The Tcl::Tk submodule of the Tcl module gives access to the Tk library. It does this by creating a Tcl interpreter object (using the Tcl extension) and binding in all of Tk into the interpreter (in the same way that wish or other Tcl/Tk applications do). Access to the Tcl and Tcl::Tk extensions To get access to the Tcl and Tcl::Tk extensions, put the commands require Tcl; use Tcl::Tk; near the top of your program. The Tcl extension does not alter your namespace at all (hence the "require"). The Tcl::Tk extension imports the widget and other Tk commands into your namespace (hence the "use").