A punctuator is also a token and it also defined in compiler like keywords. A punctuator can also be a token that is used in the syntax of the preprocessor. some Operator or punctuator alternative representations for some operators and punctuators.
Punctuator
| Operator | Meanning |
| [ ] | Array subscript Operator |
| ( ) | Parentheses Operator |
| { } | Braces |
| = | Equal sign |
| , | Comma Operator (or) Punctuator |
| : | Colon |
| ; | Semicolon |
| * | Astrisk |
| " " | Quotes |
| ' ' | Ellipsis |
C and C++ ( C99 ) provide the following alternative representations for some operators and punctuators.
| Operator or punctuator |
Alternative Representation |
| # | %: |
| ## | %:%: |
| { | <% |
| } | %> |
| [ | <: |
| ] | :> |
Example for using Alternative representation.
// Alternative Representation Example
%:include<stdio.h>
int main()
<% // Open Brace {.
char a<:5:>="MDSN"; // Array subscript operator Ex: a[5]="MDSN"
printf("%s",a); // Output MDSN
return 0;
%> // Close Brace {.
Some more alternative representation defined as macros in the header file " iso646.h".
| Operator or punctuator |
Alternative Representation |
| & | bitand |
| && | and |
| &= | and_eq |
| | | bitor |
| || | or |
| |= | or_eq |
| ^ | xor |
| ^= | xor_eq |
| ! | not |
| != | not_eq |
| ~ | compl |
Example:
%:include<stdio.h> // # preprocessor
%:include<iso646.h>
int main()
<% // Open Brace {.
int a=5,b=5,c=2;
if((a==5)and(a==b)) //if((a==5)&&(a==b))
{printf("a=5 and a=b\n");}
if(a not_eq c) //if(a != c)
{printf("a is not equal to c\n");}
return 0;
%> // Close Brace {.
