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C++ References
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In C++, we use a reference to create an alias for a variable. We can use the
reference variable to access or modify the variable.
Create a C++ Reference
We use the ampersand sign to create a reference. For example,
string& ref_city = city;
Here,
string - datatype of the variable
& - denotes we are creating a reference
ref_city - name of the reference variable
city - the variable for which reference is created
Example:
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#include <iostream>
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using namespace std; [Link]
int main() {
string city = "Paris";
// create a reference to the variable
string& ref_city = city;
// display the variable
cout << "Variable Value: " << city << endl;
cout << "Reference Value: " << ref_city << endl;
return 0;
}
Run Code (/cpp-programming/online-compiler)
Output
Variable Value: Paris
Reference Value: Paris
In the above example, we have used the reference variable ref_city to display
the value of the variable city .
Modify Variables Using References
We can modify a variable by simply assigning a new value to the reference
variable. For example,
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#include <iostream>
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int main() { [Link]
string city = "Paris";
// create a reference to the variable
string& ref_city = city;
// display the variable
cout << "Variable Value = " << city << endl;
cout << "Reference Value = " << ref_city << endl;
// modify the variable using reference
ref_city = "New York";
// display the variable
cout << endl << "After Modification: " << endl;
cout << "Variable Value = " << city << endl;
cout << "Reference Value = " << ref_city << endl;
return 0;
}
Run Code (/cpp-programming/online-compiler)
Output
Variable Value: Paris
Reference Value: Paris
After Modification:
Variable Value: = New York
Reference Value: New York
Important Points
1. Placement of the & sign
We
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printingthe sign with
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reference. However, the standard practice is to use the sign along with the data
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// create a variable
string city = "Paris";
// valid but not a standard practice
string &ref_city = city;
// valid and a standard practice
sring& ref_city = city;
2. References Initialization
We must initialize references at the time of declaration.
// create a variable
string city = "Paris";
// incorrect code [reference not initialized]
string& ref_city;
ref_city = city;
// correct code
string& ref_city = city;
3. Reference With a New Variable
Once
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another variable. For example,
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#include <iostream>
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using namespace std;
int main() {
string city1 = "Paris";
// create a reference to the variable
string& ref_city = city1;
// display the variable
cout << "city1 = " << city1 << endl;
cout << "ref_city = " << ref_city << endl;
string city2 = "New York";
// trying to modify the ref_city reference variable to refer to city2
// but it assigns the value of city2 to the variable city1
ref_city = city2;
// display the variables
cout << endl << "city1 = " << city1 << endl;
cout << "city2 = " << city2 << endl;
cout << "ref_city = " << ref_city << endl;
return 0;
}
Run Code (/cpp-programming/online-compiler)
Output
city1 = Paris
ref_city = Paris
city1 = New York
city2 = New York
ref_city = New York