C++ erase() Function Purpose Explained
The erase function in C++ is used to remove elements from a container. It can be used to delete one or more elements from the container, as well as to delete elements within a specified range.
There are various ways to use the erase function, depending on the type of container. Here are the commonly used erase function usage for different containers:
- Regarding vectors and strings:
- Delete the element at the specified position using the iterator, and return the iterator pointing to the next element.
- Delete elements within a specific range using the erase function and return an iterator pointing to the next element.
- Regarding lists and doubly linked lists:
- Delete the element at the specified position using the iterator and return an iterator pointing to the next element.
- erase(iterator1, iterator2): remove the elements in the specified range and return an iterator pointing to the next element.
- Regarding associative containers (such as sets and maps):
- delete the specified element using the iterator.
- Delete the element corresponding to the specified key.
It’s important to note that after using the erase function to delete elements, the original iterator may become invalid, so the new iterator returned should be used to continue operating on the container. Also, the time complexity of the erase function may vary between different containers, depending on how they are implemented.