What does 'localhost' mean?

'localhost' refers to the local computer that a program is running on. It is a hostname that points to the loopback network interface, allowing a user to access network services running on the same machine. In most cases, 'localhost' resolves to the IP address 127.0.0.1. It's commonly used for testing and development purposes, enabling developers to run servers and access them without needing an external network.