Understanding lvalues and rvalues in C++

If you have worked with C++, you might've come across errors like "Expression must be a modifiable lvalue". This post will give you a clear understanding on what those terms mean.
In simple terms, lvalue is something that has a memory address and rvalue doesn't.
An easy example.
int a = 10;
Here, 10 is rvalue and a is lvalue. Simply because 10 does not have any location. It is just a temporary constant which the compiler creates to assign it to a;
Key points to note
  • An rvalue cannot be assigned any value 
    • int a;
10 = a; // NOT VALID!
  • An lvalue can be assigned to another lvalue. 
    • int a = 10;
int b = a; // VALID
  • A function that returns a rvalue is also a rvalue 
    • int getValue() {
  return 10;
}

int main() {
  getValue() = 20; // ERROR
}
  • A function that returns a lvalue is also a lvalue 
    • int& getValue() {
  static int a = 10;
  return a;
}

int main() {
  getValue() = 20; // NO ERRORS.
}
    lvalue and rvalue references
    This is mainly important when dealing with functions.
  • A lvalue can be taken as a parameter using & operator 
    • void setValue(int& a) {
 // Do something
}
  • A rvalue can be taken as a parameter using && operator 
    • void setValue (int&& a) {
 // Do something
}
  • A const lvalue reference can be assigned to an rvalue 
    • int& a = 10; // NOT VALID
const int& b = 10; // VALID
    This is the reason why int C++ a function that accepts a string reference should always be assigned with const.
    // accepts only lvalue
void showFullName_1(string& fullName) {
 cout<<fullName<<endl;
} 

// accepts both lvalue and rvalue
void showFullName_2(const string& fullName) {
 cout << fullName <<endl;
}

// accepts only rvalue
void showFullName_3(string&& fullName) {
 cout << fullName <<endl;
}

int main() {
  string firstName = "john";
  string lastName = "doe";
  string fullName = firstName + lastName; //assigning to an lvalue

  showFullName_1(fullName); //works
  showFullName_1(firstName + lastName); // doesn't work because firstName + lastName is a rvalue

  showFullName_2(fullName); // works
  showFullName_2(firstName + lastName); // works

  showFullName_3(fullName); // doesn't work
  showFullName_3(firstName + lastName); // works

}
    Hope this gives you a basic understanding of what lvalues and rvalues are. If you found this helpful please share and comment!

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    Tags:

    CppProgramming

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    Understanding lvalues and rvalues in C++