COBOL – Basic Verbs
COBOL verbs are used in the procedure division for data processing. A statement always start with a COBOL verb. There are several COBOL verbs with different types of actions.
Input / Output Verbs
Input/Output verbs are used to get data from the user and display the output of COBOL programs. The following two verbs are used for this process −
Accept Verb
Accept verb is used to get data such as date, time, and day from the operating system or directly from the user. If a program is accepting data from the user, then it needs to be passed through JCL. While getting data from the operating system, FROM option is included as shown in the following example −
ACCEPT WS-STUDENT-NAME. ACCEPT WS-DATE FROM SYSTEM-DATE.
Display Verb
Display verb is used to display the output of a COBOL program.
DISPLAY WS-STUDENT-NAME. DISPLAY "System date is : " WS-DATE.
COBOL PROGRAM
IDENTIFICATION DIVISION. PROGRAM-ID. HELLO. DATA DIVISION. WORKING-STORAGE SECTION. 01 WS-STUDENT-NAME PIC X(25). 01 WS-DATE PIC X(10). PROCEDURE DIVISION. ACCEPT WS-STUDENT-NAME. ACCEPT WS-DATE FROM DATE. DISPLAY "Name : " WS-STUDENT-NAME. DISPLAY "Date : " WS-DATE. STOP RUN.
JCL to execute the above COBOL program −
//SAMPLE JOB(TESTJCL,XXXXXX),CLASS = A,MSGCLASS = C //STEP1 EXEC PGM = HELLO //INPUT DD DSN=PROGRAM.DIRECTORY,DISP=SHR //SYSIN DD * TutorialsPoint /*
When you compile and execute the above program, it produces the following result −
Name : TutorialsPoint Date : 200623
Initialize Verb
Initialize verb is used to initialize a group item or an elementary item. Data names with RENAME clause cannot be initialized. Numeric data items are replaced by ZEROES. Alphanumeric or alphabetic data items are replaced by SPACES. If we include REPLACING term, then data items can be initialized to the given replacing value as shown in the following example −
IDENTIFICATION DIVISION. PROGRAM-ID. HELLO. DATA DIVISION. WORKING-STORAGE SECTION. 01 WS-NAME PIC A(30) VALUE ''ABCDEF''. 01 WS-ID PIC 9(5). 01 WS-ADDRESS. 05 WS-HOUSE-NUMBER PIC 9(3). 05 WS-COUNTRY PIC X(15). 05 WS-PINCODE PIC 9(6) VALUE 123456. PROCEDURE DIVISION. A000-FIRST-PARA. INITIALIZE WS-NAME, WS-ADDRESS. INITIALIZE WS-ID REPLACING NUMERIC DATA BY 12345. DISPLAY "My name is : "WS-NAME. DISPLAY "My ID is : "WS-ID. DISPLAY "Address : "WS-ADDRESS. DISPLAY "House Number : "WS-HOUSE-NUMBER. DISPLAY "Country : "WS-COUNTRY. DISPLAY "Pincode : "WS-PINCODE. STOP RUN.
JCL to execute the above COBOL program −
//SAMPLE JOB(TESTJCL,XXXXXX),CLASS = A,MSGCLASS = C //STEP1 EXEC PGM = HELLO
When you compile and execute the above program, it produces the following result −
My name is : My ID is : 12345 Address : 000 000000 House Number : 000 Country : Pincode : 000000
Move Verb
Move verb is used to copy data from source data to destination data. It can be used on both elementary and group data items. For group data items, MOVE CORRESPONDING/CORR is used. In try it option, MOVE CORR is not working; but on a mainframe server, it will work.
For moving data from a string, MOVE(x:l) is used where x is the starting position and l is the length. Data will be truncated if the destination data item PIC clause is less than the source data item PIC clause. If the destination data item PIC clause is more than the source data item PIC clause, then ZEROS or SPACES will be added in the extra bytes. The following example makes it clear.
IDENTIFICATION DIVISION. PROGRAM-ID. HELLO. DATA DIVISION. WORKING-STORAGE SECTION. 01 WS-NUM1 PIC 9(9). 01 WS-NUM2 PIC 9(9). 01 WS-NUM3 PIC 9(5). 01 WS-NUM4 PIC 9(6). 01 WS-ADDRESS. 05 WS-HOUSE-NUMBER PIC 9(3). 05 WS-COUNTRY PIC X(5). 05 WS-PINCODE PIC 9(6). 01 WS-ADDRESS1. 05 WS-HOUSE-NUMBER1 PIC 9(3). 05 WS-COUNTRY1 PIC X(5). 05 WS-PINCODE1 PIC 9(6). PROCEDURE DIVISION. A000-FIRST-PARA. MOVE 123456789 TO WS-NUM1. MOVE WS-NUM1 TO WS-NUM2 WS-NUM3. MOVE WS-NUM1(3:6) TO WS-NUM4. MOVE 123 TO WS-HOUSE-NUMBER. MOVE ''INDIA'' TO WS-COUNTRY. MOVE 112233 TO WS-PINCODE. MOVE WS-ADDRESS TO WS-ADDRESS1. DISPLAY "WS-NUM1 : " WS-NUM1 DISPLAY "WS-NUM2 : " WS-NUM2 DISPLAY "WS-NUM3 : " WS-NUM3 DISPLAY "WS-NUM4 : " WS-NUM4 DISPLAY "WS-ADDRESS : " WS-ADDRESS DISPLAY "WS-ADDRESS1 : " WS-ADDRESS1 STOP RUN.
JCL to execute the above COBOL program.
//SAMPLE JOB(TESTJCL,XXXXXX),CLASS = A,MSGCLASS = C //STEP1 EXEC PGM = HELLO
When you compile and execute the above program, it produces the following result −
WS-NUM1 : 123456789 WS-NUM2 : 123456789 WS-NUM3 : 56789 WS-NUM4 : 345678 WS-ADDRESS : 123INDIA112233 WS-ADDRESS1 : 123INDIA112233
Legal Moves
The following table gives information about the legal moves −
| Alphabetic | Alphanumeric | Numeric | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alphabetic | Possible | Possible | Not Possible |
| Alphanumeric | Possible | Possible | Possible |
| Numeric | Not Possible | Possible | Possible |
Add Verb
Add verb is used to add two or more numbers and store the result in the destination operand.
Syntax
Given below is the syntax to Add two or more numbers −
ADD A B TO C D ADD A B C TO D GIVING E ADD CORR WS-GROUP1 TO WS-GROUP2
In syntax-1, A, B, C are added and the result is stored in C (C=A+B+C). A, B, D are added and the result is stored in D (D = A + B + D).
In syntax-2, A, B, C, D are added and the result is stored in E (E=A+B+C+D).
In syntax-3, sub-group items within WS-GROUP1 and WS-GROUP2 are added and the result is stored in WS-GROUP2.
Example
IDENTIFICATION DIVISION. PROGRAM-ID. HELLO. DATA DIVISION. WORKING-STORAGE SECTION. 01 WS-NUM1 PIC 9(9) VALUE 10 . 01 WS-NUM2 PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUM3 PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUM4 PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUMA PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUMB PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUMC PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUMD PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUME PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. PROCEDURE DIVISION. ADD WS-NUM1 WS-NUM2 TO WS-NUM3 WS-NUM4. ADD WS-NUMA WS-NUMB WS-NUMC TO WS-NUMD GIVING WS-NUME. DISPLAY "WS-NUM1 : " WS-NUM1 DISPLAY "WS-NUM2 : " WS-NUM2 DISPLAY "WS-NUM3 : " WS-NUM3 DISPLAY "WS-NUM4 : " WS-NUM4 DISPLAY "WS-NUMA : " WS-NUMA DISPLAY "WS-NUMB : " WS-NUMB DISPLAY "WS-NUMC : " WS-NUMC DISPLAY "WS-NUMD : " WS-NUMD DISPLAY "WS-NUME : " WS-NUME STOP RUN.
JCL to execute the above COBOL program −
//SAMPLE JOB(TESTJCL,XXXXXX),CLASS = A,MSGCLASS = C //STEP1 EXEC PGM = HELLO
When you compile and execute the above program, it produces the following result −
WS-NUM1 : 000000010 WS-NUM2 : 000000010 WS-NUM3 : 000000030 WS-NUM4 : 000000030 WS-NUMA : 000000010 WS-NUMB : 000000010 WS-NUMC : 000000010 WS-NUMD : 000000010 WS-NUME : 000000040
Subtract Verb
Subtract verb is used for subtraction operations.
Syntax
Given below is the syntax for Subtract operations −
SUBTRACT A B FROM C D SUBTRACT A B C FROM D GIVING E SUBTRACT CORR WS-GROUP1 TO WS-GROUP2
In syntax-1, A and B are added and subtracted from C. The result is stored in C (C = C-(A+B)). A and B are added and subtracted from D. The result is stored in D (D = D-(A+B)).
In syntax-2, A, B, C are added and subtracted from D. The result is stored in E (E = D-(A+B+C))
In syntax-3, sub-group items within WS-GROUP1 and WS-GROUP2 are subtracted and the result is stored in WS-GROUP2.
Example
IDENTIFICATION DIVISION. PROGRAM-ID. HELLO. DATA DIVISION. WORKING-STORAGE SECTION. 01 WS-NUM1 PIC 9(9) VALUE 10 . 01 WS-NUM2 PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUM3 PIC 9(9) VALUE 100. 01 WS-NUM4 PIC 9(9) VALUE 100. 01 WS-NUMA PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUMB PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUMC PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUMD PIC 9(9) VALUE 100. 01 WS-NUME PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. PROCEDURE DIVISION. SUBTRACT WS-NUM1 WS-NUM2 FROM WS-NUM3 WS-NUM4. SUBTRACT WS-NUMA WS-NUMB WS-NUMC FROM WS-NUMD GIVING WS-NUME. DISPLAY "WS-NUM1 : " WS-NUM1 DISPLAY "WS-NUM2 : " WS-NUM2 DISPLAY "WS-NUM3 : " WS-NUM3 DISPLAY "WS-NUM4 : " WS-NUM4 DISPLAY "WS-NUMA : " WS-NUMA DISPLAY "WS-NUMB : " WS-NUMB DISPLAY "WS-NUMC : " WS-NUMC DISPLAY "WS-NUMD : " WS-NUMD DISPLAY "WS-NUME : " WS-NUME STOP RUN.
JCL to execute the above COBOL program −
//SAMPLE JOB(TESTJCL,XXXXXX),CLASS = A,MSGCLASS = C //STEP1 EXEC PGM = HELLO
When you compile and execute the above program, it produces the following result −
WS-NUM1 : 000000010 WS-NUM2 : 000000010 WS-NUM3 : 000000080 WS-NUM4 : 000000080 WS-NUMA : 000000010 WS-NUMB : 000000010 WS-NUMC : 000000010 WS-NUMD : 000000100 WS-NUME : 000000070
Multiply Verb
Multiply verb is used for multiplication operations.
Syntax
Given below is the syntax to multiply two or more numbers −
MULTIPLY A BY B C MULTIPLY A BY B GIVING E
In syntax-1, A and B are multipled and the result is stored in B (B=A*B). A and C are multipled and the result is stored in C (C = A * C).
In syntax-2, A and B are multipled and the result is stored in E (E=A*B).
Example
IDENTIFICATION DIVISION. PROGRAM-ID. HELLO. DATA DIVISION. WORKING-STORAGE SECTION. 01 WS-NUM1 PIC 9(9) VALUE 10 . 01 WS-NUM2 PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUM3 PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUMA PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUMB PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUMC PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. PROCEDURE DIVISION. MULTIPLY WS-NUM1 BY WS-NUM2 WS-NUM3. MULTIPLY WS-NUMA BY WS-NUMB GIVING WS-NUMC. DISPLAY "WS-NUM1 : " WS-NUM1 DISPLAY "WS-NUM2 : " WS-NUM2 DISPLAY "WS-NUM3 : " WS-NUM3 DISPLAY "WS-NUMA : " WS-NUMA DISPLAY "WS-NUMB : " WS-NUMB DISPLAY "WS-NUMC : " WS-NUMC STOP RUN.
JCL to execute the above COBOL program −
//SAMPLE JOB(TESTJCL,XXXXXX),CLASS = A,MSGCLASS = C //STEP1 EXEC PGM = HELLO
When you compile and execute the above program, it produces the following result −
WS-NUM1 : 000000010 WS-NUM2 : 000000100 WS-NUM3 : 000000100 WS-NUMA : 000000010 WS-NUMB : 000000010 WS-NUMC : 000000100
Divide Verb
Divide verb is used for division operations.
Syntax
Given below is the syntax for division operations −
DIVIDE A INTO B DIVIDE A BY B GIVING C REMAINDER R
In syntax-1, B is divided by A and the result is stored in B (B=B/A).
In syntax-2, A is divided by B and the result is stored in C (C=A/B) and the remainder is stored in R.
Example
IDENTIFICATION DIVISION. PROGRAM-ID. HELLO. DATA DIVISION. WORKING-STORAGE SECTION. 01 WS-NUM1 PIC 9(9) VALUE 5. 01 WS-NUM2 PIC 9(9) VALUE 250. 01 WS-NUMA PIC 9(9) VALUE 100. 01 WS-NUMB PIC 9(9) VALUE 15. 01 WS-NUMC PIC 9(9). 01 WS-REM PIC 9(9). PROCEDURE DIVISION. DIVIDE WS-NUM1 INTO WS-NUM2. DIVIDE WS-NUMA BY WS-NUMB GIVING WS-NUMC REMAINDER WS-REM. DISPLAY "WS-NUM1 : " WS-NUM1 DISPLAY "WS-NUM2 : " WS-NUM2 DISPLAY "WS-NUMA : " WS-NUMA DISPLAY "WS-NUMB : " WS-NUMB DISPLAY "WS-NUMC : " WS-NUMC DISPLAY "WS-REM : " WS-REM STOP RUN.
JCL to execute the above COBOL program −
//SAMPLE JOB(TESTJCL,XXXXXX),CLASS = A,MSGCLASS = C //STEP1 EXEC PGM = HELLO
When you compile and execute the above program, it produces the following result −
WS-NUM1 : 000000005 WS-NUM2 : 000000050 WS-NUMA : 000000100 WS-NUMB : 000000015 WS-NUMC : 000000006 WS-REM : 000000010
Compute Statement
Compute statement is used to write arithmetic expressions in COBOL. This is a replacement for Add, Subtract, Multiply, and Divide.
Example
IDENTIFICATION DIVISION. PROGRAM-ID. HELLO. DATA DIVISION. WORKING-STORAGE SECTION. 01 WS-NUM1 PIC 9(9) VALUE 10 . 01 WS-NUM2 PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUM3 PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUMA PIC 9(9) VALUE 50. 01 WS-NUMB PIC 9(9) VALUE 10. 01 WS-NUMC PIC 9(9). PROCEDURE DIVISION. COMPUTE WS-NUMC= (WS-NUM1 * WS-NUM2) - (WS-NUMA / WS-NUMB) + WS-NUM3. DISPLAY "WS-NUM1 : " WS-NUM1 DISPLAY "WS-NUM2 : " WS-NUM2 DISPLAY "WS-NUM3 : " WS-NUM3 DISPLAY "WS-NUMA : " WS-NUMA DISPLAY "WS-NUMB : " WS-NUMB DISPLAY "WS-NUMC : " WS-NUMC STOP RUN.
JCL to execute the above COBOL program.
//SAMPLE JOB(TESTJCL,XXXXXX),CLASS = A,MSGCLASS = C //STEP1 EXEC PGM = HELLO
When you compile and execute the above program, it produces the following result −
WS-NUM1 : 000000010 WS-NUM2 : 000000010 WS-NUM3 : 000000010 WS-NUMA : 000000050 WS-NUMB : 000000010 WS-NUMC : 000000105
”;