View source for Web Services Description Language

The '''Web Services Description Language''' ('''WSDL''' /ˈwɪz dəl/) is an [[XML]]-based interface definition language that is used for describing the functionality offered by a [[web service]].

== Description ==

The acronym is also used for any specific WSDL description of a web service (also referred to as a WSDL file), which provides a machine-readable description of how the service can be called, what parameters it expects, and what data structures it returns.

It thus serves a purpose that corresponds roughly to that of a method signature in a [[programming language]].

== See also ==

* [[Representational state transfer]]
* [[Software architecture]]
* [[Web service]]

== External links ==

* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_Services_Description_Language Web Services Description Language] @ Wikipedia


[[Category:Computing]]
[[Category:Web design and development]]
[[Category:Web services]]
[[Category:XML]]