{"id":15660,"date":"2023-04-20T04:38:16","date_gmt":"2023-04-20T04:38:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.prepbytes.com\/blog\/?p=15660"},"modified":"2023-04-20T04:38:16","modified_gmt":"2023-04-20T04:38:16","slug":"sort-function-in-cpp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/prepbytes.com\/blog\/sort-function-in-cpp\/","title":{"rendered":"sort() Function in C++"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Sorting is a fundamental operation in computer science and programming, and C++ provides a built-in sort function that can be used to sort various types of data structures such as arrays, vectors, and lists. Let us learn about the sort Function in C++ in detail with help of examples.<\/p>\n

C++ Sort Function<\/h2>\n

The sort Function in C++ is used to sort the data structures such as arrays, vectors, lists, etc. The sort function in C++ is included in the STL library of C++. In order to utilize the sort function in our code, we must include the algorithm library by adding the line #include < algorithm>.<\/p>\n

Syntax of sort() Function in C++<\/h3>\n

The syntax of the sort Function in C++ is given below.<\/p>\n

default (1)   \n    template   \n    void sort (RandomAccessIterator first, RandomAccessIterator last);  \n\ncustom (2)    \n    template   \n  void sort (RandomAccessIterator first, RandomAccessIterator last, Compare comp);\n\n\/\/ custom(2) for sorting in descending order\ntemplate \nvoid sort (RandomAccessIterator first, RandomAccessIterator last, greater());<\/code><\/pre>\n
Parameters of sort() Function<\/h3>\n
The sort Function in C++ has the following three parameters.<\/p>\n
    \n
  • first:<\/strong> This parameter is RandomAccessIterator that is pointing to the first element in the range to be sorted. This element is inclusive in the range for sorting.<\/li>\n
  • last:<\/strong> This is also a RandomAccessIterator which points to the last element in the range for sorting and this last element is not included in the range for sorting.<\/li>\n
  • comp:<\/strong> This parameter is an optional parameter that is used to specify the comparison function to be used for sorting. If this parameter is not provided, the elements will be sorted in ascending order.<\/li>\n
  • greater< data_type>:<\/strong> This parameter is used to sort the array or a vector of given data_type in descending order.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
    Return Type of sort() Function in C++<\/h3>\n
    The sort Function in C++ does not return anything. Its return type is void.<\/p>\n
    Time Complexity of sort() Function in C++<\/h3>\n
    The time complexity of the sort Function in C++ is N * log2N, where N is the size of the data structure passed.<\/p>\n
    Exceptions of sort() Function in C++<\/h3>\n
    The sort() function in C++ can throw an exception if any of the element comparisons, the element swap, or an operation on the iterator throws an exception.<\/p>\n
    Internal Working of sort() Function in C++<\/h3>\n
    The sort() function in C++ is implemented using a sorting algorithm known as Introsort. Introsort is a hybrid sorting algorithm that combines the advantages of Quicksort, Heapsort, and Insertion sort. The basic idea behind Introsort is to use Quicksort initially to quickly sort the data set. Quicksort’s worst-case time complexity is O(n^2), which can occur when the partitioning is unbalanced. To avoid the worst-case scenario, Introsort switches to Heapsort. Also, Introsort switches to Insertion sort for very small data sets. Insertion sort is an efficient sorting algorithm for small data sets,<\/p>\n
    Examples of sort() Function in C++<\/h3>\n
    Let us learn how to use the sort Function in C++ with the help of the following examples.<\/p>\n
    Example 1 of sort() Function in C++: Sorting an Array<\/strong>
    \nTo sort an array using the sort function in C++, we need to pass the starting and ending addresses of the array to the sort function in C++.<\/p>\n
    Code:<\/strong><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t