eval-when ({situation}*) {form}* → {result}*

situation — One of the symbols :compile-toplevel, :load-toplevel, :execute, compile, load, or eval.

The use of eval, compile, and load is deprecated.

forms — an implicit progn.

results — the values of the forms if they are executed, or nil if they are not.

The body of an eval-when form is processed as an implicit progn, but only in the situations listed.

The use of the situations :compile-toplevel (or compile) and :load-toplevel (or load) controls whether and when evaluation occurs when eval-when appears as a top level form in code processed by compile-file. See Section 3.2.3 (File Compilation).

The use of the situation :execute (or eval) controls whether evaluation occurs for other eval-when forms; that is, those that are not top level forms, or those in code processed by eval or compile. If the :execute situation is specified in such a form, then the body forms are processed as an implicit progn; otherwise, the eval-when form returns nil.

eval-when normally appears as a top level form, but it is meaningful for it to appear as a non-top-level form. However, the compile-time side effects described in Section 3.2 (Compilation) only take place when eval-when appears as a top level form.

One example of the use of eval-when is that for the compiler to be able to read a file properly when it uses user-defined reader macros, it is necessary to write

(eval-when (:compile-toplevel :load-toplevel :execute) 
  (set-macro-character #\$ #'(lambda (stream char) 
                               (declare (ignore char)) 
                               (list 'dollar (read stream))))) → T

This causes the call to set-macro-character to be executed in the compiler’s execution environment, thereby modifying its reader syntax table.

;;;     The EVAL-WHEN in this case is not at toplevel, so only the :EXECUTE 
;;;     keyword is considered. At compile time, this has no effect. 
;;;     At load time (if the LET is at toplevel), or at execution time 
;;;     (if the LET is embedded in some other form which does not execute 
;;;     until later) this sets (SYMBOL-FUNCTION 'FOO1) to a function which 
;;;     returns 1. 
 (let ((x 1)) 
   (eval-when (:execute :load-toplevel :compile-toplevel) 
     (setf (symbol-function 'foo1) #'(lambda () x)))) 

;;;     If this expression occurs at the toplevel of a file to be compiled, 
;;;     it has BOTH a compile time AND a load-time effect of setting 
;;;     (SYMBOL-FUNCTION 'FOO2) to a function which returns 2. 
 (eval-when (:execute :load-toplevel :compile-toplevel) 
   (let ((x 2)) 
     (eval-when (:execute :load-toplevel :compile-toplevel) 
       (setf (symbol-function 'foo2) #'(lambda () x))))) 

;;;     If this expression occurs at the toplevel of a file to be compiled, 
;;;     it has BOTH a compile time AND a load-time effect of setting the 
;;;     function cell of FOO3 to a function which returns 3. 
 (eval-when (:execute :load-toplevel :compile-toplevel) 
   (setf (symbol-function 'foo3) #'(lambda () 3))) 

;;; #4: This always does nothing. It simply returns NIL. 
 (eval-when (:compile-toplevel) 
   (eval-when (:compile-toplevel) 
     (print 'foo4))) 

;;;     If this form occurs at toplevel of a file to be compiled, FOO5 is 
;;;     printed at compile time. If this form occurs in a non-top-level 
;;;     position, nothing is printed at compile time. Regardless of context, 
;;;     nothing is ever printed at load time or execution time. 
 (eval-when (:compile-toplevel) 
   (eval-when (:execute) 
     (print 'foo5))) 

;;;     If this form occurs at toplevel of a file to be compiled, FOO6 is 
;;;     printed at compile time.  If this form occurs in a non-top-level 
;;;     position, nothing is printed at compile time. Regardless of context, 
;;;     nothing is ever printed at load time or execution time. 
 (eval-when (:execute :load-toplevel) 
   (eval-when (:compile-toplevel) 
     (print 'foo6)))

compile-file, Section 3.2 (Compilation)

The following effects are logical consequences of the definition of eval-when:

• Execution of a single eval-when expression executes the body code at most once.

• Macros intended for use in top level forms should be written so that side-effects are done by the forms in the macro expansion. The macro-expander itself should not do the side-effects.

  For example:

  Wrong:

  (defmacro foo () 
    (really-foo) 
    `(really-foo))

  Right:

  (defmacro foo () 
    `(eval-when (:compile-toplevel :execute :load-toplevel) (really-foo)))

  Adherence to this convention means that such macros behave intuitively when appearing as non-top-level forms.

• Placing a variable binding around an eval-when reliably captures the binding because the compile-time-too mode cannot occur (i.e., introducing a variable binding means that the eval-when is not a top level form). For example,

  (let ((x 3)) 
    (eval-when (:execute :load-toplevel :compile-toplevel) (print x)))

  prints 3 at execution (i.e., load) time, and does not print anything at compile time. This is important so that expansions of defun and defmacro can be done in terms of eval-when and can correctly capture the lexical environment.

  (defun bar (x) (defun foo () (+ x 3)))

  might expand into

  (defun bar (x) 
    (progn (eval-when (:compile-toplevel) 
             (compiler::notice-function-definition 'foo '(x))) 
           (eval-when (:execute :load-toplevel) 
             (setf (symbol-function 'foo) #'(lambda () (+ x 3))))))

  which would be treated by the above rules the same as

  (defun bar (x) 
    (setf (symbol-function 'foo) #'(lambda () (+ x 3))))

  when the definition of bar is not a top level form.