Optimization

Generating intermediate code helps the compiler to make optimizations in the code. Compilers try to optimize code a lot. Optimizations are done in more than one pass. For example, take the following code:

int a = 41; 
int b = a + 1; 

This will be optimized into this during compilation: 

int a = 41; 
int b = 41 + 1; 

This again will be optimized into the following: 

int a = 41; 
int b = 42; 

Some programmers have no doubt that, nowadays, compilers code better than programmers.