DEV Community

Cover image for Your Code's First Line Sets the Tone
Tony St Pierre
Tony St Pierre

Posted on • Edited on

Your Code's First Line Sets the Tone

Every name in your codebase is more than a label.
It teaches. Or it misleads.

In this post, I discuss real-world examples of vague function names, misleading booleans, contextless verbs, and hidden risks in hooks and TypeScript types and show how to rename them with clarity and intent.

You'll learn:

  • Why handleSubmit() hides too much
  • What does data mean, and why it's usually not enough
  • How vague names create bugs long before the code runs
  • A rule of thumb for renaming without overthinking

This isn't a style guide.
It's a shift in how you write code other people can trust.

Read it now and maybe rename something before you push it.

Top comments (0)