We learned about loops in previous tutorials. In this tutorial, we will learn to use break and continue statements with the help of examples.
C break
The break statement ends the loop immediately when it is encountered. Its syntax is:
break;
The break statement is almost always used with if...else
statement inside the loop.
How break statement works?
![Working of break statement](https://cdn.programiz.com/sites/tutorial2program/files/c-break-statement-works.jpg)
Example 1: break statement
// Program to calculate the sum of a maximum of 10 numbers
// If a negative number is entered, the loop terminates
# include <stdio.h>
int main()
{
int i;
double number, sum = 0.0;
for(i=1; i <= 10; ++i)
{
printf("Enter a n%d: ",i);
scanf("%lf",&number);
// If the user enters a negative number, the loop ends
if(number < 0.0)
{
break;
}
sum += number; // sum = sum + number;
}
printf("Sum = %.2lf",sum);
return 0;
}
Output
Enter a n1: 2.4 Enter a n2: 4.5 Enter a n3: 3.4 Enter a n4: -3 Sum = 10.30
This program calculates the sum of a maximum of 10 numbers. Why a maximum of 10 numbers? It’s because if the user enters a negative number, the break
statement is executed. This will end the for
loop, and the sum is displayed
In C, break
is also used with the switch
statement. This will be discussed in the next tutorial.
C continue
The continue
statement skips the current iteration of the loop and continues with the next iteration. Its syntax is:
continue;
The continue
statement is almost always used with the if...else
statement.
How continue statement works?
![Working of continue statement in C programming](https://cdn.programiz.com/sites/tutorial2program/files/c-continue-statement-works.jpg)
Example 2: continue statement
// Program to calculate the sum of a maximum of 10 numbers
// Negative numbers are skipped from the calculation
# include <stdio.h>
int main()
{
int i;
double number, sum = 0.0;
for(i=1; i <= 10; ++i)
{
printf("Enter a n%d: ",i);
scanf("%lf",&number);
if(number < 0.0)
{
continue;
}
sum += number; // sum = sum + number;
}
printf("Sum = %.2lf",sum);
return 0;
}
Output
Enter a n1: 1.1 Enter a n2: 2.2 Enter a n3: 5.5 Enter a n4: 4.4 Enter a n5: -3.4 Enter a n6: -45.5 Enter a n7: 34.5 Enter a n8: -4.2 Enter a n9: -1000 Enter a n10: 12 Sum = 59.70
In this program, when the user enters a positive number, the sum is calculated using sum += number;
statement.
When the user enters a negative number, the continue
statement is executed and it skips the negative number from the calculation.
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