How Does C Handle Argument Passing for Objects and Arrays?

Understanding C 's Argument Passing Mechanism

In C , function arguments are generally passed by value, as indicated by the syntax void function(type var). However, the question arises: does C adhere to this rule when passing objects as arguments?

Delving into Object Passing Behavior

For primitive data types (e.g., int, float), C indeed passes the value. However, when dealing with arrays and objects, C exhibits a slightly different behavior. For arrays, only the starting address (pointer) to the array is passed, even in call-by-value functions. This is because arrays are effectively pointers themselves.

The Object Passing Paradox

When an object is passed as an argument, the situation becomes more nuanced. C again passes only the address of the object, rather than creating a copy. This is because objects are typically large and copying them could be inefficient.

Conclusion

In summary, C functions pass arguments by value, regardless of their data type. However, when passing arrays or objects, only the pointer or reference to the underlying data structure is passed to optimize performance. This understanding is crucial for developers to avoid confusion and potential code errors.

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