C Programs

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Functions in C

Function to divide two numbers

Introduction

In C programming, dividing two numbers can be done easily using the division operator /.
Here, we’ll create a user-defined function to perform the division operation.
The function will accept two numbers as arguments and return the quotient (result of division).

C Program: Function to divide two numbers

Method 1: The function with int return type (With Arguments, With Return)

#include <stdio.h>
 
// Function declaration
float divide(float a, float b);
 
int main() {
    float num1, num2, result;
 
    // Taking input from user
    printf("Enter dividend: ");
    scanf("%f", &num1);
    printf("Enter divisor: ");
    scanf("%f", &num2);
 
    // Function call
    result = divide(num1, num2);
 
    // Display result if valid
    if (num2 != 0)
        printf("Result of division: %.2f\n", result);
 
    return 0;
}
 
// Function definition
float divide(float a, float b) {
    if (b == 0) {
        printf("Error: Division by zero is not allowed.\n");
        return 0;
    }
    return a / b;
}

 
OUTPUT 1 :
Enter dividend: 20
Enter divisor: 5
Result of division: 4.00

OUTPUT 2 :
Enter dividend: 15
Enter divisor: 0
Error: Division by zero is not allowed.

Description

1. Function Declaration:
   float divide(float a, float b); — declares a function that accepts two float values and returns a float.
2. Division Check:
   Inside the function, b (the divisor) is checked to ensure it’s not zero.
3. Function Call:
   The main() function calls divide(num1, num2) and displays the result if valid.
4. Return Value:
   The quotient is returned to the main() function if division is valid.

C Program: Function to divide two numbers

Method 2: The function with void return type (With Arguments, No Return)

#include <stdio.h>
 
// Function declaration
void divideNumbers(float a, float b);
 
int main() {
    float num1, num2;
 
    // Taking input from user
    printf("Enter dividend: ");
    scanf("%f", &num1);
    printf("Enter divisor: ");
    scanf("%f", &num2);
 
    // Function call
    divideNumbers(num1, num2);
 
    return 0;
}
 
// Function definition
void divideNumbers(float a, float b) {
    if (b == 0) {
        printf("Error: Division by zero is not allowed.\n");
    } else {
        float result = a / b;
        printf("Result of division: %.2f\n", result);
    }
}
 

 
OUTPUT 1 :
Enter dividend: 18
Enter divisor: 3
Result of division: 6.00

OUTPUT 2 :
Enter dividend: 25
Enter divisor: 0
Error: Division by zero is not allowed.

Description

1. Function Declaration:
   void divideNumbers(float a, float b); — declares a function that takes two floating-point numbers but returns nothing.
2. Function Definition:
   The function performs the division and prints the result.
   It includes a check to prevent division by zero.
3. Function Call:
   The main() function passes user inputs to divideNumbers().
4. No Return Statement:
   The result is displayed directly from the function instead of being returned.