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C++ Call by Reference - Using Pointers

C++ allows passing arguments to functions by reference instead of by value. When passing by reference, the address of the variable is passed to the function rather than a copy of its value. This allows the function to directly modify the original variable. The document provides examples of passing arguments by reference without pointers by using the & symbol, and with pointers by passing the address of variables using &. Both methods allow functions to swap the values of the original variables.

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Kim Anh Võ
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47 views

C++ Call by Reference - Using Pointers

C++ allows passing arguments to functions by reference instead of by value. When passing by reference, the address of the variable is passed to the function rather than a copy of its value. This allows the function to directly modify the original variable. The document provides examples of passing arguments by reference without pointers by using the & symbol, and with pointers by passing the address of variables using &. Both methods allow functions to swap the values of the original variables.

Uploaded by

Kim Anh Võ
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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C++ Call by Reference: Using

pointers
In this tutorial, we will learn about C++ call by reference to pass pointers as an
argument to the function with the help of examples.
In the C++ Functions tutorial, we learned about passing arguments to a
function. This method used is called passing by value because the actual
value is passed.
However, there is another way of passing arguments to a function where the
actual values of arguments are not passed. Instead, the reference to values is
passed.
For example,
// function that takes value as parameter

void func1(int numVal) {


// code
}

// function that takes reference as parameter


// notice the & before the parameter
void func2(int &numRef) {
// code
}

int main() {
int num = 5;

// pass by value
func1(num);

// pass by reference
func2(num);

return 0;
}
Run Code
Notice the  &  in  void func2(int &numRef) . This denotes that we are using the
address of the variable as our parameter.
So, when we call the  func2()  function in  main()  by passing the variable  num  as
an argument, we are actually passing the address of  num  variable instead of
the value 5.
C++ Pass by Value vs. Pass by Reference

Example 1: Passing by reference without pointers


#include <iostream>
using namespace std;

// function definition to swap values


void swap(int &n1, int &n2) {
int temp;
temp = n1;
n1 = n2;
n2 = temp;
}

int main()
{

// initialize variables
int a = 1, b = 2;

cout << "Before swapping" << endl;


cout << "a = " << a << endl;
cout << "b = " << b << endl;

// call function to swap numbers


swap(a, b);
cout << "\nAfter swapping" << endl;
cout << "a = " << a << endl;
cout << "b = " << b << endl;

return 0;
}
Run Code
Output

Before swapping
a = 1
b = 2

After swapping
a = 2
b = 1

In this program, we passed the variables  a  and  b  to the  swap()  function. Notice
the function definition,

void swap(int &n1, int &n2)

Here, we are using  &  to denote that the function will accept addresses as its
parameters.
Hence, the compiler can identify that instead of actual values, the reference of
the variables is passed to function parameters.
In the  swap()  function, the function parameters  n1  and  n2  are pointing to the
same value as the variables  a  and  b  respectively. Hence the swapping takes
place on actual value.
The same task can be done using the pointers. To learn about pointers,
visit C++ Pointers.

Example 2: Passing by reference using pointers


#include <iostream>
using namespace std;

// function prototype with pointer as parameters


void swap(int*, int*);

int main()
{

// initialize variables
int a = 1, b = 2;
cout << "Before swapping" << endl;
cout << "a = " << a << endl;
cout << "b = " << b << endl;

// call function by passing variable addresses


swap(&a, &b);

cout << "\nAfter swapping" << endl;


cout << "a = " << a << endl;
cout << "b = " << b << endl;
return 0;
}

// function definition to swap numbers


void swap(int* n1, int* n2) {
int temp;
temp = *n1;
*n1 = *n2;
*n2 = temp;
}
Run Code
Output

Before swapping
a = 1
b = 2

After swapping
a = 2
b = 1

Here, we can see the output is the same as the previous example. Notice the
line,

// &a is address of a
// &b is address of b
swap(&a, &b);

Here, the address of the variable is passed during the function call rather than
the variable.
Since the address is passed instead of value, a dereference operator  *  must
be used to access the value stored in that address.

temp = *n1;
*n1 = *n2;
*n2 = temp;

*n1  and  *n2  gives the value stored at address  n1  and  n2  respectively.
Since  n1  and  n2  contain the addresses of  a  and  b , anything is done
to  *n1  and  *n2  will change the actual values of  a  and  b .
Hence, when we print the values of  a  and  b  in the  main()  function, the values
are changed.

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