Which statement about HCL is true?

Which statement about HCL is true?

• A. HCL supports user-defined functions
• B. HCL does not support user-defined functions
• C. HCL supports only JSON-like syntax
• D. HCL requires a separate compiler

Answer: (B)

HCL is HashiCorp Configuration Language used by Terraform that includes built-in functions you can use in expressions, but you don’t define new functions inside HCL itself. The language is declarative and focuses on describing resources, modules, and their attributes; to reuse logic, you rely on modules, locals, and variables, or extend functionality with providers written in another language. Because you can’t declare your own functions within HCL, the idea of user-defined functions isn’t supported. The other statements aren’t accurate: HCL isn’t limited to JSON-like syntax—the language has its own readable syntax, and while Terraform can also accept a JSON representation, JSON is just an alternative form, not the only way. And there isn’t a separate compiler you must run; Terraform includes its own parser and interpreter to process HCL configurations.

HCL is HashiCorp Configuration Language used by Terraform that includes built-in functions you can use in expressions, but you don’t define new functions inside HCL itself. The language is declarative and focuses on describing resources, modules, and their attributes; to reuse logic, you rely on modules, locals, and variables, or extend functionality with providers written in another language. Because you can’t declare your own functions within HCL, the idea of user-defined functions isn’t supported.

The other statements aren’t accurate: HCL isn’t limited to JSON-like syntax—the language has its own readable syntax, and while Terraform can also accept a JSON representation, JSON is just an alternative form, not the only way. And there isn’t a separate compiler you must run; Terraform includes its own parser and interpreter to process HCL configurations.