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Difference between a method and a function

John Smith237720-Jul-2015
Hi Everyone,
What is the difference between method and function?
Can someone provide a simple explanation of methods and functions?

Good for the beginners.

Thanks,
John
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Updated on 20-Jul-2015
John Smith

John Smith

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2 Answers

Shivani

Shivani

29-Jun-2022

In Simple Words

Function — a set of instructions that perform a task

  • Functions have an independent existence. You can define them outside of the class.
  • Functions are self-describing pieces of code.

Method — a set of instructions that are associated with an object.

  • Methods do not have an independent existence. They are always defined within a class, struct, or enum.
  • Methods are used to manipulate the instance variables of a class.


Anonymous User

Anonymous User

20-Jul-2015
A function is a piece of code that is called by name. It can be passed data to operate on (ie. the parameters) and can optionally return data (the return value).

All data that is passed to a function is explicitly passed.

A method is a piece of code that is called by name that is associated with an object. In most respects it is identical to a function except for two key differences.

It is implicitly passed for the object for which it was called.
It is able to operate on data that is contained within the class (remembering that an object is an instance of a class - the class is the definition, the object is an instance of that data).

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