Operator precedence - Cheat Sheet & Quick Revision

Recall & Review

beginner

What is operator precedence in C?

Operator precedence determines the order in which operators are evaluated in an expression. Operators with higher precedence are evaluated before those with lower precedence.

beginner

Which operator has higher precedence: * (multiplication) or + (addition)?

The multiplication operator * has higher precedence than the addition operator +. So, in 3 + 4 * 5, the multiplication happens first.

intermediate

What does associativity mean in operator precedence?

Associativity defines the direction in which operators of the same precedence are evaluated. For example, left-to-right means operators are evaluated from left to right.

beginner

How does parentheses ( ) affect operator precedence?

Parentheses have the highest precedence. Expressions inside parentheses are evaluated first, no matter what other operators are present.

beginner

In the expression a = b + c * d;, which operation happens first?

The multiplication c * d happens first because * has higher precedence than +. Then the result is added to b, and finally assigned to a.

Which operator has the highest precedence in C?

A Parentheses ( )

B Addition (+)

C Assignment (=)

D Logical AND (&&)

Parentheses have the highest precedence and force the expression inside them to be evaluated first.

What is the associativity of the subtraction operator (-) in C?

A Left to right

B No associativity

C Right to left

D Depends on compiler

Subtraction has left-to-right associativity, so expressions like 10 - 5 - 2 are evaluated as (10 - 5) - 2.

In the expression 5 + 3 * 2, what is the result?

A 13

B 16

C 10

D 11

Multiplication happens first: 3 * 2 = 6, then addition: 5 + 6 = 11.

Which operator has lower precedence than multiplication (*)?

A Division (/)

B Addition (+)

C Modulo (%)

D Unary minus (-)

Addition (+) has lower precedence than multiplication (*), division (/), and modulo (%).

What happens first in a = (b + c) * d;?

A Multiplication

B Assignment

C Addition inside parentheses

D Evaluation from right to left

Parentheses force the addition (b + c) to happen before multiplication.

Explain operator precedence and how it affects the evaluation of expressions in C.

Think about which operations happen first in a math expression.

Describe the role of parentheses in changing operator precedence.

How do parentheses help control the order of operations?