gensym/jen'sim/ (From the {MacLISP} for "generated symbol") To invent a new name for something temporary, in such a way that the name is almost certainly not in conflict with one already in use. The canonical form of a gensym is "Gnnnn" where nnnn represents a number; any {LISP} {hacker} would recognise G0093 (for example) as a gensym. Gensymmed names are useful for storing or uniquely identifying crufties. [{Jargon File}] (1999-10-31)