Tree-sitter Services and Applications

Source: tree-sitter

Link: https://tree-sitter.github.io

Takeaways

• Services decouple from grammar: Syntax highlighting, code navigation, and language injection are query-based, not grammar-based. Grammar describes “what is”, queries describe “how to use it”.
• Capture names are standardized (e.g., @keyword, @definition.function) instead of language-specific logic. Same queries work across all tools and editors.
• Scope and context via queries: Local variable tracking and language injection are queries, not lexical features. This keeps grammars simpler while enabling sophisticated analysis.
• Standardization enables portability: Same .scm query file and role/kind vocabulary work across editors and languages.