From David Bolton,
Your Guide to C / C++ / C#.
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Definition: Bytecode is the compiled code that compilers for Java and C# produce. It isn't true machine code but a simpler code made up of instructions that are one byte long. Hence the name.

Microsoft's .NET framework calls it Common Intermediate Language (CIL).

Glossary:

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Also Known As: Common Intermediate Language

Examples: Bytecode is as readable as machine code.