6/16/24, 11:52 AM Ternary Operator in C

Ternary Operator in C
The ternary operator (?:) in C is a type of conditional operator. The term "ternary"
implies that the operator has three operands. The ternary operator is often used to
put multiple conditional (if-else) statements in a more compact manner.

Syntax of Ternary Operator in C

The ternary operator is used with the following syntax −

exp1 ? exp2 : exp3

It uses three operands −

exp1 − A Boolean expression evaluating to true or false

exp2 − Returned by the ? operator when exp1 is true

exp3 − Returned by the ? operator when exp1 is false

Example 1: Ternary Operator in C

The following C program uses the ternary operator to check if the value of a variable
is even or odd.

#include <stdio.h>

int main(){

int a = 10;

(a % 2 == 0) ? printf("%d is Even \n", a) : printf("%d is Odd \n", a);

return 0;
}

Output

When you run this code, it will produce the following output −

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6/16/24, 11:52 AM Ternary Operator in C

10 is Even

Change the value of "a" to 15 and run the code again. Now you will get the following
output −

15 is Odd

Example 2
The conditional operator is a compact representation of if–else construct. We can
rewrite the logic of checking the odd/even number by the following code −

#include <stdio.h>

int main(){

int a = 10;

if (a % 2 == 0){
printf("%d is Even\n", a);
}
else{
printf("%d is Odd\n", a);
}

return 0;
}

Output

Run the code and check its output −

10 is Even

Example 3
The following program compares the two variables "a" and "b", and assigns the one
with the greater value to the variable "c".

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6/16/24, 11:52 AM Ternary Operator in C

#include <stdio.h>

int main(){

int a = 100, b = 20, c;

c = (a >= b) ? a : b;

printf ("a: %d b: %d c: %d\n", a, b, c);

return 0;
}

Output

When you run this code, it will produce the following output −

a: 100 b: 20 c: 100

Example 4
The corresponding code with if–else construct is as follows −

#include <stdio.h>

int main(){

int a = 100, b = 20, c;

if (a >= b){
c = a;
}
else {
c = b;
}
printf ("a: %d b: %d c: %d\n", a, b, c);

return 0;
}

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Output

Run the code and check its output −

a: 100 b: 20 c: 100

Example 5
If you need to put multiple statements in the true and/or false operand of the
ternary operator, you must separate them by commas, as shown below −

#include <stdio.h>

int main(){

int a = 100, b = 20, c;

c = (a >= b) ? printf ("a is larger "), c = a : printf("b is larger "), c = b;

printf ("a: %d b: %d c: %d\n", a, b, c);

return 0;
}

Output

In this code, the greater number is assigned to "c", along with printing the
appropriate message.

a is larger a: 100 b: 20 c: 20

Example 6
The corresponding program with the use of if–else statements is as follows −

#include <stdio.h>

int main(){

int a = 100, b = 20, c;

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6/16/24, 11:52 AM Ternary Operator in C

if(a >= b){

printf("a is larger \n");
c = a;
}
else{
printf("b is larger \n");
c = b;
}
printf ("a: %d b: %d c: %d\n", a, b, c);

return 0;
}

Output

Run the code and check its output −

a is larger
a: 100 b: 20 c: 100

Nested Ternary Operator

Just as we can use nested if-else statements, we can use the ternary operator inside
the True operand as well as the False operand.

exp1 ? (exp2 ? expr3 : expr4) : (exp5 ? expr6: expr7)

First C checks if expr1 is true. If so, it checks expr2. If it is true, the result is expr3;
if false, the result is expr4.

If expr1 turns false, it may check if expr5 is true and return expr6 or expr7.

Example 1

Let us develop a C program to determine whether a number is divisible by 2 and 3,

or by 2 but not 3, or 3 but not 2, or neither by 2 and 3. We will use nested condition
operators for this purpose, as shown in the following code −

#include <stdio.h>

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int main(){

int a = 15;
printf("a: %d\n", a);

(a % 2 == 0) ? (
(a%3 == 0)? printf("divisible by 2 and 3") : printf("divisible by 2 but not 3"))
:(
(a%3 == 0)? printf("divisible by 3 but not 2") : printf("not divisible by 2, not divisible by 3")
);

return 0;
}

Output

Check for different values −

a: 15
divisible by 3 but not 2

a: 16
divisible by 2 but not 3

a: 17
not divisible by 2, not divisible by 3

a: 18
divisible by 2 and 3

Example 2

In this program, we have used nested if–else statements for the same purpose
instead of conditional operators −

#include <stdio.h>

int main(){

int a = 15;
printf("a: %d\n", a);

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6/16/24, 11:52 AM Ternary Operator in C

if(a % 2 == 0){
if (a % 3 == 0){
printf("divisible by 2 and 3");
}
else {
printf("divisible by 2 but not 3");
}
}
else{
if(a % 3 == 0){
printf("divisible by 3 but not 2");
}
else {
printf("not divisible by 2, not divisible by 3");
}
}

return 0;
}

Output

When you run this code, it will produce the following output −

a: 15
divisible by 3 but not 2

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