C++ operator

In this article, we will discuss about the operators in C++ with their types and examples.

An operator is specially a symbol that tells compiler to perform specific manipulation. C++ contains various different types of operators. Operators are C++ symbols that instruct the compiler to carry out particular relational, logical, or mathematical operations. Operands are values or variables that undergo an operation.

Example Syntax:

int sum = 10 + 5;

Here, + is the operator and 5 and 10 are the operands.

In C++, various operators are available and are classified based on their functionality.

Types of C++ Operators:

• Arithmetic Operators
• Logical Operators
• Relational Operators
• Assignment Operators
• Bitwise Operators
• Misc. Operators

1. Arithmetic Operators:

Arithmetic operators are used to perform basic mathematical operation such as addition (+), subtraction (-), multiplication (*), division (/) etc.

Operator	Description	Example(x=5,y=5)	Result
+	Addition operator	x+y	10
-	Subtraction operator	x-y	0
*	Multiplication operator	x*y	25
/	Division operator	x/y	1
%	Modulus (Remainder) operator	x%y	0

Example:

Let us take an example to illustrate the arithmetic operators in C++.

#include <iostream>

using namespace std;

int main() {

    int value1 = 5, value2 = 5;

    cout << "Addition: " << (value1 + value2) << endl;

    cout << "Subtraction: " << (value1 – value2) << endl;

    cout << "Multiplication: " << (value1 * value2) << endl;

    cout << "Division: " << (value1 / value2) << endl;

    cout << "Modulus: " << (value1 % value2) << endl;

    return 0;

}

Output:

Addition: 10

Subtraction: 0

Multiplication: 25

Division: 1

Modulus: 0

2. Logical operators:

Logical operators can be used to combine numerous variables and generate a Boolean (true or false) result.

Operator	Description	Example (x=true, y=false)	Result
&&	Logical AND	x&&y	False
||	Logical OR	x||y	Logical OR
!	Logical NOT	x!y	False

Example:

Let us take an example to illustrate the logical operators in C++.

#include <iostream>

using namespace std;

int main() {

    bool x = true, y = false;

    cout << "x && y: " << (x && y) << endl;

    cout << "x || y: " << (x || y) << endl;

    cout << "!x: " << (!x) << endl;

    return 0;

}

Output:

x && y: 0

x || y: 1

!x: 0

3. Relational Operators:

Relational operations compare two values and return true or false. Relational operator shows the relation and compare between operands. Following are the different relational operations.

Operator	Description	Example (x=10, y= 20)	Result
==	Equal to	x==y	False
!=	Not Equal to	x!=y	True
>	Greater than	x>y	True
<	Less than	x<y	False
>=	Greater than equal to	x>=y	True
<=	Less than equal to	x<=y	False

Example:

Let us take an example to illustrate the Relational operators in C++.

#include <iostream>

using namespace std;

int main() {

    int x = 10, y = 20 ;

    cout << "x == y: " << (x == y) << endl;

    cout << "x != y: " << (x != y) << endl;

    cout << "x > y: " << (x > y) << endl;

    cout << "x < y: " << (x < y) << endl;

    cout << "x >= y: " << (x >= y) << endl;

    cout << "x <= y: " << (x <= y) << endl;

    return 0;

}

Output:

x == y: 0

x != y: 1

x > y: 0

x < y: 1

x >= y: 0

x <= y: 1

4. Assignment Operators:

Assignment operators “=” assign values and modify variables using arithmetic operations. The assignment of value takes from right to left.

Operator	Description	Example (i=5)	Equivalance
=	Assign	i=5	i=5
+=	Add and assign	i+=5	i=i+5
-=	Subtract and assign	i-=5	i=i-5
*=	Multiply and assign	i*=5	i=i*5
/=	Divide and assign	i/=5	i=i/5
%=	Modulus and assign	i%=5	i=i%5

Example:

Let us take an example to illustrate the Assignment operators in C++.

#include <iostream>

using namespace std;

int main() {

    int i = 10;

    i += 5;

    cout << "After i += 5: " << i << endl;

    i *= 2;

    cout << "After i *= 2: " << i << endl;

    return 0;

}

Output:

After i += 5: 15

After i *= 2: 30

5. Bitwise operator:

These Bitwise operators operate at the bit level. It is used to change individual bits into a number. Bitwise operators modify variable according to bit patterns. Following are the different bitwise operators:

Operator	Description	Example (i= 10 (1010), j=12(1100))
&	Bitwise AND	i&j
|	|	Bitwise OR
^	Bitwise XOR	i^j
~	Bitwise NOT	i~j
<<	Left Shift	i<<j
>>	Right Shift	i>>j

Example:

Let us take an example to illustrate the Bitwise operators in C++.

#include <iostream>

using namespace std;

int main() {

    int i = 5, j = 3;

    cout << "i & j: " << (i & j) << endl;

    cout << "i | j: " << (i | j) << endl;

    cout << "i ^ j: " << (i ^ j) << endl;

    cout << "Left shift i << 1: " << (i << 1) << endl;

    cout << "Right shift j >> 1: " << (j >> 1) << endl;

    return 0;

}

Output:

i & j: 1

i | j: 7

i ^ j: 6

Left shift i << 1: 10

Right shift i >> 1: 2

6. Misc Operators:

Sizeof (sizeof): It returns the size (in bytes) of a variable or data type.

cout << sizeof(int); // Output: 4 (depends on system)

Pointer Operators (*, &): It is used for pointers and memory addresses.

int a = 10, *p = &a; 

cout << *p;  // Output: 10 

Comma Operator (,): It evaluates multiple expressions from left to right.

int x = (5, 10); // x = 10 

Cast Operators ((type), static_cast<>): It convert data types explicitly.

double d = 5.5; 

int x = (int)d; 

7. Precedence Operator:

The order in which an expression’s operators are evaluated depends on operator precedence. Higher priority operators are carried out before lower priority ones.

Example:

int result = 10 + 5 * 2;

The following table shows C++ operators in decreasing order of precedence:

Precedence	Operator	Description	Associativity
1 (Highest)	::	Scope resolution	Left to Right
2	++ --	Post-increment, Post-decrement	Left to Right
3	++ -- + - ! ~ * & sizeof type()	Pre-increment, Pre-decrement, Unary plus/minus, Logical NOT, Bitwise NOT, Dereference, Address-of, Sizeof, Typecast	Right to Left
4	* / %	Multiplication, Division, Modulus	Left to Right
5	+ -	Addition, Subtraction	Left to Right
6	<< >>	Bitwise Left and Right shift	Left to Right
7	< <= > >=	Relational (less than, greater than, etc.)	Left to Right
8	== !=	Equality and Inequality	Left to Right
9	&	Bitwise AND	Left to Right
10	^	Bitwise XOR	Left to Right
11	|	Bitwise OR	Left to Right
12	&&	Logical AND	Left to Right
13	||	Logical OR	Left to Right
14	?:	Ternary (Conditional) Operator	Right to Left
15	= += -= *= /= %= &= `	= ^= <<= >>=`	Assignment Operators
16 (Lowest)	,	Comma Operator (Separates expressions)	Left to Right

Conclusion:

In conclusion, operators play a very important part of C++ because they help in many computations, logical operations, and value manipulations done in a program. Different types of operators include bitwise, assignment, logical, relational, arithmetic, and many all with some individual significance. It is also important to understand operator precedence and associativity for proper evaluation of expressions. An operator with higher precedence gets evaluated first, while operators with the same precedence apply associativity rules. Precedence can be clear with the use of brackets, which also improves clarity and removes doubt. It helps programmers write meaningful codes in C++ by using the language construct effectively.