6.8.3 Expression and null statements

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expression-statement:
                expression_opt ;

1732 The expression in an expression statement is evaluated as a void expression for its side effects.¹³²⁾

1733 A null statement (consisting of just a semicolon) performs no operations.

1734 EXAMPLE 1 If a function call is evaluated as an expression statement for its side effects only, the discarding of its value may be made explicit by converting the expression to a void expression by means of a cast:


        int p(int);
        /* ... */
        (void)p(0);

1735 132) Such as assignments, and function calls which have side effects.

1736 EXAMPLE 2 In the program fragment


        char *s;
        /* ... */
        while (*s++ != '\0')
                ;

a null statement is used to supply an empty loop body to the iteration statement.

1737 EXAMPLE 3 A null statement may also be used to carry a label just before the closing } of a compound statement.


        while (loop1) {
                /* ... */
                while (loop2) {
                        /* ... */
                        if (want_out)
                                goto end_loop1;
                        /* ... */
                }
                /* ... */
        end_loop1: ;
        }

1738 Forward references: iteration statements (6.8.5).