Definition: conditional branch

A programming instruction that directs the computer to another part of the program based on the results of a compare. High-level language statements, such as IF THEN ELSE and CASE, are used to express the compare and conditional branch. In the following (simulated) assembly language example, the second line is the conditional branch. See if-then-else and case statement.

   compare fieldA with fieldB
   goto matchRoutine if equal