In C++, what does & mean after a function's return type?

Question

In a C++ function like this:

int& getNumber();

what does the & mean? Is it different from:

int getNumb         


        

Answer 1

The difference is that without the & what you get back is a copy of the returned int, suitable for passing into other routines, comparing to stuff, or copying into your own variable.

With the &, what you get back is essentially the variable containing the returned integer. That means you can actually put it on the left-hand side of an assignment, like so:

getNumber() = 200;