Go Syntax #

A Go file consists of the following key parts:

• Package declaration
• Import packages
• Functions
• Statements and expressions

✅ Example Code #

package main

import "fmt"

func main() {
    fmt.Println("Hello World!")
}

✅ Example Explained #

• Line 1: In Go, every program is part of a package. We declare this using the package keyword. In this example, the program belongs to the main package.

• Line 2: import "fmt" allows us to import functionality from the fmt package.

• Line 3: A blank line. Go ignores whitespace. Whitespaces make the code more readable.

• Line 4: func main() {} is a function. Any code inside {} is executed when the program runs.

• Line 5: fmt.Println() is a function from the fmt package that prints output. Example output:

  Hello World!

✅ Note: In Go, any executable code belongs in the main package.

✅ Go Statements #

Example statement:

fmt.Println("Hello World!")

👉 In Go, statements are terminated by a newline or a semicolon ;.

• A newline implicitly adds a semicolon.
• Curly brackets {} should not be placed on a new line by themselves.

Example that works but is not recommended: #

package main
import "fmt"

func main()
{
    fmt.Println("Hello World!")
}

✅ Compact Code (Not Recommended) #

It’s possible to write very compact Go code, though this reduces readability:

package main; import "fmt"; func main() { fmt.Println("Hello World!"); }

✅ Exercises #

Try writing your own simple Go programs using:

• Different print statements
• Simple arithmetic operations
• Defining multiple functions

👉 Experimentation is the best way to get familiar with Go syntax.