What is a formal parameter?

Question

When compiling in C++ I often end up with error messages dealing with \"formal parameters\", such as

error C2719: \'b\': formal parameter with __declspec(ali         


        

Answer 1

Formal parameters are the parameters known at the function definition. The actual parameters are what you actually (hence the name) pass to the function when you call it.

void foo( int a ); // a is a formal parameter

foo(10); // 10 is the actual parameter