C++ Primer, Fifth Edition

Function Return Type

Most types can be used as the return type of a function. In particular, the return type can be void, which means that the function does not return a value. However, the return type may not be an array type (§ 3.5, p. 113) or a function type. However, a function may return a pointer to an array or a function. We’ll see how to define functions that return pointers (or references) to arrays in § 6.3.3 (p. 228) and how to return pointers to functions in § 6.7 (p. 247).