There was a very old useless thread discussing this (which I deleted for its uselessness), and I'll extract just the top-level question.
Today if you want to make an action take its first argument from the left, you say ENFIX:
>> add 1 2
== 3
>> /+: enfix get $add
>> 1 + 2
== 3
The reason it's ENFIX and not INFIX is because it can be used with functions of any arity. They get their first argument from the left, and everything else from the right.
>> /apd: enfix get $/append/dup
>> [a b c] apd [d e] 2
== [a b c [d e] [d e]
I picked ENFIX sort of based on the notion of N-Arity Infix. Choosing a made-up word for a concept that doesn't have any well-known precedent seemed as good as anything.
But What About Just "LOOKBACK" ?
In the interpreter internals I talk about what these functions do as being "lookback".
Is there any reason not to call them "lookback functions", so more like:
>> /apd: lookback get $/append/dup
>> [a b c] apd [d e] 2
== [a b c [d e] [d e]]
"ENFIX" sounds like more of a verb, which is something I like about it:
EN: a prefix occurring originally in loanwords from French and productive in English on this model, forming verbs with the general sense “to cause (a person or thing) to be in” the place, condition, or state named by the stem; more specifically, “to confine in or place on” (enshrine; enthrone; entomb); “to cause to be in” (enslave; entrust; enrich; encourage; endear); “to restrict” in the manner named by the stem, typically with the additional sense “on all sides, completely” (enwind; encircle; enclose; entwine). This prefix is also attached to verbs in order to make them transitive, or to give them a transitive marker if they are already transitive (enkindle; enliven; enshield; enface) via dictionary.com
When I've questioned the choice of ENFIX before, I've always come back to it. But maybe I've gotten too used to a term that's not that good? I dunno.
