break And continue (Break Out Of Loop) in C Programming Language

In C programming, break and continue are control statements used to alter the flow of loops. They provide additional control over the execution of loop statements such as for, while, and do-while.

break statement

The break statement terminates the innermost loop in which it is placed and transfers the control to the statement immediately following the loop. This is useful when you want to exit a loop before its completion based on a specific condition.

Syntax: break;

Example:

#include <stdio.h>

int main() {
    for (int i = 1; i <= 10; i++) {
        if (i == 6) {
            break; // Break the loop when i is 6
        }
        printf("%d ", i);
    }
    return 0; // Output: 1 2 3 4 5
}

continue statement

The continue statement skips the rest of the current loop iteration and transfers the control to the beginning of the next iteration. This is useful when you want to skip certain iterations based on a specific condition.

Syntax: continue;

Example:

#include <stdio.h>

int main() {
    for (int i = 1; i <= 10; i++) {
        if (i % 2 == 0) {
            continue; // Skip the loop iteration when i is an even number
        }
        printf("%d ", i);
    }
    return 0; // Output: 1 3 5 7 9
}

In summary, the break statement allows you to exit a loop prematurely based on a specific condition, while the continue statement helps you skip specific iterations without exiting the loop. Understanding these control statements is essential in C programming, as they provide greater flexibility in managing loop execution.

How to break out of a loop in C:

#include <stdio.h>

int main() {
    for (int i = 1; i <= 5; ++i) {
        if (i == 3) {
            break;  // Exit the loop when i is 3
        }
        printf("%d ", i);
    }

    return 0;
}

Demonstrates the use of break to exit a loop when a specific condition is met.

continue statement for skipping iterations in C:

#include <stdio.h>

int main() {
    for (int i = 1; i <= 5; ++i) {
        if (i == 3) {
            continue;  // Skip the rest of the loop for i = 3
        }
        printf("%d ", i);
    }

    return 0;
}

Illustrates the use of continue to skip iterations in a loop.

Infinite loop termination using break in C:

#include <stdio.h>

int main() {
    int count = 0;
    while (1) {
        printf("Inside infinite loop\n");
        ++count;
        if (count >= 5) {
            break;  // Terminate the loop after 5 iterations
        }
    }

    return 0;
}

Shows how to use break to terminate an infinite loop.