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Declaration of unions

A union is declared in the same way as a structure. It has a list of members, as in the example below:

union int_or_float
{
  int int_member;
  float float_member;
};

Declaring union variables is similar to declaring structure variables:

union int_or_float my_union1, my_union2;

Just like structures, the members of unions can be accessed with the . and -> operators. However, unlike structures, the variables my_union1 and my_union2 above can be treated as either integers or floating-point variables at different times during the program. For example, if you write my_union1.int_member = 5;, then the program sees my_union1 as being an integer. (This is only a manner of speaking. However, my_union1 by itself does not have a value; only its members have values.) On the other hand, if you then type my_union1.float_member = 7.7;, the my_union variable loses its integer value. It is crucial to remember that a union variable can only have one type at the same time.