Pointers in C

📘 C 👁 50 views 📅 Dec 22, 2025

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A pointer is a variable that stores the address of another variable.

Declaration of Pointer

data_type *pointer_name;

Example:

int *p;

Initialization of Pointer

int a = 10;
int *p = &a;

Accessing Value Using Pointer

& → Address of operator
* → Dereference operator

printf("%d", *p);

Example Program

#include 

int main() {
    int a = 10;
    int *p;

    p = &a;

    printf("Value of a = %d\n", a);
    printf("Address of a = %p\n", p);
    printf("Value using pointer = %d", *p);

    return 0;
}

Pointer Arithmetic

p + 1 moves pointer to next memory location
Increments depend on data type size

Types of Pointers

Null Pointer
Void Pointer
Wild Pointer
Dangling Pointer

Pointer and Array Relationship

Array name acts as a pointer to first element

int a[5];
int *p = a;

Passing Pointer to Function

Used to modify original value (Call by Reference).

void swap(int *a, int *b);

Advantages of Pointers

Efficient memory usage
Supports dynamic memory allocation
Enables call by reference
Useful in arrays and strings

Precautions

Initialize pointers before use
Avoid accessing invalid memory
Use pointers carefully to prevent errors

Summary

Pointers store memory addresses
* and & are key pointer operators
Closely related to arrays and functions
Powerful but must be used carefully

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