Chapter 2, Problem 1RQE

How many operands does each of the following types of operators require?

_______ Unary

_______ Binary

_______ Ternary

Explanation of Solution

Statement 1:

Unary operator:

Unary operators act upon one operand to create a new value.

The unary operators are as follows:

• Increment (++) or decrement (--) operators.
• Unary minus operator (-).
• Logical not operator (!).

Example:

Consider the following example:

a++;

The above example have one operand “a” and unary increment “++” operator; this operator is used to increment the “a” value by “1”.

Therefore, the unary operator requires only “one” operand.

Statement 2:

Binary operator:

Binary operators take two operands to create a new value.

The examples of binary operators are as follows:

• Addition (+).
• Subtraction (-).
• Division (/).

Example:

Consider the following example:

c = a + b;

The above example shows the addition of two operands “a” and “b” which is stored in “c” variable.

Therefore, the binary operator requires “two” operands.

Statement 3:

Ternary operator:

Ternary operators take three operands to create a new value. This ternary operator is also called as “conditional” operator. It is represented by the symbol, “?:”.

Example:

Consider the following example:

if (a > b)? cout << “a is greater”: cout << “b is lesser”;

The above example shows the comparison between two values, “a” and “b”. If “a” is greater, it will print the first statement, otherwise it will print the second statement.

Therefore, the ternary operator requires “three” operands.