Which term describes public code that is typically interpreted line by line?

The term that accurately describes public code that is typically interpreted line by line is "Interpretation." In programming, interpretation is the process by which a program written in a high-level language is executed one instruction at a time by an interpreter. This means that rather than converting the entire code into machine language in advance, an interpreter translates each line of code into machine code as it is encountered during execution. This allows for greater flexibility and ease of debugging, as developers can test and modify individual lines of code on the fly.

In contrast, compilation transforms the entire source code into a machine language file before execution, resulting in an executable program that runs without the need for ongoing interpretation. Machine language is the binary code that is directly executed by the computer's hardware, and while it represents the final output of a compiled program, it is not a direct descriptor of how high-level code is processed during interpretation. Therefore, "Interpretation" is the most accurate term in this context.