C++ Brain Teasers: Exercise Your Mind/

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Discussion: A Strange Assignment

Discussion: A Strange Assignment

Execute the code to understand the output and gain insights into the concept of temporary materialization.

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Run the code

Now, it’s time to execute the code and observe the output.

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#include <iostream>
#include <string>
std::string getName()
{
    return "Alice";
}
int main()
{
    std::string name{"Bob"};
    getName() = name;
    std::cout << "Assigned to a function!\n";
}

Understanding the output

Wait, what? You can assign to a function? What does that even mean?

At first glance, it looks like we’re assigning a variable to a function call, which is the opposite of what we typically see (name = getName()). Let’s have a closer look at what’s going on.

The function assignment

The getName() expression calls getName ...