Terminology: Forward Declaration versus Function Prototype

c terminology forward-declaration function-prototypes
Andrew Cottrell picture Andrew Cottrell · Dec 13, 2011 · Viewed 9.4k times · Source

To me these terms are essentially synonymous when using the C programming language. In practice I might prefer "forward declaration" for in-file prototypes versus "function prototype" for prototypes included via a header file. But even that is an artificial distinction when you consider what happens after preprocessing. Perhaps I'm missing something.

Is there a consensus for when to use one term versus the other?

Answer

greydet picture greydet · Dec 13, 2011

IMO those are not really synonyms. To me "function prototype" refer to the function name and its parameters' and return's types. It does not only apply to what you call "forward declaration". All functions have a prototype.

We more often make a difference between a function declaration and its corresponding definition.

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