# Function name conflict: ADL / function merging?

**URL:** <https://discourse.julialang.org/t/function-name-conflict-adl-function-merging/10335>\
**Category:** Internals & Design\
**Tags:** proposal, namespaces\
**Created:** [April 14, 2018, 5:16pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/function-name-conflict-adl-function-merging/10335 "2018-04-14T17:16:17Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Showing post:** 50

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**Author:** ![StefanKarpinski](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/julialang/user_avatar/discourse.julialang.org/stefankarpinski/32/24_2.png) [@StefanKarpinski](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/StefanKarpinski)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2018, 2:52am UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/function-name-conflict-adl-function-merging/10335/50 "2018-04-17T02:52:30Z")

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> [@Jean\_Michel](#):
>
> ‘Same meaning’ is a meaningless notion in a programming language.

Meaning is absolutely essential in Julia because it is so very polymorphic. Multiple dispatch forces you to pay attention to the meanings of functions because that’s the _only_ thing that’s consistent when you can both extend generic functions to new types and add new types to existing functions. I think that rejecting meaning as a guiding principle will make Julia a much harder language to use effectively than embracing the significance of meaning.

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