BabyCobol: ADD

a statement to add two or more values together

Format

adds each of the first arguments to the second argument and overwrites the old value of the second argument, unless the third argument specifies a different storage place
so, for example, ADD 1 2 3 TO X will increase the value of X by 6
all three arguments obey the rules of sufficient qualification
the first argument can be a literal
if the second argument is a literal, the third argument is mandatory
any of the three arguments can be an identifier defined with a numeric picture clause (free from A and X)
if the first argument denotes a composite field, then the second argument should also denote a composite field, and the addition works correspondingly: for instance, if the first argument is a field X with inner numeric fields A, B and C, and the second argument is a field Y with inner numeric fields A, C and D, then A OF Y is increased by A OF X and C OF Y is increased by C OF X, and all other fields remain unchanged
if all three arguments are composite fields, combine the description above with a MOVE to the target location

COBOL ADD
RPG ADD Z-ADD

BabyCobol is a project by Dr. Vadim Zaytsev a.k.a. @grammarware. Page last updated in July 2025.