Keywords in C Programming

In this tutorial, we will study what keywords in c programming are. So let us start.

What are the keywords in c programming?

Keywords are the predefined tokens in the C language. They can also be seen as reserved words. There are 32 types of keywords and every keyword is unique. These keywords are used for performing some particular task which is defined. There are many keywords like the if, else, switch, etc which are used for decision control programming structure. The keywords like int, float, character, etc are used for telling the data type of the variable during their declaration.

List of keywords in c programming

auto break case char
const continue default do
double else enum extern
float for goto if
int long register return
short signed sizeof static
struct switch typedef union
unsigned void volatile while

What is the description of each keyword?

auto

The auto keyword declares automatic variables.

break and continue

The break statement terminates the innermost loop immediately when it's encountered. It's also used to terminate the switch statement.
The continue statement skips the statements after it inside the loop for the iteration.

switch, case, and default

The switch and case statement is used when many statements have to be executed among many blocks.

char

The char keyword declares a character variable. For example:

const

An identifier can be declared as constant by using the const keyword.

Do while

In the do while first the code is executed and then the condition is checked.

double and float

Both the keywords double and float are used for the declaration of floating type variables.

if and else

if and else are used for making the decisions.

enum

Enumeration types are declared in C programming by using the keyword enum.

extern

The extern keyword is used to declare that a variable or a function has an external linkage outside of the file it is declared.

for

There are three types of loops in C programming language. The for loop is written in the C programming language using the keyword.

goto

The goto statement is used to transfer control of the program to the specified label.

int

The keyword int declares the integer type variables.

short, long, signed and unsigned

The short, long, signed, and unsigned are type modifiers. They are used for altering the meaning of a base data type to yield a new type.

return

The return keyword is used to terminate the function and return the value.

sizeof

The sizeof keyword is used to evaluate the size of data (a variable or a constant).

register

The register keyword is used to create register variables which are much faster than normal variables.

static

The static keyword creates a static variable. The value of the static variables persists until the end of the program.

struct

The struct keyword declares a structure. A structure can be used to hold the variables of different types under a single name.

typedef

The typedef keyword explicitly associates a type with an identifier.

union

A union is used for grouping different types of variables under a single name.

void

The void keyword meaning nothing or no value.

volatile

The volatile keyword creates volatile objects. A volatile object can be modified in an unspecified way by the hardware.