the more efficient non-copying ArraySeq.unsafeWrapArray
Inherited from LowPriorityImplicits
Inherited from LowPriorityImplicits2
Inherited from AnyRef
Inherited from Any
Utility Methods
Assertions
These methods support program verification and runtime correctness.
Console Output
These methods provide output via the console.
Aliases
These aliases bring selected immutable types into scope without any imports.
String Conversions
Conversions from String to StringOps or WrappedString.
Implicit Classes
These implicit classes add useful extension methods to every type.
CharSequence Wrappers
Wrappers that implements CharSequence and were implicit classes.
Java to Scala
Implicit conversion from Java primitive wrapper types to Scala equivalents.
Scala to Java
Implicit conversion from Scala AnyVals to Java primitive wrapper types equivalents.
Array to ArraySeq
Conversions from Arrays to ArraySeqs.
This is the documentation for the Scala standard library.
Package structure
The scala package contains core types like
Int
,Float
,Array
orOption
which are accessible in all Scala compilation units without explicit qualification or imports.Notable packages include:
scala.collection
and its sub-packages contain Scala's collections frameworkscala.collection.immutable
- Immutable, sequential data-structures such asVector
,List
,Range
,HashMap
orHashSet
scala.collection.mutable
- Mutable, sequential data-structures such asArrayBuffer
,StringBuilder
,HashMap
orHashSet
scala.collection.concurrent
- Mutable, concurrent data-structures such asTrieMap
scala.concurrent
- Primitives for concurrent programming such asFutures
andPromises
scala.io
- Input and output operationsscala.math
- Basic math functions and additional numeric types likeBigInt
andBigDecimal
scala.sys
- Interaction with other processes and the operating systemscala.util.matching
- Regular expressionsOther packages exist. See the complete list on the right.
Additional parts of the standard library are shipped as separate libraries. These include:
scala.reflect
- Scala's reflection API (scala-reflect.jar)scala.xml
- XML parsing, manipulation, and serialization (scala-xml.jar)scala.collection.parallel
- Parallel collections (scala-parallel-collections.jar)scala.util.parsing
- Parser combinators (scala-parser-combinators.jar)scala.swing
- A convenient wrapper around Java's GUI framework called Swing (scala-swing.jar)Automatic imports
Identifiers in the scala package and the
scala.Predef
object are always in scope by default.Some of these identifiers are type aliases provided as shortcuts to commonly used classes. For example,
List
is an alias forscala.collection.immutable.List
.Other aliases refer to classes provided by the underlying platform. For example, on the JVM,
String
is an alias forjava.lang.String
.