Abstract: A "wrapped-line" direct-mapped cache is disclosed that stores words with main-memory addresses that succeed a requested address where a conventional nonwrapped direct-mapped line-unit cache would store words with main-memory addresses that precede the requested memory address. Since succeeding addresses are more likely to be called "soon" after a requested address, the wrapped-line direct-mapped cache provides more efficient use of cache capacity, and thus more effectively enhances the performance of an incorporating system. The wrapped-line direct-mapped cache has indexed storage locations. Each storage location has sections for storing a tag, a string-boundary indicator, and a line of words. Each storage location has a line index, and each word position in a line has a word-position index. To determine whether a requested address results in a hit or a miss, the match logic divides the requested address into high, intermediate, and low segments.