Welcome to Swift

About Swift
Swift is a new programming language for iOS and OS X apps that builds on the best of C and
Objective-C, without the constraints of C compatibility. Swift adopts safe programming patterns and
adds modern features to make programming easier, more flexible, and more fun. Swifts clean slate,
backed by the mature and much-loved Cocoa and Cocoa Touch frameworks, is an opportunity to
reimagine how software development works.
Swift has been years in the making. Apple laid the foundation for Swift by advancing our existing
compiler, debugger, and framework infrastructure. We simplified memory management with
Automatic Reference Counting (ARC). Our framework stack, built on the solid base of Foundation
and Cocoa, has been modernized and standardized throughout. Objective-C itself has evolved to
support blocks, collection literals, and modules, enabling framework adoption of modern language
technologies without disruption. Thanks to this groundwork, we can now introduce a new language
for the future of Apple software development.
Swift feels familiar to Objective-C developers. It adopts the readability of Objective-Cs named
parameters and the power of Objective-Cs dynamic object model. It provides seamless access to
existing Cocoa frameworks and mix-and-match interoperability with Objective-C code. Building
from this common ground, Swift introduces many new features and unifies the procedural and objectoriented portions of the language.
Swift is friendly to new programmers. It is the first industrial-quality systems programming language
that is as expressive and enjoyable as a scripting language. It supports playgrounds, an innovative
feature that allows programmers to experiment with Swift code and see the results immediately,
without the overhead of building and running an app.
Swift combines the best in modern language thinking with wisdom from the wider Apple engineering
culture. The compiler is optimized for performance, and the language is optimized for development,
without compromising on either. Its designed to scale from hello, world to an entire operating
system. All this makes Swift a sound future investment for developers and for Apple.
Swift is a fantastic way to write iOS and OS X apps, and will continue to evolve with new features
and capabilities. Our goals for Swift are ambitious. We cant wait to see what you create with it.

A Swift Tour
Tradition suggests that the first program in a new language should print the words Hello, world! on
the screen. In Swift, this can be done in a single line:
println("Hello, world!")

If you have written code in C or Objective-C, this syntax looks familiar to youin Swift, this line of
code is a complete program. You dont need to import a separate library for functionality like
input/output or string handling. Code written at global scope is used as the entry point for the
program, so you dont need a main function. You also dont need to write semicolons at the end of
every statement.
This tour gives you enough information to start writing code in Swift by showing you how to
accomplish a variety of programming tasks. Dont worry if you dont understand something
everything introduced in this tour is explained in detail in the rest of this book.

NOTE
On a Mac, download the Playground and double-click the file to open it in Xcode:
https://developer.apple.com/library/ios/swift_tour

Simple Values
Use let to make a constant and var to make a variable. The value of a constant doesnt need to be
known at compile time, but you must assign it a value exactly once. This means you can use constants
to name a value that you determine once but use in many places.
1

var myVariable = 42

myVariable = 50

let myConstant = 42

A constant or variable must have the same type as the value you want to assign to it. However, you
dont always have to write the type explicitly. Providing a value when you create a constant or
variable lets the compiler infer its type. In the example above, the compiler infers that myVariable is
an integer because its initial value is an integer.

If the initial value doesnt provide enough information (or if there is no initial value), specify the type
by writing it after the variable, separated by a colon.
1

let implicitInteger = 70

let implicitDouble = 70.0

let explicitDouble: Double = 70

E XP E R I M E N T
Create a constant with an explicit type of Float and a value of 4.

Values are never implicitly converted to another type. If you need to convert a value to a different
type, explicitly make an instance of the desired type.
1

let label = "The width is "

let width = 94

let widthLabel = label + String(width)

E XP E R I M E N T
Try removing the conversion to String from the last line. What error do you get?

Theres an even simpler way to include values in strings: Write the value in parentheses, and write a
backslash (\) before the parentheses. For example:
1

let apples = 3

let oranges = 5

let appleSummary = "I have \(apples) apples."

let fruitSummary = "I have \(apples + oranges) pieces of fruit."

E XP E R I M E N T
Use \() to include a floating-point calculation in a string and to include someones name in a greeting.

Create arrays and dictionaries using brackets ([]), and access their elements by writing the index or

key in brackets.
1

var shoppingList = ["catfish", "water", "tulips", "blue paint"]

shoppingList[1] = "bottle of water"

3
4

var occupations = [

"Malcolm": "Captain",

"Kaylee": "Mechanic",

occupations["Jayne"] = "Public Relations"

To create an empty array or dictionary, use the initializer syntax.

1

let emptyArray = [String]()

let emptyDictionary = [String: Float]()

If type information can be inferred, you can write an empty array as [] and an empty dictionary as [:]
for example, when you set a new value for a variable or pass an argument to a function.
1

shoppingList = []

occupations = [:]

Control Flow
Use if and switch to make conditionals, and use for-in, for, while, and do-while to make loops.
Parentheses around the condition or loop variable are optional. Braces around the body are required.

let individualScores = [75, 43, 103, 87, 12]

var teamScore = 0

for score in individualScores {

if score > 50 {

teamScore += 3

} else {

teamScore += 1

8
9

10

}
}

println(teamScore)

In an if statement, the conditional must be a Boolean expressionthis means that code such as if
score { ... } is an error, not an implicit comparison to zero.
You can use if and let together to work with values that might be missing. These values are
represented as optionals. An optional value either contains a value or contains nil to indicate that a
value is missing. Write a question mark (?) after the type of a value to mark the value as optional.
1

var optionalString: String? = "Hello"

println(optionalString == nil)

3
4

var optionalName: String? = "John Appleseed"

var greeting = "Hello!"

if let name = optionalName {

7
8

greeting = "Hello, \(name)"

}

E XP E R I M E N T
Change optionalName to nil. What greeting do you get? Add an else clause that sets a different greeting if
optionalName is nil.

If the optional value is nil, the conditional is false and the code in braces is skipped. Otherwise, the
optional value is unwrapped and assigned to the constant after let, which makes the unwrapped value
available inside the block of code.

Switches support any kind of data and a wide variety of comparison operationsthey arent limited
to integers and tests for equality.
1

let vegetable = "red pepper"

switch vegetable {

case "celery":

let vegetableComment = "Add some raisins and make ants on a log."

case "cucumber", "watercress":

let vegetableComment = "That would make a good tea sandwich."

case let x where x.hasSuffix("pepper"):

let vegetableComment = "Is it a spicy \(x)?"

default:

10

11

let vegetableComment = "Everything tastes good in soup."

}

E XP E R I M E N T
Try removing the default case. What error do you get?

Notice how let can be used in a pattern to assign the value that matched that part of a pattern to a
constant.
After executing the code inside the switch case that matched, the program exits from the switch
statement. Execution doesnt continue to the next case, so there is no need to explicitly break out of
the switch at the end of each cases code.
You use for-in to iterate over items in a dictionary by providing a pair of names to use for each keyvalue pair. Dictionaries are an unordered collection, so their keys and values are iterated over in an
arbitrary order.

let interestingNumbers = [

"Prime": [2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13],

"Fibonacci": [1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8],

"Square": [1, 4, 9, 16, 25],

var largest = 0

for (kind, numbers) in interestingNumbers {

for number in numbers {

if number > largest {

10

largest = number

11

12

13

14

println(largest)

E XP E R I M E N T
Add another variable to keep track of which kind of number was the largest, as well as what that largest number was.

Use while to repeat a block of code until a condition changes. The condition of a loop can be at the
end instead, ensuring that the loop is run at least once.

var n = 2

while n < 100 {

n = n * 2

println(n)

6
7

var m = 2

do {

m = m * 2

10

} while m < 100

11

println(m)

You can keep an index in a loopeither by using ..< to make a range of indexes or by writing an
explicit initialization, condition, and increment. These two loops do the same thing:
1

var firstForLoop = 0

for i in 0..<4 {

firstForLoop += i

println(firstForLoop)

6
7

var secondForLoop = 0

for var i = 0; i < 4; ++i {

secondForLoop += i

10

11

println(secondForLoop)

Use ..< to make a range that omits its upper value, and use ... to make a range that includes both
values.

Functions and Closures

Use func to declare a function. Call a function by following its name with a list of arguments in

parentheses. Use -> to separate the parameter names and types from the functions return type.
1

func greet(name: String, day: String) -> String {

return "Hello \(name), today is \(day)."

greet("Bob", "Tuesday")

E XP E R I M E N T
Remove the day parameter. Add a parameter to include todays lunch special in the greeting.

Use a tuple to make a compound valuefor example, to return multiple values from a function. The
elements of a tuple can be referred to either by name or by number.

func calculateStatistics(scores: [Int]) -> (min: Int, max: Int, sum: Int) {

var min = scores[0]

var max = scores[0]

var sum = 0

5
6

for score in scores {

if score > max {

max = score

} else if score < min {

10

min = score

11

12

sum += score

13

14

15

return (min, max, sum)

16

17

let statistics = calculateStatistics([5, 3, 100, 3, 9])

18

println(statistics.sum)

19

println(statistics.2)

Functions can also take a variable number of arguments, collecting them into an array.
1

func sumOf(numbers: Int...) -> Int {

var sum = 0

for number in numbers {

sum += number

return sum

sumOf()

sumOf(42, 597, 12)

E XP E R I M E N T
Write a function that calculates the average of its arguments.

Functions can be nested. Nested functions have access to variables that were declared in the outer
function. You can use nested functions to organize the code in a function that is long or complex.
1

func returnFifteen() -> Int {

var y = 10

func add() {

y += 5

add()

return y

returnFifteen()

Functions are a first-class type. This means that a function can return another function as its value.
1

func makeIncrementer() -> (Int -> Int) {

func addOne(number: Int) -> Int {

return 1 + number

return addOne

var increment = makeIncrementer()

increment(7)

A function can take another function as one of its arguments.

func hasAnyMatches(list: [Int], condition: Int -> Bool) -> Bool {

for item in list {

if condition(item) {

return true

return false

func lessThanTen(number: Int) -> Bool {

10

return number < 10

11

12

var numbers = [20, 19, 7, 12]

13

hasAnyMatches(numbers, lessThanTen)

Functions are actually a special case of closures: blocks of code that can be called later. The code in
a closure has access to things like variables and functions that were available in the scope where the
closure was created, even if the closure is in a different scope when it is executedyou saw an
example of this already with nested functions. You can write a closure without a name by surrounding
code with braces ({}). Use in to separate the arguments and return type from the body.
1

numbers.map({

(number: Int) -> Int in

let result = 3 * number

return result

})

E XP E R I M E N T
Rewrite the closure to return zero for all odd numbers.

You have several options for writing closures more concisely. When a closures type is already
known, such as the callback for a delegate, you can omit the type of its parameters, its return type, or
both. Single statement closures implicitly return the value of their only statement.

let mappedNumbers = numbers.map({ number in 3 * number })

println(mappedNumbers)

You can refer to parameters by number instead of by namethis approach is especially useful in very
short closures. A closure passed as the last argument to a function can appear immediately after the
parentheses.
1

let sortedNumbers = sorted(numbers) { $0 > $1 }

println(sortedNumbers)

Objects and Classes

Use class followed by the classs name to create a class. A property declaration in a class is written
the same way as a constant or variable declaration, except that it is in the context of a class.
Likewise, method and function declarations are written the same way.
1

class Shape {

var numberOfSides = 0

func simpleDescription() -> String {

return "A shape with \(numberOfSides) sides."

5
6

}
}

E XP E R I M E N T
Add a constant property with let, and add another method that takes an argument.

Create an instance of a class by putting parentheses after the class name. Use dot syntax to access the
properties and methods of the instance.
1

var shape = Shape()

shape.numberOfSides = 7

var shapeDescription = shape.simpleDescription()

This version of the Shape class is missing something important: an initializer to set up the class when

an instance is created. Use init to create one.

1

class NamedShape {

var numberOfSides: Int = 0

var name: String

4
5

init(name: String) {

self.name = name

8
9

func simpleDescription() -> String {

10

return "A shape with \(numberOfSides) sides."

11

12

}
}

Notice how self is used to distinguish the name property from the name argument to the initializer. The
arguments to the initializer are passed like a function call when you create an instance of the class.
Every property needs a value assignedeither in its declaration (as with numberOfSides) or in the
initializer (as with name).
Use deinit to create a deinitializer if you need to perform some cleanup before the object is
deallocated.
Subclasses include their superclass name after their class name, separated by a colon. There is no
requirement for classes to subclass any standard root class, so you can include or omit a superclass
as needed.
Methods on a subclass that override the superclasss implementation are marked with override
overriding a method by accident, without override, is detected by the compiler as an error. The
compiler also detects methods with override that dont actually override any method in the
superclass.

class Square: NamedShape {

var sideLength: Double

3
4

init(sideLength: Double, name: String) {

self.sideLength = sideLength

super.init(name: name)

numberOfSides = 4

10

func area() ->

11

Double {

return sideLength * sideLength

12

13

14

override func simpleDescription() -> String {

15

return "A square with sides of length \(sideLength)."

16

17

18

let test = Square(sideLength: 5.2, name: "my test square")

19

test.area()

20

test.simpleDescription()

E XP E R I M E N T
Make another subclass of NamedShape called Circle that takes a radius and a name as arguments to its initializer.
Implement an area() and a simpleDescription() method on the Circle class.

In addition to simple properties that are stored, properties can have a getter and a setter.

class EquilateralTriangle: NamedShape {

var sideLength: Double = 0.0

3
4

init(sideLength: Double, name: String) {

self.sideLength = sideLength

super.init(name: name)

numberOfSides = 3

10

var perimeter: Double {

11

get {

12

return 3.0 * sideLength

13

14

set {

15

sideLength = newValue / 3.0

16

17

18

19

override func simpleDescription() -> String {

20

return "An equilateral triangle with sides of length \(sideLength)."

21

22

23

var triangle = EquilateralTriangle(sideLength: 3.1, name: "a triangle")

24

println(triangle.perimeter)

25

triangle.perimeter = 9.9

26

println(triangle.sideLength)

In the setter for perimeter, the new value has the implicit name newValue. You can provide an explicit
name in parentheses after set.
Notice that the initializer for the EquilateralTriangle class has three different steps:
1. Setting the value of properties that the subclass declares.

2. Calling the superclasss initializer.

3. Changing the value of properties defined by the superclass. Any additional setup work that uses
methods, getters, or setters can also be done at this point.
If you dont need to compute the property but still need to provide code that is run before and after
setting a new value, use willSet and didSet. For example, the class below ensures that the side
length of its triangle is always the same as the side length of its square.
1

class TriangleAndSquare {

var triangle: EquilateralTriangle {

willSet {

square.sideLength = newValue.sideLength

var square: Square {

willSet {

triangle.sideLength = newValue.sideLength

10

11

12

init(size: Double, name: String) {

13

square = Square(sideLength: size, name: name)

14

triangle = EquilateralTriangle(sideLength: size, name: name)

15

16

17

var triangleAndSquare = TriangleAndSquare(size: 10, name: "another test shape")

18

println(triangleAndSquare.square.sideLength)

19

println(triangleAndSquare.triangle.sideLength)

20

triangleAndSquare.square = Square(sideLength: 50, name: "larger square")

21

println(triangleAndSquare.triangle.sideLength)

Methods on classes have one important difference from functions. Parameter names in functions are
used only within the function, but parameters names in methods are also used when you call the
method (except for the first parameter). By default, a method has the same name for its parameters
when you call it and within the method itself. You can specify a second name, which is used inside the

method.
1

class Counter {

var count: Int = 0

func incrementBy(amount: Int, numberOfTimes times: Int) {

count += amount * times

var counter = Counter()

counter.incrementBy(2, numberOfTimes: 7)

When working with optional values, you can write ? before operations like methods, properties, and
subscripting. If the value before the ? is nil, everything after the ? is ignored and the value of the
whole expression is nil. Otherwise, the optional value is unwrapped, and everything after the ? acts
on the unwrapped value. In both cases, the value of the whole expression is an optional value.
1

let optionalSquare: Square? = Square(sideLength: 2.5, name: "optional square")

let sideLength = optionalSquare?.sideLength

Enumerations and Structures

Use enum to create an enumeration. Like classes and all other named types, enumerations can have
methods associated with them.

enum Rank: Int {

case Ace = 1

case Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten

case Jack, Queen, King

func simpleDescription() -> String {

switch self {

case .Ace:

return "ace"

case .Jack:

10

return "jack"

11

case .Queen:

12

return "queen"

13

case .King:

14

return "king"

15

default:

16

return String(self.rawValue)

17

18

19

20

let ace = Rank.Ace

21

let aceRawValue = ace.rawValue

E XP E R I M E N T
Write a function that compares two Rank values by comparing their raw values.

In the example above, the raw-value type of the enumeration is Int, so you only have to specify the
first raw value. The rest of the raw values are assigned in order. You can also use strings or floatingpoint numbers as the raw type of an enumeration. Use the rawValue property to access the raw value
of an enumeration member.
Use the init?(rawValue:) initializer to make an instance of an enumeration from a raw value.

if let convertedRank = Rank(rawValue: 3) {

let threeDescription = convertedRank.simpleDescription()

The member values of an enumeration are actual values, not just another way of writing their raw
values. In fact, in cases where there isnt a meaningful raw value, you dont have to provide one.
1

enum Suit {

case Spades, Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs

func simpleDescription() -> String {

switch self {

case .Spades:

return "spades"

case .Hearts:

return "hearts"

case .Diamonds:

10

return "diamonds"

11

case .Clubs:

12

return "clubs"

13

14

15

16

let hearts = Suit.Hearts

17

let heartsDescription = hearts.simpleDescription()

E XP E R I M E N T
Add a color() method to Suit that returns black for spades and clubs, and returns red for hearts and diamonds.

Notice the two ways that the Hearts member of the enumeration is referred to above: When assigning
a value to the hearts constant, the enumeration member Suit.Hearts is referred to by its full name
because the constant doesnt have an explicit type specified. Inside the switch, the enumeration
member is referred to by the abbreviated form .Hearts because the value of self is already known to
be a suit. You can use the abbreviated form anytime the values type is already known.

Use struct to create a structure. Structures support many of the same behaviors as classes, including
methods and initializers. One of the most important differences between structures and classes is that
structures are always copied when they are passed around in your code, but classes are passed by
reference.
1

struct Card {

var rank: Rank

var suit: Suit

func simpleDescription() -> String {

return "The \(rank.simpleDescription()) of \(suit.simpleDescription())"

let threeOfSpades = Card(rank: .Three, suit: .Spades)

let threeOfSpadesDescription = threeOfSpades.simpleDescription()

E XP E R I M E N T
Add a method to Card that creates a full deck of cards, with one card of each combination of rank and suit.

An instance of an enumeration member can have values associated with the instance. Instances of the
same enumeration member can have different values associated with them. You provide the
associated values when you create the instance. Associated values and raw values are different: The
raw value of an enumeration member is the same for all of its instances, and you provide the raw
value when you define the enumeration.
For example, consider the case of requesting the sunrise and sunset time from a server. The server
either responds with the information or it responds with some error information.

enum ServerResponse {

case Result(String, String)

case Error(String)

5
6

let success = ServerResponse.Result("6:00 am", "8:09 pm")

let failure = ServerResponse.Error("Out of cheese.")

8
9

10

switch success {

case let .Result(sunrise, sunset):

11

12

let serverResponse = "Sunrise is at \(sunrise) and sunset is at \(sunset)."

case let .Error(error):

13

14

let serverResponse = "Failure...

\(error)"

E XP E R I M E N T
Add a third case to ServerResponse and to the switch.

Notice how the sunrise and sunset times are extracted from the ServerResponse value as part of
matching the value against the switch cases.

Protocols and Extensions

Use protocol to declare a protocol.
1

protocol ExampleProtocol {

var simpleDescription: String { get }

mutating func adjust()

Classes, enumerations, and structs can all adopt protocols.

class SimpleClass: ExampleProtocol {

var simpleDescription: String = "A very simple class."

var anotherProperty: Int = 69105

func adjust() {

simpleDescription += "

10

Now 100% adjusted."

var a = SimpleClass()

a.adjust()

let aDescription = a.simpleDescription

11

12

struct SimpleStructure: ExampleProtocol {

13

var simpleDescription: String = "A simple structure"

14

mutating func adjust() {

15

simpleDescription += " (adjusted)"

16

17

18

var b = SimpleStructure()

19

b.adjust()

20

let bDescription = b.simpleDescription

E XP E R I M E N T
Write an enumeration that conforms to this protocol.

Notice the use of the mutating keyword in the declaration of SimpleStructure to mark a method that
modifies the structure. The declaration of SimpleClass doesnt need any of its methods marked as
mutating because methods on a class can always modify the class.
Use extension to add functionality to an existing type, such as new methods and computed properties.
You can use an extension to add protocol conformance to a type that is declared elsewhere, or even to
a type that you imported from a library or framework.

extension Int: ExampleProtocol {

var simpleDescription: String {

return "The number \(self)"

mutating func adjust() {

self += 42

println(7.simpleDescription)

E XP E R I M E N T
Write an extension for the Double type that adds an absoluteValue property.

You can use a protocol name just like any other named typefor example, to create a collection of
objects that have different types but that all conform to a single protocol. When you work with values
whose type is a protocol type, methods outside the protocol definition are not available.
1

let protocolValue: ExampleProtocol = a

println(protocolValue.simpleDescription)

// println(protocolValue.anotherProperty)

// Uncomment to see the error

Even though the variable protocolValue has a runtime type of SimpleClass, the compiler treats it as
the given type of ExampleProtocol. This means that you cant accidentally access methods or
properties that the class implements in addition to its protocol conformance.

Generics
Write a name inside angle brackets to make a generic function or type.

func repeat<Item>(item: Item, times: Int) -> [Item] {

var result = [Item]()

for i in 0..<times {

result.append(item)

return result

repeat("knock", 4)

You can make generic forms of functions and methods, as well as classes, enumerations, and
structures.
1

// Reimplement the Swift standard library's optional type

enum OptionalValue<T> {

case None

case Some(T)

var possibleInteger: OptionalValue<Int> = .None

possibleInteger = .Some(100)

Use where after the type name to specify a list of requirementsfor example, to require the type to
implement a protocol, to require two types to be the same, or to require a class to have a particular
superclass.

func anyCommonElements <T, U where T: SequenceType, U: SequenceType,

T.Generator.Element: Equatable, T.Generator.Element == U.Generator.Element>
(lhs: T, rhs: U) -> Bool {

for lhsItem in lhs {

for rhsItem in rhs {

if lhsItem == rhsItem {

return true

return false

10

11

anyCommonElements([1, 2, 3], [3])

E XP E R I M E N T
Modify the anyCommonElements function to make a function that returns an array of the elements that any two
sequences have in common.

In the simple cases, you can omit where and simply write the protocol or class name after a colon.
Writing <T: Equatable> is the same as writing <T where T: Equatable>.

Language Guide

The Basics
Swift is a new programming language for iOS and OS X app development. Nonetheless, many parts
of Swift will be familiar from your experience of developing in C and Objective-C.
Swift provides its own versions of all fundamental C and Objective-C types, including Int for
integers, Double and Float for floating-point values, Bool for Boolean values, and String for textual
data. Swift also provides powerful versions of the two primary collection types, Array and
Dictionary, as described in Collection Types.
Like C, Swift uses variables to store and refer to values by an identifying name. Swift also makes
extensive use of variables whose values cannot be changed. These are known as constants, and are
much more powerful than constants in C. Constants are used throughout Swift to make code safer and
clearer in intent when you work with values that do not need to change.
In addition to familiar types, Swift introduces advanced types not found in Objective-C, such as
tuples. Tuples enable you to create and pass around groupings of values. You can use a tuple to return
multiple values from a function as a single compound value.
Swift also introduces optional types, which handle the absence of a value. Optionals say either there
is a value, and it equals x or there isnt a value at all. Optionals are similar to using nil with
pointers in Objective-C, but they work for any type, not just classes. Optionals are safer and more
expressive than nil pointers in Objective-C and are at the heart of many of Swifts most powerful
features.
Optionals are an example of the fact that Swift is a type safe language. Swift helps you to be clear
about the types of values your code can work with. If part of your code expects a String, type safety
prevents you from passing it an Int by mistake. This restriction enables you to catch and fix errors as
early as possible in the development process.

Constants and Variables

Constants and variables associate a name (such as maximumNumberOfLoginAttempts or
welcomeMessage) with a value of a particular type (such as the number 10 or the string "Hello"). The
value of a constant cannot be changed once it is set, whereas a variable can be set to a different
value in the future.

Declaring Constants and Variables

Constants and variables must be declared before they are used. You declare constants with the let
keyword and variables with the var keyword. Heres an example of how constants and variables can
be used to track the number of login attempts a user has made:
1

let maximumNumberOfLoginAttempts = 10

var currentLoginAttempt = 0

This code can be read as:

Declare a new constant called maximumNumberOfLoginAttempts, and give it a value of 10. Then,
declare a new variable called currentLoginAttempt, and give it an initial value of 0.
In this example, the maximum number of allowed login attempts is declared as a constant, because the
maximum value never changes. The current login attempt counter is declared as a variable, because
this value must be incremented after each failed login attempt.
You can declare multiple constants or multiple variables on a single line, separated by commas:
var x = 0.0, y = 0.0, z = 0.0

NOTE
If a stored value in your code is not going to change, always declare it as a constant with the let keyword. Use variables
only for storing values that need to be able to change.

Type Annotations
You can provide a type annotation when you declare a constant or variable, to be clear about the
kind of values the constant or variable can store. Write a type annotation by placing a colon after the
constant or variable name, followed by a space, followed by the name of the type to use.
This example provides a type annotation for a variable called welcomeMessage, to indicate that the
variable can store String values:
var welcomeMessage: String

The colon in the declaration means of type, so the code above can be read as:
Declare a variable called welcomeMessage that is of type String.
The phrase of type String means can store any String value. Think of it as meaning the type of

thing (or the kind of thing) that can be stored.

The welcomeMessage variable can now be set to any string value without error:
welcomeMessage = "Hello"

You can define multiple related variables of the same type on a single line, separated by commas,
with a single type annotation after the final variable name:
var red, green, blue: Double

NOTE
It is rare that you need to write type annotations in practice. If you provide an initial value for a constant or variable at the
point that it is defined, Swift can almost always infer the type to be used for that constant or variable, as described in Type
Safety and Type Inference. In the welcomeMessage example above, no initial value is provided, and so the type of the
welcomeMessage variable is specified with a type annotation rather than being inferred from an initial value.

Naming Constants and Variables

Constant and variable names can contain almost any character, including Unicode characters:
1

let = 3.14159

let = ""

let

= "dogcow"

Constant and variable names cannot contain whitespace characters, mathematical symbols, arrows,
private-use (or invalid) Unicode code points, or line- and box-drawing characters. Nor can they
begin with a number, although numbers may be included elsewhere within the name.
Once youve declared a constant or variable of a certain type, you cant redeclare it again with the
same name, or change it to store values of a different type. Nor can you change a constant into a
variable or a variable into a constant.

NOTE
If you need to give a constant or variable the same name as a reserved Swift keyword, surround the keyword with back
ticks (`) when using it as a name. However, avoid using keywords as names unless you have absolutely no choice.

You can change the value of an existing variable to another value of a compatible type. In this
example, the value of friendlyWelcome is changed from "Hello!" to "Bonjour!":
1

var friendlyWelcome = "Hello!"

friendlyWelcome = "Bonjour!"

// friendlyWelcome is now "Bonjour!"

Unlike a variable, the value of a constant cannot be changed once it is set. Attempting to do so is
reported as an error when your code is compiled:
1

let languageName = "Swift"

languageName = "Swift++"

// this is a compile-time error - languageName cannot be changed

Printing Constants and Variables

You can print the current value of a constant or variable with the println function:
1

println(friendlyWelcome)

// prints "Bonjour!"

is a global function that prints a value, followed by a line break, to an appropriate output. In
Xcode, for example, println prints its output in Xcodes console pane. (A second function, print,
performs the same task without appending a line break to the end of the value to be printed.)
println

The println function prints any String value you pass to it:
1

println("This is a string")

// prints "This is a string"

The println function can print more complex logging messages, in a similar manner to Cocoas NSLog
function. These messages can include the current values of constants and variables.
Swift uses string interpolation to include the name of a constant or variable as a placeholder in a
longer string, and to prompt Swift to replace it with the current value of that constant or variable.
Wrap the name in parentheses and escape it with a backslash before the opening parenthesis:

println("The current value of friendlyWelcome is \(friendlyWelcome)")

// prints "The current value of friendlyWelcome is Bonjour!"

NOTE
All options you can use with string interpolation are described in String Interpolation.

Comments
Use comments to include non-executable text in your code, as a note or reminder to yourself.
Comments are ignored by the Swift compiler when your code is compiled.
Comments in Swift are very similar to comments in C. Single-line comments begin with two forwardslashes (//):
// this is a comment

Multiline comments start with a forward-slash followed by an asterisk (/*) and end with an asterisk
followed by a forward-slash (*/):
1

/* this is also a comment,

but written over multiple lines */

Unlike multiline comments in C, multiline comments in Swift can be nested inside other multiline
comments. You write nested comments by starting a multiline comment block and then starting a
second multiline comment within the first block. The second block is then closed, followed by the
first block:
1

/* this is the start of the first multiline comment

/* this is the second, nested multiline comment */

this is the end of the first multiline comment */

Nested multiline comments enable you to comment out large blocks of code quickly and easily, even
if the code already contains multiline comments.

Semicolons

Unlike many other languages, Swift does not require you to write a semicolon (;) after each statement
in your code, although you can do so if you wish. Semicolons are required, however, if you want to
write multiple separate statements on a single line:
1

let cat = "" ; println(cat)

// prints ""

Integers
Integers are whole numbers with no fractional component, such as 42 and -23. Integers are either
signed (positive, zero, or negative) or unsigned (positive or zero).
Swift provides signed and unsigned integers in 8, 16, 32, and 64 bit forms. These integers follow a
naming convention similar to C, in that an 8-bit unsigned integer is of type UInt8, and a 32-bit signed
integer is of type Int32. Like all types in Swift, these integer types have capitalized names.

Integer Bounds
You can access the minimum and maximum values of each integer type with its min and max
properties:
1

let minValue = UInt8.min

// minValue is equal to 0, and is of type UInt8

let maxValue = UInt8.max

// maxValue is equal to 255, and is of type UInt8

The values of these properties are of the appropriate-sized number type (such as UInt8 in the example
above) and can therefore be used in expressions alongside other values of the same type.

Int
In most cases, you dont need to pick a specific size of integer to use in your code. Swift provides an
additional integer type, Int, which has the same size as the current platforms native word size:
On a 32-bit platform, Int is the same size as Int32.
On a 64-bit platform, Int is the same size as Int64.
Unless you need to work with a specific size of integer, always use Int for integer values in your

code. This aids code consistency and interoperability. Even on 32-bit platforms, Int can store any
value between -2,147,483,648 and 2,147,483,647, and is large enough for many integer ranges.

UInt
Swift also provides an unsigned integer type, UInt, which has the same size as the current platforms
native word size:
On a 32-bit platform, UInt is the same size as UInt32.
On a 64-bit platform, UInt is the same size as UInt64.

NOTE
Use UInt only when you specifically need an unsigned integer type with the same size as the platforms native word size.
If this is not the case, Int is preferred, even when the values to be stored are known to be non-negative. A consistent use
of Int for integer values aids code interoperability, avoids the need to convert between different number types, and
matches integer type inference, as described in Type Safety and Type Inference.

Floating-Point Numbers
Floating-point numbers are numbers with a fractional component, such as 3.14159, 0.1, and -273.15.
Floating-point types can represent a much wider range of values than integer types, and can store
numbers that are much larger or smaller than can be stored in an Int. Swift provides two signed
floating-point number types:

represents a 64-bit floating-point number.

Float represents a 32-bit floating-point number.
Double

NOTE
Double has a precision of at least 15 decimal digits, whereas the precision of Float can be as little as 6 decimal digits.
The appropriate floating-point type to use depends on the nature and range of values you need to work with in your code.
In situations where either type would be appropriate, Double is preferred.

Type Safety and Type Inference

Swift is a type safe language. A type safe language encourages you to be clear about the types of
values your code can work with. If part of your code expects a String, you cant pass it an Int by
mistake.
Because Swift is type safe, it performs type checks when compiling your code and flags any
mismatched types as errors. This enables you to catch and fix errors as early as possible in the
development process.
Type-checking helps you avoid errors when youre working with different types of values. However,
this doesnt mean that you have to specify the type of every constant and variable that you declare. If
you dont specify the type of value you need, Swift uses type inference to work out the appropriate
type. Type inference enables a compiler to deduce the type of a particular expression automatically
when it compiles your code, simply by examining the values you provide.
Because of type inference, Swift requires far fewer type declarations than languages such as C or
Objective-C. Constants and variables are still explicitly typed, but much of the work of specifying
their type is done for you.
Type inference is particularly useful when you declare a constant or variable with an initial value.
This is often done by assigning a literal value (or literal) to the constant or variable at the point that
you declare it. (A literal value is a value that appears directly in your source code, such as 42 and
3.14159 in the examples below.)
For example, if you assign a literal value of 42 to a new constant without saying what type it is, Swift
infers that you want the constant to be an Int, because you have initialized it with a number that looks
like an integer:
1

let meaningOfLife = 42

// meaningOfLife is inferred to be of type Int

Likewise, if you dont specify a type for a floating-point literal, Swift infers that you want to create a
Double:
1

let pi = 3.14159

// pi is inferred to be of type Double

Swift always chooses Double (rather than Float) when inferring the type of floating-point numbers.
If you combine integer and floating-point literals in an expression, a type of Double will be inferred
from the context:

let anotherPi = 3 + 0.14159

// anotherPi is also inferred to be of type Double

The literal value of 3 has no explicit type in and of itself, and so an appropriate output type of Double
is inferred from the presence of a floating-point literal as part of the addition.

Numeric Literals
Integer literals can be written as:

A decimal number, with no prefix

A binary number, with a 0b prefix
An octal number, with a 0o prefix
A hexadecimal number, with a 0x prefix

All of these integer literals have a decimal value of 17:

1

let decimalInteger = 17

let binaryInteger = 0b10001

// 17 in binary notation

let octalInteger = 0o21

// 17 in octal notation

let hexadecimalInteger = 0x11

// 17 in hexadecimal notation

Floating-point literals can be decimal (with no prefix), or hexadecimal (with a 0x prefix). They must
always have a number (or hexadecimal number) on both sides of the decimal point. They can also
have an optional exponent, indicated by an uppercase or lowercase e for decimal floats, or an
uppercase or lowercase p for hexadecimal floats.
For decimal numbers with an exponent of exp, the base number is multiplied by 10exp:
means 1.25 102, or 125.0.

1.25e2

1.25e-2

means 1.25 10-2, or 0.0125.

For hexadecimal numbers with an exponent of exp, the base number is multiplied by 2exp:
means 15 22, or 60.0.

0xFp2

0xFp-2

means 15 2-2, or 3.75.

All of these floating-point literals have a decimal value of 12.1875:

1

let decimalDouble = 12.1875

let exponentDouble = 1.21875e1

let hexadecimalDouble = 0xC.3p0

Numeric literals can contain extra formatting to make them easier to read. Both integers and floats can
be padded with extra zeroes and can contain underscores to help with readability. Neither type of
formatting affects the underlying value of the literal:
1

let paddedDouble = 000123.456

let oneMillion = 1_000_000

let justOverOneMillion = 1_000_000.000_000_1

Numeric Type Conversion

Use the Int type for all general-purpose integer constants and variables in your code, even if they are
known to be non-negative. Using the default integer type in everyday situations means that integer
constants and variables are immediately interoperable in your code and will match the inferred type
for integer literal values.
Use other integer types only when they are specifically needed for the task at hand, because of
explicitly-sized data from an external source, or for performance, memory usage, or other necessary
optimization. Using explicitly-sized types in these situations helps to catch any accidental value
overflows and implicitly documents the nature of the data being used.

Integer Conversion
The range of numbers that can be stored in an integer constant or variable is different for each
numeric type. An Int8 constant or variable can store numbers between -128 and 127, whereas a UInt8
constant or variable can store numbers between 0 and 255. A number that will not fit into a constant or
variable of a sized integer type is reported as an error when your code is compiled:

let cannotBeNegative: UInt8 = -1

// UInt8 cannot store negative numbers, and so this will report an error

let tooBig: Int8 = Int8.max + 1

// Int8 cannot store a number larger than its maximum value,

// and so this will also report an error

Because each numeric type can store a different range of values, you must opt in to numeric type
conversion on a case-by-case basis. This opt-in approach prevents hidden conversion errors and
helps make type conversion intentions explicit in your code.
To convert one specific number type to another, you initialize a new number of the desired type with
the existing value. In the example below, the constant twoThousand is of type UInt16, whereas the
constant one is of type UInt8. They cannot be added together directly, because they are not of the same
type. Instead, this example calls UInt16(one) to create a new UInt16 initialized with the value of one,
and uses this value in place of the original:
1

let twoThousand: UInt16 = 2_000

let one: UInt8 = 1

let twoThousandAndOne = twoThousand + UInt16(one)

Because both sides of the addition are now of type UInt16, the addition is allowed. The output
constant (twoThousandAndOne) is inferred to be of type UInt16, because it is the sum of two UInt16
values.
is the default way to call the initializer of a Swift type and pass in an
initial value. Behind the scenes, UInt16 has an initializer that accepts a UInt8 value, and so this
initializer is used to make a new UInt16 from an existing UInt8. You cant pass in any type here,
howeverit has to be a type for which UInt16 provides an initializer. Extending existing types to
provide initializers that accept new types (including your own type definitions) is covered in
Extensions.
SomeType(ofInitialValue)

Integer and Floating-Point Conversion

Conversions between integer and floating-point numeric types must be made explicit:

let three = 3

let pointOneFourOneFiveNine = 0.14159

let pi = Double(three) + pointOneFourOneFiveNine

// pi equals 3.14159, and is inferred to be of type Double

Here, the value of the constant three is used to create a new value of type Double, so that both sides
of the addition are of the same type. Without this conversion in place, the addition would not be
allowed.
Floating-point to integer conversion must also be made explicit. An integer type can be initialized
with a Double or Float value:
1

let integerPi = Int(pi)

// integerPi equals 3, and is inferred to be of type Int

Floating-point values are always truncated when used to initialize a new integer value in this way.
This means that 4.75 becomes 4, and -3.9 becomes -3.

NOTE
The rules for combining numeric constants and variables are different from the rules for numeric literals. The literal value 3
can be added directly to the literal value 0.14159, because number literals do not have an explicit type in and of
themselves. Their type is inferred only at the point that they are evaluated by the compiler.

Type Aliases
Type aliases define an alternative name for an existing type. You define type aliases with the
typealias keyword.
Type aliases are useful when you want to refer to an existing type by a name that is contextually more
appropriate, such as when working with data of a specific size from an external source:
typealias AudioSample = UInt16

Once you define a type alias, you can use the alias anywhere you might use the original name:
1

var maxAmplitudeFound = AudioSample.min

// maxAmplitudeFound is now 0

Here, AudioSample is defined as an alias for UInt16. Because it is an alias, the call to
AudioSample.min actually calls UInt16.min, which provides an initial value of 0 for the
maxAmplitudeFound variable.

Booleans
Swift has a basic Boolean type, called Bool. Boolean values are referred to as logical, because they
can only ever be true or false. Swift provides two Boolean constant values, true and false:
1

let orangesAreOrange = true

let turnipsAreDelicious = false

The types of orangesAreOrange and turnipsAreDelicious have been inferred as Bool from the fact
that they were initialized with Boolean literal values. As with Int and Double above, you dont need
to declare constants or variables as Bool if you set them to true or false as soon as you create them.
Type inference helps make Swift code more concise and readable when it initializes constants or
variables with other values whose type is already known.
Boolean values are particularly useful when you work with conditional statements such as the if
statement:
1

if turnipsAreDelicious {

2
3

println("Mmm, tasty turnips!")

} else {

println("Eww, turnips are horrible.")

// prints "Eww, turnips are horrible."

Conditional statements such as the if statement are covered in more detail in Control Flow.
Swifts type safety prevents non-Boolean values from being substituted for Bool. The following
example reports a compile-time error:
1

let i = 1

if i {

3
4

// this example will not compile, and will report an error

}

However, the alternative example below is valid:

1

let i = 1

if i == 1 {

3
4

// this example will compile successfully

}

The result of the i == 1 comparison is of type Bool, and so this second example passes the typecheck. Comparisons like i == 1 are discussed in Basic Operators.
As with other examples of type safety in Swift, this approach avoids accidental errors and ensures
that the intention of a particular section of code is always clear.

Tuples
Tuples group multiple values into a single compound value. The values within a tuple can be of any
type and do not have to be of the same type as each other.
In this example, (404, "Not Found") is a tuple that describes an HTTP status code. An HTTP status
code is a special value returned by a web server whenever you request a web page. A status code of
404 Not Found is returned if you request a webpage that doesnt exist.
1

let http404Error = (404, "Not Found")

// http404Error is of type (Int, String), and equals (404, "Not Found")

The (404, "Not Found") tuple groups together an Int and a String to give the HTTP status code two
separate values: a number and a human-readable description. It can be described as a tuple of type
(Int, String).
You can create tuples from any permutation of types, and they can contain as many different types as
you like. Theres nothing stopping you from having a tuple of type (Int, Int, Int), or (String,
Bool), or indeed any other permutation you require.
You can decompose a tuples contents into separate constants or variables, which you then access as
usual:

let (statusCode, statusMessage) = http404Error

println("The status code is \(statusCode)")

// prints "The status code is 404"

println("The status message is \(statusMessage)")

// prints "The status message is Not Found"

If you only need some of the tuples values, ignore parts of the tuple with an underscore (_) when you
decompose the tuple:
1

let (justTheStatusCode, _) = http404Error

println("The status code is \(justTheStatusCode)")

// prints "The status code is 404"

Alternatively, access the individual element values in a tuple using index numbers starting at zero:
1

println("The status code is \(http404Error.0)")

// prints "The status code is 404"

println("The status message is \(http404Error.1)")

// prints "The status message is Not Found"

You can name the individual elements in a tuple when the tuple is defined:
let http200Status = (statusCode: 200, description: "OK")

If you name the elements in a tuple, you can use the element names to access the values of those
elements:
1

println("The status code is \(http200Status.statusCode)")

// prints "The status code is 200"

println("The status message is \(http200Status.description)")

// prints "The status message is OK"

Tuples are particularly useful as the return values of functions. A function that tries to retrieve a web
page might return the (Int, String) tuple type to describe the success or failure of the page retrieval.
By returning a tuple with two distinct values, each of a different type, the function provides more
useful information about its outcome than if it could only return a single value of a single type. For
more information, see Functions with Multiple Return Values.

NOTE
Tuples are useful for temporary groups of related values. They are not suited to the creation of complex data structures. If
your data structure is likely to persist beyond a temporary scope, model it as a class or structure, rather than as a tuple. For
more information, see Classes and Structures.

Optionals
You use optionals in situations where a value may be absent. An optional says:
There is a value, and it equals x
or
There isnt a value at all

NOTE
The concept of optionals doesnt exist in C or Objective-C. The nearest thing in Objective-C is the ability to return nil
from a method that would otherwise return an object, with nil meaning the absence of a valid object. However, this
only works for objectsit doesnt work for structures, basic C types, or enumeration values. For these types, Objective-C
methods typically return a special value (such as NSNotFound) to indicate the absence of a value. This approach
assumes that the methods caller knows there is a special value to test against and remembers to check for it. Swifts
optionals let you indicate the absence of a value for any type at all, without the need for special constants.

Heres an example of how optionals can be used to cope with the absence of a value. Swifts String
type has a method called toInt, which tries to convert a String value into an Int value. However, not
every string can be converted into an integer. The string "123" can be converted into the numeric
value 123, but the string "hello, world" does not have an obvious numeric value to convert to.
The example below uses the toInt() method to try to convert a String into an Int:
1

let possibleNumber = "123"

let convertedNumber = possibleNumber.toInt()

// convertedNumber is inferred to be of type "Int?", or "optional Int"

Because the toInt() method might fail, it returns an optional Int, rather than an Int. An optional Int
is written as Int?, not Int. The question mark indicates that the value it contains is optional, meaning

that it might contain some Int value, or it might contain no value at all. (It cant contain anything else,
such as a Bool value or a String value. Its either an Int, or its nothing at all.)

nil
You set an optional variable to a valueless state by assigning it the special value nil:
1

var serverResponseCode: Int? = 404

// serverResponseCode contains an actual Int value of 404

serverResponseCode = nil

// serverResponseCode now contains no value

NOTE
nil cannot be used with nonoptional constants and variables. If a constant or variable in your code needs to work with the
absence of a value under certain conditions, always declare it as an optional value of the appropriate type.

If you define an optional variable without providing a default value, the variable is automatically set
to nil for you:
1

var surveyAnswer: String?

// surveyAnswer is automatically set to nil

NOTE
Swifts nil is not the same as nil in Objective-C. In Objective-C, nil is a pointer to a nonexistent object. In Swift, nil
is not a pointerit is the absence of a value of a certain type. Optionals of any type can be set to nil, not just object
types.

If Statements and Forced Unwrapping

You can use an if statement to find out whether an optional contains a value by comparing the
optional against nil. You perform this comparison with the equal to operator (==) or the not equal
to operator (!=).
If an optional has a value, it is considered to be not equal to nil:

if convertedNumber != nil {

println("convertedNumber contains some integer value.")

// prints "convertedNumber contains some integer value."

Once youre sure that the optional does contain a value, you can access its underlying value by adding
an exclamation mark (!) to the end of the optionals name. The exclamation mark effectively says, I
know that this optional definitely has a value; please use it. This is known as forced unwrapping of
the optionals value:
1

if convertedNumber != nil {

println("convertedNumber has an integer value of \(convertedNumber!).")

// prints "convertedNumber has an integer value of 123."

For more on the if statement, see Control Flow.

NOTE
Trying to use ! to access a non-existent optional value triggers a runtime error. Always make sure that an optional contains
a non-nil value before using ! to force-unwrap its value.

Optional Binding
You use optional binding to find out whether an optional contains a value, and if so, to make that
value available as a temporary constant or variable. Optional binding can be used with if and while
statements to check for a value inside an optional, and to extract that value into a constant or variable,
as part of a single action. if and while statements are described in more detail in Control Flow.
Write an optional binding for an if statement as follows:
if let

constantName

statements
}

someOptional

You can rewrite the possibleNumber example from the Optionals section to use optional binding
rather than forced unwrapping:
1

if let actualNumber = possibleNumber.toInt() {

println("\'\(possibleNumber)\' has an integer value of \(actualNumber)")

} else {

println("\'\(possibleNumber)\' could not be converted to an integer")

// prints "'123' has an integer value of 123"

This code can be read as:

If the optional Int returned by possibleNumber.toInt contains a value, set a new constant called
actualNumber to the value contained in the optional.
If the conversion is successful, the actualNumber constant becomes available for use within the first
branch of the if statement. It has already been initialized with the value contained within the optional,
and so there is no need to use the ! suffix to access its value. In this example, actualNumber is simply
used to print the result of the conversion.
You can use both constants and variables with optional binding. If you wanted to manipulate the value
of actualNumber within the first branch of the if statement, you could write if var actualNumber
instead, and the value contained within the optional would be made available as a variable rather
than a constant.
Multiple optional bindings can appear in a single if statement as a comma-separated list of
assignment expressions.
if let

constantName

someOptional ,

anotherConstantName

someOtherOptional

statements
}

Implicitly Unwrapped Optionals

As described above, optionals indicate that a constant or variable is allowed to have no value.
Optionals can be checked with an if statement to see if a value exists, and can be conditionally
unwrapped with optional binding to access the optionals value if it does exist.
Sometimes it is clear from a programs structure that an optional will always have a value, after that

value is first set. In these cases, it is useful to remove the need to check and unwrap the optionals
value every time it is accessed, because it can be safely assumed to have a value all of the time.
These kinds of optionals are defined as implicitly unwrapped optionals. You write an implicitly
unwrapped optional by placing an exclamation mark (String!) rather than a question mark (String?)
after the type that you want to make optional.
Implicitly unwrapped optionals are useful when an optionals value is confirmed to exist immediately
after the optional is first defined and can definitely be assumed to exist at every point thereafter. The
primary use of implicitly unwrapped optionals in Swift is during class initialization, as described in
Unowned References and Implicitly Unwrapped Optional Properties.
An implicitly unwrapped optional is a normal optional behind the scenes, but can also be used like a
nonoptional value, without the need to unwrap the optional value each time it is accessed. The
following example shows the difference in behavior between an optional string and an implicitly
unwrapped optional string when accessing their wrapped value as an explicit String:
1

let possibleString: String? = "An optional string."

let forcedString: String = possibleString! // requires an exclamation mark

3
4

let assumedString: String! = "An implicitly unwrapped optional string."

let implicitString: String = assumedString // no need for an exclamation mark

You can think of an implicitly unwrapped optional as giving permission for the optional to be
unwrapped automatically whenever it is used. Rather than placing an exclamation mark after the
optionals name each time you use it, you place an exclamation mark after the optionals type when
you declare it.

NOTE
If you try to access an implicitly unwrapped optional when it does not contain a value, you will trigger a runtime error. The
result is exactly the same as if you place an exclamation mark after a normal optional that does not contain a value.

You can still treat an implicitly unwrapped optional like a normal optional, to check if it contains a
value:
1

if assumedString != nil {

println(assumedString)

// prints "An implicitly unwrapped optional string."

You can also use an implicitly unwrapped optional with optional binding, to check and unwrap its
value in a single statement:
1

if let definiteString = assumedString {

println(definiteString)

// prints "An implicitly unwrapped optional string."

NOTE
Do not use an implicitly unwrapped optional when there is a possibility of a variable becoming nil at a later point. Always
use a normal optional type if you need to check for a nil value during the lifetime of a variable.

Assertions
Optionals enable you to check for values that may or may not exist, and to write code that copes
gracefully with the absence of a value. In some cases, however, it is simply not possible for your
code to continue execution if a value does not exist, or if a provided value does not satisfy certain
conditions. In these situations, you can trigger an assertion in your code to end code execution and to
provide an opportunity to debug the cause of the absent or invalid value.

Debugging with Assertions

An assertion is a runtime check that a logical condition definitely evaluates to true. Literally put, an
assertion asserts that a condition is true. You use an assertion to make sure that an essential
condition is satisfied before executing any further code. If the condition evaluates to true, code
execution continues as usual; if the condition evaluates to false, code execution ends, and your app is
terminated.
If your code triggers an assertion while running in a debug environment, such as when you build and
run an app in Xcode, you can see exactly where the invalid state occurred and query the state of your
app at the time that the assertion was triggered. An assertion also lets you provide a suitable debug
message as to the nature of the assert.
You write an assertion by calling the global assert function. You pass the assert function an
expression that evaluates to true or false and a message that should be displayed if the result of the
condition is false:

let age = -3

assert(age >= 0, "A person's age cannot be less than zero")

// this causes the assertion to trigger, because age is not >= 0

In this example, code execution will continue only if age >= 0 evaluates to true, that is, if the value
of age is non-negative. If the value of age is negative, as in the code above, then age >= 0 evaluates to
false, and the assertion is triggered, terminating the application.
The assertion message can be omitted if desired, as in the following example:
assert(age >= 0)

When to Use Assertions

Use an assertion whenever a condition has the potential to be false, but must definitely be true in
order for your code to continue execution. Suitable scenarios for an assertion check include:
An integer subscript index is passed to a custom subscript implementation, but the subscript
index value could be too low or too high.
A value is passed to a function, but an invalid value means that the function cannot fulfill its
task.
An optional value is currently nil, but a non-nil value is essential for subsequent code to
execute successfully.
See also Subscripts and Functions.

NOTE
Assertions cause your app to terminate and are not a substitute for designing your code in such a way that invalid
conditions are unlikely to arise. Nonetheless, in situations where invalid conditions are possible, an assertion is an effective
way to ensure that such conditions are highlighted and noticed during development, before your app is published.

Basic Operators
An operator is a special symbol or phrase that you use to check, change, or combine values. For
example, the addition operator (+) adds two numbers together (as in let i = 1 + 2). More complex
examples include the logical AND operator && (as in if enteredDoorCode && passedRetinaScan) and
the increment operator ++i, which is a shortcut to increase the value of i by 1.
Swift supports most standard C operators and improves several capabilities to eliminate common
coding errors. The assignment operator (=) does not return a value, to prevent it from being
mistakenly used when the equal to operator (==) is intended. Arithmetic operators (+, -, *, /, % and so
forth) detect and disallow value overflow, to avoid unexpected results when working with numbers
that become larger or smaller than the allowed value range of the type that stores them. You can opt in
to value overflow behavior by using Swifts overflow operators, as described in Overflow
Operators.
Unlike C, Swift lets you perform remainder (%) calculations on floating-point numbers. Swift also
provides two range operators (a..<b and a...b) not found in C, as a shortcut for expressing a range
of values.
This chapter describes the common operators in Swift. Advanced Operators covers Swifts advanced
operators, and describes how to define your own custom operators and implement the standard
operators for your own custom types.

Terminology
Operators are unary, binary, or ternary:
Unary operators operate on a single target (such as -a). Unary prefix operators appear
immediately before their target (such as !b), and unary postfix operators appear immediately
after their target (such as i++).
Binary operators operate on two targets (such as 2 + 3) and are infix because they appear in
between their two targets.
Ternary operators operate on three targets. Like C, Swift has only one ternary operator, the
ternary conditional operator (a ? b : c).
The values that operators affect are operands. In the expression 1
operator and its two operands are the values 1 and 2.

+ 2,

the + symbol is a binary

Assignment Operator
The assignment operator (a

= b)

initializes or updates the value of a with the value of b:

let b = 10

var a = 5

a = b

// a is now equal to 10

If the right side of the assignment is a tuple with multiple values, its elements can be decomposed into
multiple constants or variables at once:
1

let (x, y) = (1, 2)

// x is equal to 1, and y is equal to 2

Unlike the assignment operator in C and Objective-C, the assignment operator in Swift does not itself
return a value. The following statement is not valid:
1

if x = y {

2
3

// this is not valid, because x = y does not return a value

}

This feature prevents the assignment operator (=) from being used by accident when the equal to
operator (==) is actually intended. By making if x = y invalid, Swift helps you to avoid these kinds
of errors in your code.

Arithmetic Operators
Swift supports the four standard arithmetic operators for all number types:

Addition (+)
Subtraction (-)
Multiplication (*)
Division (/)

1 + 2

// equals 3

5 - 3

// equals 2

2 * 3

// equals 6

10.0 / 2.5

// equals 4.0

Unlike the arithmetic operators in C and Objective-C, the Swift arithmetic operators do not allow
values to overflow by default. You can opt in to value overflow behavior by using Swifts overflow
operators (such as a &+ b). See Overflow Operators.
The addition operator is also supported for String concatenation:
"hello, " + "world"

// equals "hello, world"

Remainder Operator
The remainder operator (a % b) works out how many multiples of b will fit inside a and returns the
value that is left over (known as the remainder).

NOTE
The remainder operator (%) is also known as a modulo operator in other languages. However, its behavior in Swift for
negative numbers means that it is, strictly speaking, a remainder rather than a modulo operation.

Heres how the remainder operator works. To calculate 9

fit inside 9:

% 4,

you first work out how many 4s will

You can fit two 4s inside 9, and the remainder is 1 (shown in orange).
In Swift, this would be written as:
9 % 4

// equals 1

To determine the answer for a

remainder as its output:

% b,

the % operator calculates the following equation and returns

= (b some

where some

multiplier)

multiplier

+ remainder

is the largest number of multiples of b that will fit inside a.

Inserting 9 and 4 into this equation yields:

9

= ( 4 2) + 1

The same method is applied when calculating the remainder for a negative value of a:
-9 % 4

// equals -1

Inserting -9 and 4 into the equation yields:

-9

= (4 -2) + -1

giving a remainder value of -1.

The sign of b is ignored for negative values of b. This means that a
same answer.

% b

and a

% -b

always give the

Floating-Point Remainder Calculations

Unlike the remainder operator in C and Objective-C, Swifts remainder operator can also operate on
floating-point numbers:
8 % 2.5

// equals 0.5

In this example, 8 divided by 2.5 equals 3, with a remainder of 0.5, so the remainder operator returns
a Double value of 0.5.

Increment and Decrement Operators

Like C, Swift provides an increment operator (++) and a decrement operator (--) as a shortcut to
increase or decrease the value of a numeric variable by 1. You can use these operators with variables
of any integer or floating-point type.

var i = 0

++i

// i now equals 1

Each time you call ++i, the value of i is increased by 1. Essentially, ++i is shorthand for saying i
+ 1. Likewise, --i can be used as shorthand for i = i - 1.

= i

The ++ and -- symbols can be used as prefix operators or as postfix operators. ++i and i++ are both
valid ways to increase the value of i by 1. Similarly, --i and i-- are both valid ways to decrease the
value of i by 1.
Note that these operators modify i and also return a value. If you only want to increment or decrement
the value stored in i, you can ignore the returned value. However, if you do use the returned value, it
will be different based on whether you used the prefix or postfix version of the operator, according to
the following rules:
If the operator is written before the variable, it increments the variable before returning its
value.
If the operator is written after the variable, it increments the variable after returning its
value.
For example:
1

var a = 0

let b = ++a

// a and b are now both equal to 1

let c = a++

// a is now equal to 2, but c has been set to the pre-increment value of 1

In the example above, let b = ++a increments a before returning its value. This is why both a and b
are equal to the new value of 1.
However, let c = a++ increments a after returning its value. This means that c gets the old value of
1, and a is then updated to equal 2.
Unless you need the specific behavior of i++, it is recommended that you use ++i and --i in all cases,
because they have the typical expected behavior of modifying i and returning the result.

Unary Minus Operator

The sign of a numeric value can be toggled using a prefixed -, known as the unary minus operator:
1

let three = 3

let minusThree = -three

// minusThree equals -3

let plusThree = -minusThree

// plusThree equals 3, or "minus minus three"

The unary minus operator (-) is prepended directly before the value it operates on, without any white
space.

Unary Plus Operator

The unary plus operator (+) simply returns the value it operates on, without any change:
1

let minusSix = -6

let alsoMinusSix = +minusSix

// alsoMinusSix equals -6

Although the unary plus operator doesnt actually do anything, you can use it to provide symmetry in
your code for positive numbers when also using the unary minus operator for negative numbers.

Compound Assignment Operators

Like C, Swift provides compound assignment operators that combine assignment (=) with another
operation. One example is the addition assignment operator (+=):
1

var a = 1

a += 2

// a is now equal to 3

The expression a += 2 is shorthand for a = a + 2. Effectively, the addition and the assignment are
combined into one operator that performs both tasks at the same time.

NOTE
The compound assignment operators do not return a value. You cannot write let b = a += 2, for example. This
behavior is different from the increment and decrement operators mentioned above.

A complete list of compound assignment operators can be found in Expressions.

Comparison Operators
Swift supports all standard C comparison operators:

Equal to (a == b)
Not equal to (a != b)
Greater than (a > b)
Less than (a < b)
Greater than or equal to (a >= b)
Less than or equal to (a <= b)

NOTE
Swift also provides two identity operators (=== and !==), which you use to test whether two object references both
refer to the same object instance. For more information, see Classes and Structures.

Each of the comparison operators returns a Bool value to indicate whether or not the statement is true:
1

1 == 1

// true, because 1 is equal to 1

2 != 1

// true, because 2 is not equal to 1

2 > 1

// true, because 2 is greater than 1

1 < 2

// true, because 1 is less than 2

1 >= 1

// true, because 1 is greater than or equal to 1

2 <= 1

// false, because 2 is not less than or equal to 1

Comparison operators are often used in conditional statements, such as the if statement:

let name = "world"

if name == "world" {

3
4

println("hello, world")
} else {

println("I'm sorry \(name), but I don't recognize you")

// prints "hello, world", because name is indeed equal to "world"

For more on the if statement, see Control Flow.

Ternary Conditional Operator

The ternary conditional operator is a special operator with three parts, which takes the form
question ? answer1 : answer2. It is a shortcut for evaluating one of two expressions based on
whether question is true or false. If question is true, it evaluates answer1 and returns its value;
otherwise, it evaluates answer2 and returns its value.
The ternary conditional operator is shorthand for the code below:
1

if question {

2
3

answer1
} else {

4
5

answer2
}

Heres an example, which calculates the height for a table row. The row height should be 50 points
taller than the content height if the row has a header, and 20 points taller if the row doesnt have a
header:
1

let contentHeight = 40

let hasHeader = true

let rowHeight = contentHeight + (hasHeader ? 50 : 20)

// rowHeight is equal to 90

The preceding example is shorthand for the code below:

let contentHeight = 40

let hasHeader = true

var rowHeight = contentHeight

if hasHeader {

5
6

rowHeight = rowHeight + 50
} else {

rowHeight = rowHeight + 20

// rowHeight is equal to 90

The first examples use of the ternary conditional operator means that rowHeight can be set to the
correct value on a single line of code. This is more concise than the second example, and removes the
need for rowHeight to be a variable, because its value does not need to be modified within an if
statement.
The ternary conditional operator provides an efficient shorthand for deciding which of two
expressions to consider. Use the ternary conditional operator with care, however. Its conciseness can
lead to hard-to-read code if overused. Avoid combining multiple instances of the ternary conditional
operator into one compound statement.

Nil Coalescing Operator

The nil coalescing operator (a ?? b) unwraps an optional a if it contains a value, or returns a default
value b if a is nil. The expression a is always of an optional type. The expression b must match the
type that is stored inside a.
The nil coalescing operator is shorthand for the code below:
a != nil ? a! : b

The code above uses the ternary conditional operator and forced unwrapping (a!) to access the value
wrapped inside a when a is not nil, and to return b otherwise. The nil coalescing operator provides a
more elegant way to encapsulate this conditional checking and unwrapping in a concise and readable
form.

NOTE
If the value of a is non-nil, the value of b is not evaluated. This is known as short-circuit evaluation.

The example below uses the nil coalescing operator to choose between a default color name and an
optional user-defined color name:
1

let defaultColorName = "red"

var userDefinedColorName: String?

// defaults to nil

3
4

var colorNameToUse = userDefinedColorName ?? defaultColorName

// userDefinedColorName is nil, so colorNameToUse is set to the default of "red"

The userDefinedColorName variable is defined as an optional String, with a default value of nil.
Because userDefinedColorName is of an optional type, you can use the nil coalescing operator to
consider its value. In the example above, the operator is used to determine an initial value for a
String variable called colorNameToUse. Because userDefinedColorName is nil, the expression
userDefinedColorName ?? defaultColorName returns the value of defaultColorName, or "red".
If you assign a non-nil value to userDefinedColorName and perform the nil coalescing operator check
again, the value wrapped inside userDefinedColorName is used instead of the default:
1

userDefinedColorName = "green"

colorNameToUse = userDefinedColorName ?? defaultColorName

// userDefinedColorName is not nil, so colorNameToUse is set to "green"

Range Operators
Swift includes two range operators, which are shortcuts for expressing a range of values.

Closed Range Operator

The closed range operator (a...b) defines a range that runs from a to b, and includes the values a
and b. The value of a must not be greater than b.
The closed range operator is useful when iterating over a range in which you want all of the values to
be used, such as with a for-in loop:

for index in 1...5 {

println("\(index) times 5 is \(index * 5)")

// 1 times 5 is 5

// 2 times 5 is 10

// 3 times 5 is 15

// 4 times 5 is 20

// 5 times 5 is 25

For more on for-in loops, see Control Flow.

Half-Open Range Operator

The half-open range operator (a..<b) defines a range that runs from a to b, but does not include b. It
is said to be half-open because it contains its first value, but not its final value. As with the closed
range operator, the value of a must not be greater than b. If the value of a is equal to b, then the
resulting range will be empty.
Half-open ranges are particularly useful when you work with zero-based lists such as arrays, where it
is useful to count up to (but not including) the length of the list:
1

let names = ["Anna", "Alex", "Brian", "Jack"]

let count = names.count

for i in 0..<count {

println("Person \(i + 1) is called \(names[i])")

// Person 1 is called Anna

// Person 2 is called Alex

// Person 3 is called Brian

// Person 4 is called Jack

Note that the array contains four items, but 0..<count only counts as far as 3 (the index of the last item
in the array), because it is a half-open range. For more on arrays, see Arrays.

Logical Operators
Logical operators modify or combine the Boolean logic values true and false. Swift supports the
three standard logical operators found in C-based languages:
Logical NOT (!a)
Logical AND (a && b)
Logical OR (a || b)

Logical NOT Operator

The logical NOT operator (!a) inverts a Boolean value so that true becomes false, and false
becomes true.
The logical NOT operator is a prefix operator, and appears immediately before the value it operates
on, without any white space. It can be read as not a, as seen in the following example:
1

let allowedEntry = false

if !allowedEntry {

println("ACCESS DENIED")

// prints "ACCESS DENIED"

The phrase if !allowedEntry can be read as if not allowed entry. The subsequent line is only
executed if not allowed entry is true; that is, if allowedEntry is false.
As in this example, careful choice of Boolean constant and variable names can help to keep code
readable and concise, while avoiding double negatives or confusing logic statements.

Logical AND Operator

The logical AND operator (a && b) creates logical expressions where both values must be true for
the overall expression to also be true.
If either value is false, the overall expression will also be false. In fact, if the first value is false,
the second value wont even be evaluated, because it cant possibly make the overall expression
equate to true. This is known as short-circuit evaluation.

This example considers two Bool values and only allows access if both values are true:
1

let enteredDoorCode = true

let passedRetinaScan = false

if enteredDoorCode && passedRetinaScan {

4
5

println("Welcome!")
} else {

println("ACCESS DENIED")

// prints "ACCESS DENIED"

Logical OR Operator
The logical OR operator (a || b) is an infix operator made from two adjacent pipe characters. You
use it to create logical expressions in which only one of the two values has to be true for the overall
expression to be true.
Like the Logical AND operator above, the Logical OR operator uses short-circuit evaluation to
consider its expressions. If the left side of a Logical OR expression is true, the right side is not
evaluated, because it cannot change the outcome of the overall expression.
In the example below, the first Bool value (hasDoorKey) is false, but the second value
(knowsOverridePassword) is true. Because one value is true, the overall expression also evaluates to
true, and access is allowed:
1

let hasDoorKey = false

let knowsOverridePassword = true

if hasDoorKey || knowsOverridePassword {

4
5

println("Welcome!")
} else {

println("ACCESS DENIED")

// prints "Welcome!"

Combining Logical Operators

You can combine multiple logical operators to create longer compound expressions:
1

if enteredDoorCode && passedRetinaScan || hasDoorKey || knowsOverridePassword {

2
3

println("Welcome!")
} else {

println("ACCESS DENIED")

// prints "Welcome!"

This example uses multiple && and || operators to create a longer compound expression. However,
the && and || operators still operate on only two values, so this is actually three smaller expressions
chained together. The example can be read as:
If weve entered the correct door code and passed the retina scan, or if we have a valid door key, or
if we know the emergency override password, then allow access.
Based on the values of enteredDoorCode, passedRetinaScan, and hasDoorKey, the first two
subexpressions are false. However, the emergency override password is known, so the overall
compound expression still evaluates to true.

NOTE
The Swift logical operators && and || are left-associative, meaning that compound expressions with multiple logical
operators evaluate the leftmost subexpression first.

Explicit Parentheses
It is sometimes useful to include parentheses when they are not strictly needed, to make the intention
of a complex expression easier to read. In the door access example above, it is useful to add
parentheses around the first part of the compound expression to make its intent explicit:

if (enteredDoorCode && passedRetinaScan) || hasDoorKey || knowsOverridePassword {

2
3

println("Welcome!")
} else {

println("ACCESS DENIED")

// prints "Welcome!"

The parentheses make it clear that the first two values are considered as part of a separate possible
state in the overall logic. The output of the compound expression doesnt change, but the overall
intention is clearer to the reader. Readability is always preferred over brevity; use parentheses where
they help to make your intentions clear.

Strings and Characters

A string is an ordered collection of characters, such as "hello, world" or "albatross". Swift strings
are represented by the String type, which in turn represents a collection of values of Character type.
Swifts String and Character types provide a fast, Unicode-compliant way to work with text in your
code. The syntax for string creation and manipulation is lightweight and readable, with a string literal
syntax that is similar to C. String concatenation is as simple as adding together two strings with the +
operator, and string mutability is managed by choosing between a constant or a variable, just like any
other value in Swift.
Despite this simplicity of syntax, Swifts String type is a fast, modern string implementation. Every
string is composed of encoding-independent Unicode characters, and provides support for accessing
those characters in various Unicode representations.
You can also use strings to insert constants, variables, literals, and expressions into longer strings, in
a process known as string interpolation. This makes it easy to create custom string values for display,
storage, and printing.

NOTE
Swifts String type is bridged with Foundations NSString class. If you are working with the Foundation framework
in Cocoa, the entire NSString API is available to call on any String value you create when type cast to NSString,
as described in AnyObject. You can also use a String value with any API that requires an NSString instance.
For more information about using String with Foundation and Cocoa, see Using Swift with Cocoa and Objective-C.

String Literals
You can include predefined String values within your code as string literals. A string literal is a
fixed sequence of textual characters surrounded by a pair of double quotes ("").
Use a string literal as an initial value for a constant or variable:
let someString = "Some string literal value"

Note that Swift infers a type of String for the someString constant, because it is initialized with a
string literal value.

NOTE
For information about using special characters in string literals, see Special Characters in String Literals.

Initializing an Empty String

To create an empty String value as the starting point for building a longer string, either assign an
empty string literal to a variable, or initialize a new String instance with initializer syntax:
1

var emptyString = ""

// empty string literal

var anotherEmptyString = String()

// initializer syntax

// these two strings are both empty, and are equivalent to each other

Find out whether a String value is empty by checking its Boolean isEmpty property:
1

if emptyString.isEmpty {

println("Nothing to see here")

// prints "Nothing to see here"

String Mutability
You indicate whether a particular String can be modified (or mutated) by assigning it to a variable
(in which case it can be modified), or to a constant (in which case it cannot be modified):
1

var variableString = "Horse"

variableString += " and carriage"

// variableString is now "Horse and carriage"

4
5

let constantString = "Highlander"

constantString += " and another Highlander"

// this reports a compile-time error - a constant string cannot be modified

NOTE
This approach is different from string mutation in Objective-C and Cocoa, where you choose between two classes
(NSString and NSMutableString) to indicate whether a string can be mutated.

Strings Are Value Types

Swifts String type is a value type. If you create a new String value, that String value is copied
when it is passed to a function or method, or when it is assigned to a constant or variable. In each
case, a new copy of the existing String value is created, and the new copy is passed or assigned, not
the original version. Value types are described in Structures and Enumerations Are Value Types.

NOTE
This behavior differs from that of NSString in Cocoa. When you create an NSString instance in Cocoa, and pass it to
a function or method or assign it to a variable, you are always passing or assigning a reference to the same single
NSString. No copying of the string takes place, unless you specifically request it.

Swifts copy-by-default String behavior ensures that when a function or method passes you a String
value, it is clear that you own that exact String value, regardless of where it came from. You can be
confident that the string you are passed will not be modified unless you modify it yourself.
Behind the scenes, Swifts compiler optimizes string usage so that actual copying takes place only
when absolutely necessary. This means you always get great performance when working with strings
as value types.

Working with Characters

Swifts String type represents a collection of Character values in a specified order. You can access
the individual Character values in a string by iterating over that string with a for-in loop:

for character in "Dog!"

println(character)

// D

// o

// g

// !

//

The for-in loop is described in For Loops.

Alternatively, create a stand-alone Character constant or variable from a single-character string
literal by providing a Character type annotation:
let exclamationMark: Character = "!"

values can be constructed by passing an array of Character values as an argument to its

initializer:
String

let catCharacters: [Character] = ["C", "a", "t", "!", "" ]

let catString = String(catCharacters)

println(catString)

// prints "Cat!"

Concatenating Strings and Characters

values can be added together (or concatenated) with the addition operator (+) to create a new
String value:
String

let string1 = "hello"

let string2 = " there"

var welcome = string1 + string2

// welcome now equals "hello there"

You can also append a String value to an existing String variable with the addition assignment

operator (+=):
1

var instruction = "look over"

instruction += string2

// instruction now equals "look over there"

You can append a Character value to a String variable with the String types append() method:
1

let exclamationMark: Character = "!"

welcome.append(exclamationMark)

// welcome now equals "hello there!"

NOTE
You cant append a String or Character to an existing Character variable, because a Character value must
contain a single character only.

String Interpolation
String interpolation is a way to construct a new String value from a mix of constants, variables,
literals, and expressions by including their values inside a string literal. Each item that you insert into
the string literal is wrapped in a pair of parentheses, prefixed by a backslash:
1

let multiplier = 3

let message = "\(multiplier) times 2.5 is \(Double(multiplier) * 2.5)"

// message is "3 times 2.5 is 7.5"

In the example above, the value of multiplier is inserted into a string literal as \(multiplier). This
placeholder is replaced with the actual value of multiplier when the string interpolation is evaluated
to create an actual string.
The value of multiplier is also part of a larger expression later in the string. This expression
calculates the value of Double(multiplier) * 2.5 and inserts the result (7.5) into the string. In this
case, the expression is written as \(Double(multiplier) * 2.5) when it is included inside the string
literal.

NOTE
The expressions you write inside parentheses within an interpolated string cannot contain an unescaped double quote (") or
backslash (\), and cannot contain a carriage return or line feed.

Unicode
Unicode is an international standard for encoding, representing, and processing text in different
writing systems. It enables you to represent almost any character from any language in a standardized
form, and to read and write those characters to and from an external source such as a text file or web
page. Swifts String and Character types are fully Unicode-compliant, as described in this section.

Unicode Scalars
Behind the scenes, Swifts native String type is built from Unicode scalar values. A Unicode scalar
is a unique 21-bit number for a character or modifier, such as U+0061 for LATIN SMALL LETTER A
("a"), or U+1F425 for FRONT-FACING BABY CHICK ("" ).

NOTE
A Unicode scalar is any Unicode code point in the range U+0000 to U+D7FF inclusive or U+E000 to U+10FFFF
inclusive. Unicode scalars do not include the Unicode surrogate pair code points, which are the code points in the range
U+D800 to U+DFFF inclusive.

Note that not all 21-bit Unicode scalars are assigned to a charactersome scalars are reserved for
future assignment. Scalars that have been assigned to a character typically also have a name, such as
LATIN SMALL LETTER A and FRONT-FACING BABY CHICK in the examples above.

Special Characters in String Literals

String literals can include the following special characters:
The escaped special characters \0 (null character), \\ (backslash), \t (horizontal tab), \n
(line feed), \r (carriage return), \" (double quote) and \' (single quote)
An arbitrary Unicode scalar, written as \u{n}, where n is a 18 digit hexadecimal number

with a value equal to a valid Unicode code point

The code below shows four examples of these special characters. The wiseWords constant contains
two escaped double quote characters. The dollarSign, blackHeart, and sparklingHeart constants
demonstrate the Unicode scalar format:
1

let wiseWords = "\"Imagination is more important than knowledge\" - Einstein"

// "Imagination is more important than knowledge" - Einstein

let dollarSign = "\u{24}"

// $,

Unicode scalar U+0024

let blackHeart = "\u{2665}"

// ,

Unicode scalar U+2665

let sparklingHeart = "\u{1F496}" // , Unicode scalar U+1F496

Extended Grapheme Clusters

Every instance of Swifts Character type represents a single extended grapheme cluster. An
extended grapheme cluster is a sequence of one or more Unicode scalars that (when combined)
produce a single human-readable character.
Heres an example. The letter can be represented as the single Unicode scalar (LATIN SMALL
LETTER E WITH ACUTE, or U+00E9). However, the same letter can also be represented as a pair of
scalarsa standard letter e (LATIN SMALL LETTER E, or U+0065), followed by the COMBINING ACUTE
ACCENT scalar (U+0301). The COMBINING ACUTE ACCENT scalar is graphically applied to the scalar that
precedes it, turning an e into an when it is rendered by a Unicode-aware text-rendering system.
In both cases, the letter is represented as a single Swift Character value that represents an extended
grapheme cluster. In the first case, the cluster contains a single scalar; in the second case, it is a
cluster of two scalars:
1

let eAcute: Character = "\u{E9}"

//

let combinedEAcute: Character = "\u{65}\u{301}"

// e followed by

// eAcute is , combinedEAcute is

Extended grapheme clusters are a flexible way to represent many complex script characters as a
single Character value. For example, Hangul syllables from the Korean alphabet can be represented
as either a precomposed or decomposed sequence. Both of these representations qualify as a single
Character value in Swift:

let precomposed: Character = "\u{D55C}"

//

let decomposed: Character = "\u{1112}\u{1161}\u{11AB}"

// , ,

// precomposed is , decomposed is

Extended grapheme clusters enable scalars for enclosing marks (such as COMBINING ENCLOSING
CIRCLE, or U+20DD) to enclose other Unicode scalars as part of a single Character value:
1

let enclosedEAcute: Character = "\u{E9}\u{20DD}"

// enclosedEAcute is

Unicode scalars for regional indicator symbols can be combined in pairs to make a single Character
value, such as this combination of REGIONAL INDICATOR SYMBOL LETTER U (U+1F1FA) and REGIONAL
INDICATOR SYMBOL LETTER S (U+1F1F8):
1

let regionalIndicatorForUS: Character = "\u{1F1FA}\u{1F1F8}"

// regionalIndicatorForUS is

Counting Characters
To retrieve a count of the Character values in a string, call the global count(_:) function and pass in
a string as the functions sole parameter:
1

let unusualMenagerie = "Koala , Snail , Penguin , Dromedary "

println("unusualMenagerie has \(count(unusualMenagerie)) characters")

// prints "unusualMenagerie has 40 characters"

Note that Swifts use of extended grapheme clusters for Character values means that string
concatenation and modification may not always affect a strings character count.
For example, if you initialize a new string with the four-character word cafe, and then append a
COMBINING ACUTE ACCENT (U+0301) to the end of the string, the resulting string will still have a
character count of 4, with a fourth character of , not e:

var word = "cafe"

println("the number of characters in \(word) is \(count(word))")

// prints "the number of characters in cafe is 4"

4
5

word += "\u{301}"

// COMBINING ACUTE ACCENT, U+0301

6
7

println("the number of characters in \(word) is \(count(word))")

// prints "the number of characters in caf is 4"

NOTE
Extended grapheme clusters can be composed of one or more Unicode scalars. This means that different charactersand
different representations of the same charactercan require different amounts of memory to store. Because of this,
characters in Swift do not each take up the same amount of memory within a strings representation. As a result, the
number of characters in a string cannot be calculated without iterating through the string to determine its extended
grapheme cluster boundaries. If you are working with particularly long string values, be aware that the count(_:)
function must iterate over the Unicode scalars in the entire string in order to calculate an accurate character count for that
string.
The character count returned by the count(_:) function is not always the same as the length property of an
NSString that contains the same characters. The length of an NSString is based on the number of 16-bit code units
within the strings UTF-16 representation and not the number of Unicode extended grapheme clusters within the string. To
reflect this fact, the length property from NSString is called utf16Count when it is accessed on a Swift String
value.

Accessing and Modifying a String

You access and modify a string through its methods and properties, or by using subscript syntax.

String Indexes
Each String value has an associated index type, String.Index, which corresponds to the positions of
each Character it contains.
As mentioned above, different characters can require different amounts of memory to store, so in
order to determine which Character is at a particular position, you must iterate over each Unicode
scalar from the start or end of that String. For this reason, Swift strings cannot be indexed by integer
values.

Use the startIndex property to access the position of the first Character of a String, and the
endIndex property to access the posision of the last. If the String is empty, startIndex and endIndex
are equal.
1

let greeting = "Guten Tag"

// prints "greeting: String = "Guten Tag""

println(greeting.startIndex)

// 0

println(greeting.endIndex)

// 9

You can use subscript syntax to access the Character at a particular String index:
1

greeting[greeting.startIndex]

// G

A String.Index value can access its immediately preceding index by calling the predecessor()
method, and its immediately succeeding index by calling the successor() method. Any index in a
String can be accessed from any other index by chaining these methods together, or by using the
global advance(start:n:) function. Attempting to access an index outside of a strings range will
trigger a runtime error.
1

greeting[greeting.startIndex.successor()]

// u

greeting[greeting.endIndex.predecessor()]

// g

let index = advance(greeting.startIndex, 7)

greeting[index]

// a

greeting.endIndex.successor() // fatal error: can not increment endIndex

Use the global function indicies(_:) to create a Range of all of the indexes used to access individual
characters in a string.

for index in indices(greeting) {

print("\(greeting[index]) ")

println("\n")

// prints "G u t e n

T a g"

Inserting and Removing

To insert a character into a string at a specified index, use the insert(_:atIndex:) method.
1

var welcome = "hello"

welcome.insert("!", atIndex: welcome.endIndex)

println(welcome)

// prints "hello!"

To insert another string at a specified index, use the splice(_:atIndex:) method.

1

welcome.splice(" there", atIndex: welcome.endIndex.predecessor())

println(welcome)

// prints "hello there!"

To remove a character from a string at a specified index, use the removeAtIndex(_:) method.
1

welcome.removeAtIndex(welcome.endIndex.predecessor())

// !

println(welcome)

// prints "hello there"

To remove a substring at a specified range, use the removeRange(_:) method:

1

let range = advance(welcome.endIndex, -6)..<welcome.endIndex

welcome.removeRange(range)

println(welcome)

// prints "hello"

Comparing Strings
Swift provides three ways to compare textual values: string and character equality, prefix equality,
and suffix equality.

String and Character Equality

String and character equality is checked with the equal to operator (==) and the not equal to
operator (!=), as described in Comparison Operators:
1

let quotation = "We're a lot alike, you and I."

let sameQuotation = "We're a lot alike, you and I."

if quotation == sameQuotation {

println("These two strings are considered equal")

// prints "These two strings are considered equal"

Two String values (or two Character values) are considered equal if their extended grapheme
clusters are canonically equivalent. Extended grapheme clusters are canonically equivalent if they
have the same linguistic meaning and appearance, even if they are composed from different Unicode
scalars behind the scenes.
For example, LATIN SMALL LETTER E WITH ACUTE (U+00E9) is canonically equivalent to LATIN SMALL
LETTER E (U+0065) followed by COMBINING ACUTE ACCENT (U+0301). Both of these extended grapheme
clusters are valid ways to represent the character , and so they are considered to be canonically
equivalent:

// "Voulez-vous un caf?" using LATIN SMALL LETTER E WITH ACUTE

let eAcuteQuestion = "Voulez-vous un caf\u{E9}?"

3
4

// "Voulez-vous un caf?" using LATIN SMALL LETTER E and COMBINING ACUTE ACCENT

let combinedEAcuteQuestion = "Voulez-vous un caf\u{65}\u{301}?"

6
7

if eAcuteQuestion == combinedEAcuteQuestion {

8
9

10

println("These two strings are considered equal")

}

// prints "These two strings are considered equal"

or "A"), as used in English, is not equivalent to

CYRILLIC CAPITAL LETTER A (U+0410, or ""), as used in Russian. The characters are visually similar,
but do not have the same linguistic meaning:
Conversely, LATIN

CAPITAL LETTER A (U+0041,

let latinCapitalLetterA: Character = "\u{41}"

2
3

let cyrillicCapitalLetterA: Character = "\u{0410}"

4
5

if latinCapitalLetterA != cyrillicCapitalLetterA {

println("These two characters are not equivalent")

// prints "These two characters are not equivalent"

NOTE
String and character comparisons in Swift are not locale-sensitive.

Prefix and Suffix Equality

To check whether a string has a particular string prefix or suffix, call the strings hasPrefix(_:) and
hasSuffix(_:) methods, both of which take a single argument of type String and return a Boolean

value.
The examples below consider an array of strings representing the scene locations from the first two
acts of Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet:
1

let romeoAndJuliet = [

"Act 1 Scene 1: Verona, A public place",

"Act 1 Scene 2: Capulet's mansion",

"Act 1 Scene 3: A room in Capulet's mansion",

"Act 1 Scene 4: A street outside Capulet's mansion",

"Act 1 Scene 5: The Great Hall in Capulet's mansion",

"Act 2 Scene 1: Outside Capulet's mansion",

"Act 2 Scene 2: Capulet's orchard",

"Act 2 Scene 3: Outside Friar Lawrence's cell",

10

"Act 2 Scene 4: A street in Verona",

11

"Act 2 Scene 5: Capulet's mansion",

12

"Act 2 Scene 6: Friar Lawrence's cell"

13

You can use the hasPrefix(_:) method with the romeoAndJuliet array to count the number of scenes
in Act 1 of the play:
1

var act1SceneCount = 0

for scene in romeoAndJuliet {

if scene.hasPrefix("Act 1 ") {

++act1SceneCount

println("There are \(act1SceneCount) scenes in Act 1")

// prints "There are 5 scenes in Act 1"

Similarly, use the hasSuffix(_:) method to count the number of scenes that take place in or around
Capulets mansion and Friar Lawrences cell:

var mansionCount = 0

var cellCount = 0

for scene in romeoAndJuliet {

if scene.hasSuffix("Capulet's mansion") {

++mansionCount

} else if scene.hasSuffix("Friar Lawrence's cell") {

++cellCount

8
9

}
}

10

println("\(mansionCount) mansion scenes; \(cellCount) cell scenes")

11

// prints "6 mansion scenes; 2 cell scenes"

NOTE
The hasPrefix(_:) and hasSuffix(_:) methods perform a character-by-character canonical equivalence
comparison between the extended grapheme clusters in each string, as described in String and Character Equality.

Unicode Representations of Strings

When a Unicode string is written to a text file or some other storage, the Unicode scalars in that string
are encoded in one of several Unicode-defined encoding forms. Each form encodes the string in
small chunks known as code units. These include the UTF-8 encoding form (which encodes a string
as 8-bit code units), the UTF-16 encoding form (which encodes a string as 16-bit code units), and the
UTF-32 encoding form (which encodes a string as 32-bit code units).
Swift provides several different ways to access Unicode representations of strings. You can iterate
over the string with a for-in statement, to access its individual Character values as Unicode
extended grapheme clusters. This process is described in Working with Characters.
Alternatively, access a String value in one of three other Unicode-compliant representations:
A collection of UTF-8 code units (accessed with the strings utf8 property)
A collection of UTF-16 code units (accessed with the strings utf16 property)
A collection of 21-bit Unicode scalar values, equivalent to the strings UTF-32 encoding
form (accessed with the strings unicodeScalars property)

Each example below shows a different representation of the following string, which is made up of the
characters D, o, g, (DOUBLE EXCLAMATION MARK, or Unicode scalar U+203C), and the character ( DOG
FACE, or Unicode scalar U+1F436):
let dogString = "Dog"

UTF-8 Representation
You can access a UTF-8 representation of a String by iterating over its utf8 property. This property
is of type String.UTF8View, which is a collection of unsigned 8-bit (UInt8) values, one for each byte
in the strings UTF-8 representation:
1

for codeUnit in dogString.utf8 {

print("\(codeUnit) ")

print("\n")

// 68 111 103 226 128 188 240 159 144 182

In the example above, the first three decimal codeUnit values (68, 111, 103) represent the characters
D, o, and g, whose UTF-8 representation is the same as their ASCII representation. The next three
decimal codeUnit values (226, 128, 188) are a three-byte UTF-8 representation of the DOUBLE
EXCLAMATION MARK character. The last four codeUnit values (240, 159, 144, 182) are a four-byte UTF-8
representation of the DOG FACE character.

UTF-16 Representation
You can access a UTF-16 representation of a String by iterating over its utf16 property. This
property is of type String.UTF16View, which is a collection of unsigned 16-bit (UInt16) values, one
for each 16-bit code unit in the strings UTF-16 representation:
1

for codeUnit in dogString.utf16 {

print("\(codeUnit) ")

print("\n")

// 68 111 103 8252 55357 56374

Again, the first three codeUnit values (68, 111, 103) represent the characters D, o, and g, whose UTF16 code units have the same values as in the strings UTF-8 representation (because these Unicode
scalars represent ASCII characters).
The fourth codeUnit value (8252) is a decimal equivalent of the hexadecimal value 203C, which
represents the Unicode scalar U+203C for the DOUBLE EXCLAMATION MARK character. This character can
be represented as a single code unit in UTF-16.
The fifth and sixth codeUnit values (55357 and 56374) are a UTF-16 surrogate pair representation of
the DOG FACE character. These values are a high-surrogate value of U+D83D (decimal value 55357) and
a low-surrogate value of U+DC36 (decimal value 56374).

Unicode Scalar Representation

You can access a Unicode scalar representation of a String value by iterating over its
unicodeScalars property. This property is of type UnicodeScalarView, which is a collection of values
of type UnicodeScalar.
Each UnicodeScalar has a value property that returns the scalars 21-bit value, represented within a
UInt32 value:
1

for scalar in dogString.unicodeScalars {

print("\(scalar.value) ")

print("\n")

// 68 111 103 8252 128054

The value properties for the first three UnicodeScalar values (68, 111, 103) once again represent the
characters D, o, and g.
The fourth codeUnit value (8252) is again a decimal equivalent of the hexadecimal value 203C, which
represents the Unicode scalar U+203C for the DOUBLE EXCLAMATION MARK character.
The value property of the fifth and final UnicodeScalar, 128054, is a decimal equivalent of the
hexadecimal value 1F436, which represents the Unicode scalar U+1F436 for the DOG FACE character.
As an alternative to querying their value properties, each UnicodeScalar value can also be used to
construct a new String value, such as with string interpolation:

for scalar in dogString.unicodeScalars {

println("\(scalar) ")

// D

// o

// g

//

//

Collection Types
Swift provides three primary collection types, known as arrays, sets, and dictionaries, for storing
collections of values. Arrays are ordered collections of values. Sets are unordered collections of
distinct values. Dictionaries are unordered collections of key-value associations.
Arrays, sets, and dictionaries in Swift are always clear about the types of values and keys that they
can store. This means that you cannot insert a value of the wrong type into a collection by mistake. It
also means you can be confident about the types of values you will retrieve from a collection. Swifts
use of typed arrays, sets, and dictionaries ensures that your code is always clear about the types of
values a collection can work with and enables you to catch any type mismatches early in your codes
development.

NOTE
Swifts array, set, and dictionary types are implemented as generic collections. For more on generic types and collections,
see Generics.

Mutability of Collections
If you create an array, a set, or a dictionary and assign it to a variable, the collection that is created
will be mutable. This means that you can change (or mutate) the collection after it is created by
adding, removing, or changing items in the collection. Conversely, if you assign an array, a set, or a
dictionary to a constant, that collection is immutable, and its size and contents cannot be changed.

NOTE
It is good practice to create immutable collections in all cases where the collection does not need to change. Doing so
enables the Swift compiler to optimize the performance of the collections you create.

Arrays
An array stores values of the same type in an ordered list. The same value can appear in an array
multiple times at different positions.

NOTE
Swifts Array type is bridged to Foundations NSArray class.
For more information about using Array with Foundation and Cocoa, see Using Swift with Cocoa and Objective-C.

Array Type Shorthand Syntax

The type of a Swift array is written in full as Array<SomeType>, where SomeType is the type of values
the array is allowed to store. You can also write the type of an array in shorthand form as [SomeType].
Although the two forms are functionally identical, the shorthand form is preferred and is used
throughout this guide when referring to the type of an array.

Creating and Initializing an Array

You can create an empty array of a certain type using initializer syntax:
1

var someInts = [Int]()

println("someInts is of type [Int] with \(someInts.count) items.")

// prints "someInts is of type [Int] with 0 items."

Note that the type of the someInts variable is inferred to be [Int] from the type of the initializer.
Alternatively, if the context already provides type information, such as a function argument or an
already typed variable or constant, you can create an empty array with an empty array literal, which
is written as [] (an empty pair of square brackets):
1

someInts.append(3)

// someInts now contains 1 value of type Int

someInts = []

// someInts is now an empty array, but is still of type [Int]

Swifts Array type also provides an initializer for creating an array of a certain size with all of its
values set to a provided default value. You pass this initializer the number of items to be added to the
new array (called count) and a default value of the appropriate type (called repeatedValue):

var threeDoubles = [Double](count: 3, repeatedValue: 0.0)

// threeDoubles is of type [Double], and equals [0.0, 0.0, 0.0]

You can create a new array by adding together two existing arrays with compatible types with the
addition operator (+). The new arrays type is inferred from the type of the two arrays you add
together:
1

var anotherThreeDoubles = [Double](count: 3, repeatedValue: 2.5)

// anotherThreeDoubles is inferred as [Double], and equals [2.5, 2.5, 2.5]

3
4

var sixDoubles = threeDoubles + anotherThreeDoubles

// sixDoubles is inferred as [Double], and equals [0.0, 0.0, 0.0, 2.5, 2.5, 2.5]

Array Literals
You can also initialize an array with an array literal, which is a shorthand way to write one or more
values as an array collection. An array literal is written as a list of values, separated by commas,
surrounded by a pair of square brackets:
[ value 1 ,

value 2 ,

value 3 ]

The example below creates an array called shoppingList to store String values:
1

var shoppingList: [String] = ["Eggs", "Milk"]

// shoppingList has been initialized with two initial items

The shoppingList variable is declared as an array of string values, written as [String]. Because
this particular array has specified a value type of String, it is allowed to store String values only.
Here, the shoppingList array is initialized with two String values ("Eggs" and "Milk"), written
within an array literal.

NOTE
The shoppingList array is declared as a variable (with the var introducer) and not a constant (with the let
introducer) because more items are added to the shopping list in the examples below.

In this case, the array literal contains two String values and nothing else. This matches the type of the

variables declaration (an array that can only contain String values), and so the
assignment of the array literal is permitted as a way to initialize shoppingList with two initial items.
shoppingList

Thanks to Swifts type inference, you dont have to write the type of the array if youre initializing it
with an array literal containing values of the same type. The initialization of shoppingList could have
been written in a shorter form instead:
var shoppingList = ["Eggs", "Milk"]

Because all values in the array literal are of the same type, Swift can infer that [String] is the correct
type to use for the shoppingList variable.

Accessing and Modifying an Array

You access and modify an array through its methods and properties, or by using subscript syntax.
To find out the number of items in an array, check its read-only count property:
1

println("The shopping list contains \(shoppingList.count) items.")

// prints "The shopping list contains 2 items."

Use the Boolean isEmpty property as a shortcut for checking whether the count property is equal to 0:
1

if shoppingList.isEmpty {

2
3

println("The shopping list is empty.")

} else {

println("The shopping list is not empty.")

// prints "The shopping list is not empty."

You can add a new item to the end of an array by calling the arrays append(_:) method:
1

shoppingList.append("Flour")

// shoppingList now contains 3 items, and someone is making pancakes

Alternatively, append an array of one or more compatible items with the addition assignment operator
(+=):

shoppingList += ["Baking Powder"]

// shoppingList now contains 4 items

shoppingList += ["Chocolate Spread", "Cheese", "Butter"]

// shoppingList now contains 7 items

Retrieve a value from the array by using subscript syntax, passing the index of the value you want to
retrieve within square brackets immediately after the name of the array:
1

var firstItem = shoppingList[0]

// firstItem is equal to "Eggs"

Note that the first item in the array has an index of 0, not 1. Arrays in Swift are always zero-indexed.
You can use subscript syntax to change an existing value at a given index:
1

shoppingList[0] = "Six eggs"

// the first item in the list is now equal to "Six eggs" rather than "Eggs"

You can also use subscript syntax to change a range of values at once, even if the replacement set of
values has a different length than the range you are replacing. The following example replaces
"Chocolate Spread", "Cheese", and "Butter" with "Bananas" and "Apples":
1

shoppingList[4...6] = ["Bananas", "Apples"]

// shoppingList now contains 6 items

NOTE
You cant use subscript syntax to append a new item to the end of an array.

To insert an item into the array at a specified index, call the arrays insert(_:atIndex:) method:
1

shoppingList.insert("Maple Syrup", atIndex: 0)

// shoppingList now contains 7 items

// "Maple Syrup" is now the first item in the list

This call to the insert(_:atIndex:) method inserts a new item with a value of "Maple
very beginning of the shopping list, indicated by an index of 0.

Syrup"

at the

Similarly, you remove an item from the array with the removeAtIndex(_:) method. This method
removes the item at the specified index and returns the removed item (although you can ignore the
returned value if you do not need it):
1

let mapleSyrup = shoppingList.removeAtIndex(0)

// the item that was at index 0 has just been removed

// shoppingList now contains 6 items, and no Maple Syrup

// the mapleSyrup constant is now equal to the removed "Maple Syrup" string

NOTE
If you try to access or modify a value for an index that is outside of an arrays existing bounds, you will trigger a runtime
error. However, you can check that an index is valid before using it, by comparing it to the arrays count property. Except
when count is 0 (meaning the array is empty), the largest valid index in an array will always be count - 1, because
arrays are indexed from zero.

Any gaps in an array are closed when an item is removed, and so the value at index 0 is once again
equal to "Six eggs":
1

firstItem = shoppingList[0]

// firstItem is now equal to "Six eggs"

If you want to remove the final item from an array, use the removeLast() method rather than the
removeAtIndex(_:) method to avoid the need to query the arrays count property. Like the
removeAtIndex(_:) method, removeLast() returns the removed item:
1

let apples = shoppingList.removeLast()

// the last item in the array has just been removed

// shoppingList now contains 5 items, and no apples

// the apples constant is now equal to the removed "Apples" string

Iterating Over an Array

You can iterate over the entire set of values in an array with the for-in loop:

for item in shoppingList {

println(item)

// Six eggs

// Milk

// Flour

// Baking Powder

// Bananas

If you need the integer index of each item as well as its value, use the global enumerate function to
iterate over the array instead. The enumerate function returns a tuple for each item in the array
composed of the index and the value for that item. You can decompose the tuple into temporary
constants or variables as part of the iteration:
1

for (index, value) in enumerate(shoppingList) {

println("Item \(index + 1): \(value)")

// Item 1: Six eggs

// Item 2: Milk

// Item 3: Flour

// Item 4: Baking Powder

// Item 5: Bananas

For more about the for-in loop, see For Loops.

Sets
A set stores distinct values of the same type in a collection with no defined ordering. You can use sets
as an alternative to arrays when the order of items is not important, or when you need to ensure that an
item only appears once.

NOTE
Swifts Set type is bridged to Foundations NSSet class.
For more information about using Set with Foundation and Cocoa, see Using Swift with Cocoa and Objective-C.

Set Type Syntax

The type of a Swift set is written as Set<SomeType>, where SomeType is the type that the set is allowed
to store. Unlike arrays, sets do not have an equivalent shorthand form.

Creating and Initializing a Set

You can create an empty set of a certain type using initializer syntax:
1

var letters = Set<Character>()

println("letters is of type Set<Character> with \(letters.count) items.")

// prints "letters is of type Set<Character> with 0 items."

Note that the type of the letters variable is inferred to be Set<Character>, from the type of the
initializer.
Alternatively, if the context already provides type information, such as a function argument or an
already typed variable or constant, you can create an empty set with an empty array literal:
1

letters.insert("a")

// letters now contains 1 value of type Character

letters = []

// letters is now an empty set, but is still of type Set<Character>

Sets with Array Literals

You can also initialize a set with an array literal, as a shorthand way to write one or more values as a
set collection.
The example below creates a set called favoriteGenres to store String values:

var favoriteGenres: Set<String> = ["Rock", "Classical", "Hip hop"]

// favoriteGenres has been initialized with three initial items

The favoriteGenres variable is declared as a set of String values, written as Set<String>.

Because this particular set has specified a value type of String, it is only allowed to store String
values. Here, the favoriteGenres set is initialized with three String values ("Rock", "Classical",
and "Hip hop"), written within an array literal.

NOTE
The favoriteGenres set is declared as a variable (with the var introducer) and not a constant (with the let
introducer) because items are added and removed in the examples below.

A set type cannot be inferred from an array literal alone, so the type Set must be explicitly declared.
However, because of Swifts type inference, you dont have to write the type of the set if youre
initializing it with an array literal containing values of the same type. The initialization of
favoriteGenres could have been written in a shorter form instead:
var favoriteGenres: Set = ["Rock", "Classical", "Hip hop"]

Because all values in the array literal are of the same type, Swift can infer that Set<String> is the
correct type to use for the favoriteGenres variable.

Accessing and Modifying a Set

You access and modify a set through its methods and properties.
To find out the number of items in a set, check its read-only count property:
1

println("I have \(favoriteGenres.count) favorite music genres.")

// prints ""I have 3 favorite music genres.""

Use the Boolean isEmpty property as a shortcut for checking whether the count property is equal to 0:

if favoriteGenres.isEmpty {

2
3

println("As far as music goes, I'm not picky.")

} else {

println("I have particular music preferences.")

// prints "I have particular music preferences."

You can add a new item into a set by calling the sets insert(_:) method:
1

favoriteGenres.insert("Jazz")

// favoriteGenres now contains 4 items

You can remove an item from a set by calling the sets remove(_:) method, which removes the item if
its a member of the set, and returns the removed value, or returns nil if the set did not contain it.
Alternatively, all items in a set can be removed with its removeAll() method.
1

if let removedGenre = favoriteGenres.remove("Rock") {

2
3

println("\(removedValue)? I'm over it.")

} else {

println("I never much cared for that.")

// prints "Rock? I'm over it."

To check whether a set contains a particular item, use the contains(_:) method.
1

if favoriteGenres.contains("Funk") {

2
3

println("I get up on the good foot.")

} else {

println("It's too funky in here.")

// prints "It's too funky in here."

Iterating Over a Set

You can iterate over the values in a set with a for-in loop.
1

for genre in favoriteGenres {

println("\(value)")

// Classical

// Jazz

// Hip hop

For more about the for-in loop, see For Loops.

Swifts Set type does not have a defined ordering. To iterate over the values of a set in a specific
order, use the global sorted function, which returns an ordered collection of the provided sequence.
1

-> for genre in sorted(favoriteGenres) {

println("\(genre)")

// prints "Classical"

// prints "Hip hop"

// prints "Jazz"

Performing Set Operations

You can efficiently perform fundamental set operations, such as combining two sets together,
determining which values two sets have in common, or determining whether two sets contain all,
some, or none of the same values.

Constructing Sets
The illustration below depicts two setsa and b with the results of various set operations
represented by the shaded regions.

Use the union(_:) method to create a new set with all of the values in both sets.
Use the subtract(_:) method to create a new set with values not in the specified set.
Use the intersect(_:) method to create a new set with only the values common to both sets.
Use the exclusiveOr(_:) method to create a new set with values in either set, but not both.

let oddDigits: Set = [1, 3, 5, 7, 9]

let evenDigits: Set = [0, 2, 4, 6, 8]

let singleDigitPrimeNumbers: Set = [2, 3, 5, 7]

sorted(oddDigits.union(evenDigits))

// [0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9]

sorted(oddDigits.intersect(evenDigits))

// []

sorted(oddDigits.subtract(singleDigitPrimeNumbers))

// [1, 9]

10

sorted(oddDigits.exclusiveOr(singleDigitPrimeNumbers))

11

// [1, 2, 9]

Comparing Sets
The illustration below depicts three setsa, b and c with overlapping regions representing elements
shared between sets. Set a is a superset of set b, because a contains all elements in b. Conversely, set
b is a subset of set a, because all elements in b are also contained by a. Set b and set c are disjoint
with one another, because they share no elements in common.

Use the is equal operator (==) to determine whether two sets contain all of the same values.
Use the isSubsetOf(_:) method to determine whether all of the values of a set are contained
in the specified set, or .
Use the isSupersetOf(_:) method to determine whether a set contains all of the values in a
specified set, or .
Use the isStrictSubsetOf(_:) or isStrictSupersetOf(_:) methods to determine whether a
set is a subset or superset, but not equal to, a specified set.
Use the isDisjointWith(_:) method to determine whether two sets have any values in
common.

let houseAnimals: Set = ["" , "" ]

let farmAnimals: Set = ["" , "" , "" , "" , "" ]

let cityAnimals: Set = ["" , "" ]

houseAnimals.isSubsetOf(farmAnimals)

// true

farmAnimals.isSuperSetOf(houseAnimals)

// true

farmAnimals.isDisjointWith(cityAnimals)

// true

Hash Values for Set Types

A type must be hashable in order to be stored in a setthat is, the type must provide a way to
compute a hash value for itself. A hash value is an Int value that is the same for all objects that
compare equal, such that if a == b, it follows that a.hashValue == b.hashValue.
All of Swifts basic types (such as String, Int, Double, and Bool) are hashable by default, and can be
used as set value types or dictionary key types. Enumeration member values without associated
values (as described in Enumerations) are also hashable by default.

NOTE
You can use your own custom types as set value types or dictionary key types by making them conform to the Hashable
protocol from Swifts standard library. Types that conform to the Hashable protocol must provide a gettable Int
property called hashValue. The value returned by a types hashValue property is not required to be the same across
different executions of the same program, or in different programs.
Because the Hashable protocol conforms to Equatable, conforming types must must also provide an implementation
of the is equal operator (==). The Equatable protocol requires any conforming implementation of == to be an
equivalence relation. That is, an implementation of == must satisfy the following three conditions, for all values a, b, and c:

a == a (Reflexivity)

a == b implies b == a (Symmetry)

a == b && b == c implies a == c (Transitivity)

For more information about conforming to protocols, see Protocols.

Dictionaries
A dictionary stores associations between keys of the same type and values of the same type in an
collection with no defined ordering. Each value is associated with a unique key, which acts as an
identifier for that value within the dictionary. Unlike items in an array, items in a dictionary do not
have a specified order. You use a dictionary when you need to look up values based on their
identifier, in much the same way that a real-world dictionary is used to look up the definition for a
particular word.

NOTE
Swifts Dictionary type is bridged to Foundations NSDictionary class.
For more information about using Dictionary with Foundation and Cocoa, see Using Swift with Cocoa and
Objective-C.

Dictionary Type Shorthand Syntax

The type of a Swift dictionary is written in full as Dictionary<Key, Value>, where Key is the type of
value that can be used as a dictionary key, and Value is the type of value that the dictionary stores for
those keys.

NOTE
A dictionary Key type must conform to the Hashable protocol, like a sets value type.

You can also write the type of a dictionary in shorthand form as [Key: Value]. Although the two
forms are functionally identical, the shorthand form is preferred and is used throughout this guide
when referring to the type of a dictionary.

Creating an Empty Dictionary

As with arrays, you can create an empty Dictionary of a certain type by using initializer syntax:
1

var namesOfIntegers = [Int: String]()

// namesOfIntegers is an empty [Int: String] dictionary

This example creates an empty dictionary of type [Int: String] to store human-readable names of
integer values. Its keys are of type Int, and its values are of type String.
If the context already provides type information, you can create an empty dictionary with an empty
dictionary literal, which is written as [:] (a colon inside a pair of square brackets):
1

namesOfIntegers[16] = "sixteen"

// namesOfIntegers now contains 1 key-value pair

namesOfIntegers = [:]

// namesOfIntegers is once again an empty dictionary of type [Int: String]

Dictionary Literals
You can also initialize a dictionary with a dictionary literal, which has a similar syntax to the array
literal seen earlier. A dictionary literal is a shorthand way to write one or more key-value pairs as a
Dictionary collection.
A key-value pair is a combination of a key and a value. In a dictionary literal, the key and value in
each key-value pair are separated by a colon. The key-value pairs are written as a list, separated by
commas, surrounded by a pair of square brackets:
[ key 1 :

value 1 ,

key 2 :

value 2 ,

key 3 :

value 3 ]

The example below creates a dictionary to store the names of international airports. In this dictionary,
the keys are three-letter International Air Transport Association codes, and the values are airport
names:
var airports: [String: String] = ["YYZ": "Toronto Pearson", "DUB": "Dublin"]

The airports dictionary is declared as having a type of [String: String], which means a
Dictionary whose keys are of type String, and whose values are also of type String.

NOTE
The airports dictionary is declared as a variable (with the var introducer), and not a constant (with the let
introducer), because more airports are added to the dictionary in the examples below.

The airports dictionary is initialized with a dictionary literal containing two key-value pairs. The
first pair has a key of "YYZ" and a value of "Toronto Pearson". The second pair has a key of "DUB"

and a value of "Dublin".

This dictionary literal contains two String: String pairs. This key-value type matches the type of the
airports variable declaration (a dictionary with only String keys, and only String values), and so
the assignment of the dictionary literal is permitted as a way to initialize the airports dictionary with
two initial items.
As with arrays, you dont have to write the type of the dictionary if youre initializing it with a
dictionary literal whose keys and values have consistent types. The initialization of airports could
have been be written in a shorter form instead:
var airports = ["YYZ": "Toronto Pearson", "DUB": "Dublin"]

Because all keys in the literal are of the same type as each other, and likewise all values are of the
same type as each other, Swift can infer that [String: String] is the correct type to use for the
airports dictionary.

Accessing and Modifying a Dictionary

You access and modify a dictionary through its methods and properties, or by using subscript syntax.
As with an array, you find out the number of items in a Dictionary by checking its read-only count
property:
1

println("The airports dictionary contains \(airports.count) items.")

// prints "The airports dictionary contains 2 items."

Use the Boolean isEmpty property as a shortcut for checking whether the count property is equal to 0:
1

if airports.isEmpty {

2
3

println("The airports dictionary is empty.")

} else {

println("The airports dictionary is not empty.")

// prints "The airports dictionary is not empty."

You can add a new item to a dictionary with subscript syntax. Use a new key of the appropriate type
as the subscript index, and assign a new value of the appropriate type:

airports["LHR"] = "London"

// the airports dictionary now contains 3 items

You can also use subscript syntax to change the value associated with a particular key:
1

airports["LHR"] = "London Heathrow"

// the value for "LHR" has been changed to "London Heathrow"

As an alternative to subscripting, use a dictionarys updateValue(_:forKey:) method to set or update

the value for a particular key. Like the subscript examples above, the updateValue(_:forKey:)
method sets a value for a key if none exists, or updates the value if that key already exists. Unlike a
subscript, however, the updateValue(_:forKey:) method returns the old value after performing an
update. This enables you to check whether or not an update took place.
The updateValue(_:forKey:) method returns an optional value of the dictionarys value type. For a
dictionary that stores String values, for example, the method returns a value of type String?, or
optional String. This optional value contains the old value for that key if one existed before the
update, or nil if no value existed:
1

if let oldValue = airports.updateValue("Dublin Airport", forKey: "DUB") {

println("The old value for DUB was \(oldValue).")

// prints "The old value for DUB was Dublin."

You can also use subscript syntax to retrieve a value from the dictionary for a particular key. Because
it is possible to request a key for which no value exists, a dictionarys subscript returns an optional
value of the dictionarys value type. If the dictionary contains a value for the requested key, the
subscript returns an optional value containing the existing value for that key. Otherwise, the subscript
returns nil:
1

if let airportName = airports["DUB"] {

2
3

println("The name of the airport is \(airportName).")

} else {

println("That airport is not in the airports dictionary.")

// prints "The name of the airport is Dublin Airport."

You can use subscript syntax to remove a key-value pair from a dictionary by assigning a value of nil
for that key:

airports["APL"] = "Apple International"

// "Apple International" is not the real airport for APL, so delete it

airports["APL"] = nil

// APL has now been removed from the dictionary

Alternatively, remove a key-value pair from a dictionary with the removeValueForKey(_:) method.
This method removes the key-value pair if it exists and returns the removed value, or returns nil if no
value existed:
1

if let removedValue = airports.removeValueForKey("DUB") {

2
3

println("The removed airport's name is \(removedValue).")

} else {

println("The airports dictionary does not contain a value for DUB.")

// prints "The removed airport's name is Dublin Airport."

Iterating Over a Dictionary

You can iterate over the key-value pairs in a dictionary with a for-in loop. Each item in the
dictionary is returned as a (key, value) tuple, and you can decompose the tuples members into
temporary constants or variables as part of the iteration:
1

for (airportCode, airportName) in airports {

println("\(airportCode): \(airportName)")

// YYZ: Toronto Pearson

// LHR: London Heathrow

For more about the for-in loop, see For Loops.

You can also retrieve an iterable collection of a dictionarys keys or values by accessing its keys and
values properties:

for airportCode in airports.keys {

println("Airport code: \(airportCode)")

// Airport code: YYZ

// Airport code: LHR

6
7

for airportName in airports.values {

8
9

println("Airport name: \(airportName)")

}

10

// Airport name: Toronto Pearson

11

// Airport name: London Heathrow

If you need to use a dictionarys keys or values with an API that takes an Array instance, initialize a
new array with the keys or values property:
1

let airportCodes = [String](airports.keys)

// airportCodes is ["YYZ", "LHR"]

3
4

let airportNames = [String](airports.values)

// airportNames is ["Toronto Pearson", "London Heathrow"]

Swifts Dictionary type does not have a defined ordering. To iterate over the keys or values of a
dictionary in a specific order, use the global sorted function on its keys or values property.

Control Flow
Swift provides all the familiar control flow statements from C-like languages. These include for and
while loops to perform a task multiple times; if and switch statements to execute different branches
of code based on certain conditions; and statements such as break and continue to transfer the flow of
execution to another point in your code.
In addition to the traditional for loop found in C, Swift adds a for-in loop that makes it easy to
iterate over arrays, dictionaries, ranges, strings, and other sequences.
Swifts switch statement is also considerably more powerful than its counterpart in C. The cases of a
switch statement do not fall through to the next case in Swift, avoiding common C errors caused by
missing break statements. Cases can match many different patterns, including interval matches, tuples,
and casts to a specific type. Matched values in a switch case can be bound to temporary constants or
variables for use within the cases body, and complex matching conditions can be expressed with a
where clause for each case.

For Loops
Swift provides two kinds of loop that perform a set of statements a certain number of times:
The for-in loop performs a set of statements for each item in a sequence.
The for loop performs a set of statements until a specific condition is met, typically by
incrementing a counter each time the loop ends.

For-In
You use the for-in loop to iterate over a sequence, such as ranges of numbers, items in an array, or
characters in a string.
This example prints the first few entries in the five-times-table:

for index in 1...5 {

println("\(index) times 5 is \(index * 5)")

// 1 times 5 is 5

// 2 times 5 is 10

// 3 times 5 is 15

// 4 times 5 is 20

// 5 times 5 is 25

The sequence being iterated is a range of numbers from 1 to 5, inclusive, as indicated by the use of the
closed range operator (...). The value of index is set to the first number in the range (1), and the
statements inside the loop are executed. In this case, the loop contains only one statement, which
prints an entry from the five-times-table for the current value of index. After the statement is executed,
the value of index is updated to contain the second value in the range (2), and the println function is
called again. This process continues until the end of the range is reached.
In the example above, index is a constant whose value is automatically set at the start of each
iteration of the loop. As such, it does not have to be declared before it is used. It is implicitly
declared simply by its inclusion in the loop declaration, without the need for a let declaration
keyword.
If you dont need each value from a sequence, you can ignore the values by using an underscore in
place of a variable name:
1

let base = 3

let power = 10

var answer = 1

for _ in 1...power {

answer *= base

println("\(base) to the power of \(power) is \(answer)")

// prints "3 to the power of 10 is 59049"

This example calculates the value of one number to the power of another (in this case, 3 to the power
of 10). It multiplies a starting value of 1 (that is, 3 to the power of 0) by 3, ten times, using a closed
range that starts with 1 and ends with 10. This calculation doesnt need to know the individual counter
values each time through the loopit simply needs to execute the loop the correct number of times.
The underscore character _ (used in place of a loop variable) causes the individual values to be

ignored and does not provide access to the current value during each iteration of the loop.
Use a for-in loop with an array to iterate over its items:
1

let names = ["Anna", "Alex", "Brian", "Jack"]

for name in names {

println("Hello, \(name)!")

// Hello, Anna!

// Hello, Alex!

// Hello, Brian!

// Hello, Jack!

You can also iterate over a dictionary to access its key-value pairs. Each item in the dictionary is
returned as a (key, value) tuple when the dictionary is iterated, and you can decompose the (key,
value) tuples members as explicitly named constants for use within the body of the for-in loop.
Here, the dictionarys keys are decomposed into a constant called animalName, and the dictionarys
values are decomposed into a constant called legCount:
1

let numberOfLegs = ["spider": 8, "ant": 6, "cat": 4]

for (animalName, legCount) in numberOfLegs {

println("\(animalName)s have \(legCount) legs")

// ants have 6 legs

// cats have 4 legs

// spiders have 8 legs

Items in a Dictionary may not necessarily be iterated in the same order as they were inserted. The
contents of a Dictionary are inherently unordered, and iterating over them does not guarantee the
order in which they will be retrieved. For more on arrays and dictionaries, see Collection Types.)
In addition to arrays and dictionaries, you can also use the for-in loop to iterate over the Character
values in a string:

for character in "Hello" {

println(character)

// H

// e

// l

// l

// o

For
In addition to for-in loops, Swift supports traditional C-style for loops with a condition and an
incrementer:
1

for var index = 0; index < 3; ++index {

println("index is \(index)")

// index is 0

// index is 1

// index is 2

Heres the general form of this loop format:

for

initialization ;

condition ;

increment

statements
}

Semicolons separate the three parts of the loops definition, as in C. However, unlike C, Swift
doesnt need parentheses around the entire initialization; condition; increment block.
The loop is executed as follows:
1. When the loop is first entered, the initialization expression is evaluated once, to set up any
constants or variables that are needed for the loop.
2. The condition expression is evaluated. If it evaluates to false, the loop ends, and code

execution continues after the for loops closing brace (}). If the expression evaluates to true,
code execution continues by executing the statements inside the braces.
3. After all statements are executed, the increment expression is evaluated. It might increase or
decrease the value of a counter, or set one of the initialized variables to a new value based on
the outcome of the statements. After the increment expression has been evaluated, execution
returns to step 2, and the condition expression is evaluated again.
Constants and variables declared within the initialization expression (such as var index = 0) are
only valid within the scope of the for loop itself. To retrieve the final value of index after the loop
ends, you must declare index before the loops scope begins:
1

var index: Int

for index = 0; index < 3; ++index {

println("index is \(index)")

// index is 0

// index is 1

// index is 2

println("The loop statements were executed \(index) times")

// prints "The loop statements were executed 3 times"

Note that the final value of index after this loop is completed is 3, not 2. The last time the increment
statement ++index is called, it sets index to 3, which causes index < 3 to equate to false, ending the
loop.

While Loops
A while loop performs a set of statements until a condition becomes false. These kinds of loops are
best used when the number of iterations is not known before the first iteration begins. Swift provides
two kinds of while loop:

While

evaluates its condition at the start of each pass through the loop.
do-while evaluates its condition at the end of each pass through the loop.
while

A while loop starts by evaluating a single condition. If the condition is true, a set of statements is
repeated until the condition becomes false.
Heres the general form of a while loop:
while

condition

statements
}

This example plays a simple game of Snakes and Ladders (also known as Chutes and Ladders):

The rules of the game are as follows:

The board has 25 squares, and the aim is to land on or beyond square 25.
Each turn, you roll a six-sided dice and move by that number of squares, following the
horizontal path indicated by the dotted arrow above.
If your turn ends at the bottom of a ladder, you move up that ladder.
If your turn ends at the head of a snake, you move down that snake.
The game board is represented by an array of Int values. Its size is based on a constant called
finalSquare, which is used to initialize the array and also to check for a win condition later in the
example. The board is initialized with 26 zero Int values, not 25 (one each at indexes 0 through 25
inclusive):
1

let finalSquare = 25

var board = [Int](count: finalSquare + 1, repeatedValue: 0)

Some squares are then set to have more specific values for the snakes and ladders. Squares with a
ladder base have a positive number to move you up the board, whereas squares with a snake head
have a negative number to move you back down the board:
1

board[03] = +08; board[06] = +11; board[09] = +09; board[10] = +02

board[14] = -10; board[19] = -11; board[22] = -02; board[24] = -08

Square 3 contains the bottom of a ladder that moves you up to square 11. To represent this, board[03]
is equal to +08, which is equivalent to an integer value of 8 (the difference between 3 and 11). The
unary plus operator (+i) balances with the unary minus operator (-i), and numbers lower than 10 are
padded with zeros so that all board definitions align. (Neither stylistic tweak is strictly necessary, but
they lead to neater code.)
The players starting square is square zero, which is just off the bottom left corner of the board.
The first dice roll always moves the player on to the board:
1

var square = 0

var diceRoll = 0

while square < finalSquare {

// roll the dice

if ++diceRoll == 7 { diceRoll = 1 }

// move by the rolled amount

square += diceRoll

if square < board.count {

// if we're still on the board, move up or down for a snake or a ladder

10

square += board[square]

11

12

13

println("Game over!")

This example uses a very simple approach to dice rolling. Instead of a random number generator, it
starts with a diceRoll value of 0. Each time through the while loop, diceRoll is incremented with the
prefix increment operator (++i), and is then checked to see if it has become too large. The return
value of ++diceRoll is equal to the value of diceRoll after it is incremented. Whenever this return
value equals 7, the dice roll has become too large, and is reset to a value of 1. This gives a sequence
of diceRoll values that is always 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 1, 2 and so on.
After rolling the dice, the player moves forward by diceRoll squares. Its possible that the dice roll

may have moved the player beyond square 25, in which case the game is over. To cope with this
scenario, the code checks that square is less than the board arrays count property before adding the
value stored in board[square] onto the current square value to move the player up or down any
ladders or snakes.
Had this check not been performed, board[square] might try to access a value outside the bounds of
the board array, which would trigger an error. If square is now equal to 26, the code would try to
check the value of board[26], which is larger than the size of the array.
The current while loop execution then ends, and the loops condition is checked to see if the loop
should be executed again. If the player has moved on or beyond square number 25, the loops
condition evaluates to false, and the game ends.
A while loop is appropriate in this case because the length of the game is not clear at the start of the
while loop. Instead, the loop is executed until a particular condition is satisfied.

Do-While
The other variation of the while loop, known as the do-while loop, performs a single pass through the
loop block first, before considering the loops condition. It then continues to repeat the loop until the
condition is false.
Heres the general form of a do-while loop:
do {
statements
} while

condition

Heres the Snakes and Ladders example again, written as a do-while loop rather than a while loop.
The values of finalSquare, board, square, and diceRoll are initialized in exactly the same way as
with a while loop:
1

let finalSquare = 25

var board = [Int](count: finalSquare + 1, repeatedValue: 0)

board[03] = +08; board[06] = +11; board[09] = +09; board[10] = +02

board[14] = -10; board[19] = -11; board[22] = -02; board[24] = -08

var square = 0

var diceRoll = 0

In this version of the game, the first action in the loop is to check for a ladder or a snake. No ladder
on the board takes the player straight to square 25, and so it is not possible to win the game by
moving up a ladder. Therefore, it is safe to check for a snake or a ladder as the first action in the loop.
At the start of the game, the player is on square zero. board[0] always equals 0, and has no effect:
1

do {

// move up or down for a snake or ladder

square += board[square]

// roll the dice

if ++diceRoll == 7 { diceRoll = 1 }

// move by the rolled amount

square += diceRoll

} while square < finalSquare

println("Game over!")

After the code checks for snakes and ladders, the dice is rolled, and the player is moved forward by
diceRoll squares. The current loop execution then ends.
The loops condition (while square < finalSquare) is the same as before, but this time it is not
evaluated until the end of the first run through the loop. The structure of the do-while loop is better
suited to this game than the while loop in the previous example. In the do-while loop above, square
+= board[square] is always executed immediately after the loops while condition confirms that
square is still on the board. This behavior removes the need for the array bounds check seen in the
earlier version of the game.

Conditional Statements
It is often useful to execute different pieces of code based on certain conditions. You might want to
run an extra piece of code when an error occurs, or to display a message when a value becomes too
high or too low. To do this, you make parts of your code conditional.
Swift provides two ways to add conditional branches to your code, known as the if statement and the
switch statement. Typically, you use the if statement to evaluate simple conditions with only a few
possible outcomes. The switch statement is better suited to more complex conditions with multiple
possible permutations, and is useful in situations where pattern-matching can help select an
appropriate code branch to execute.

If
In its simplest form, the if statement has a single if condition. It executes a set of statements only if
that condition is true:
1

var temperatureInFahrenheit = 30

if temperatureInFahrenheit <= 32 {

println("It's very cold. Consider wearing a scarf.")

// prints "It's very cold. Consider wearing a scarf."

The preceding example checks whether the temperature is less than or equal to 32 degrees Fahrenheit
(the freezing point of water). If it is, a message is printed. Otherwise, no message is printed, and code
execution continues after the if statements closing brace.
The if statement can provide an alternative set of statements, known as an else clause, for when the
if condition is false. These statements are indicated by the else keyword:
1

temperatureInFahrenheit = 40

if temperatureInFahrenheit <= 32 {

3
4

println("It's very cold. Consider wearing a scarf.")

} else {

println("It's not that cold. Wear a t-shirt.")

// prints "It's not that cold. Wear a t-shirt."

One of these two branches is always executed. Because the temperature has increased to 40 degrees
Fahrenheit, it is no longer cold enough to advise wearing a scarf, and so the else branch is triggered
instead.
You can chain multiple if statements together, to consider additional clauses:

temperatureInFahrenheit = 90

if temperatureInFahrenheit <= 32 {

3
4

println("It's very cold. Consider wearing a scarf.")

} else if temperatureInFahrenheit >= 86 {

5
6

println("It's really warm. Don't forget to wear sunscreen.")

} else {

println("It's not that cold. Wear a t-shirt.")

// prints "It's really warm. Don't forget to wear sunscreen."

Here, an additional if statement is added to respond to particularly warm temperatures. The final
else clause remains, and prints a response for any temperatures that are neither too warm nor too
cold.
The final else clause is optional, however, and can be excluded if the set of conditions does not need
to be complete:
1

temperatureInFahrenheit = 72

if temperatureInFahrenheit <= 32 {

3
4

println("It's very cold. Consider wearing a scarf.")

} else if temperatureInFahrenheit >= 86 {

5
6

println("It's really warm. Don't forget to wear sunscreen.")

}

In this example, the temperature is neither too cold nor too warm to trigger the if or else
conditions, and so no message is printed.

if

Switch
A switch statement considers a value and compares it against several possible matching patterns. It
then executes an appropriate block of code, based on the first pattern that matches successfully. A
switch statement provides an alternative to the if statement for responding to multiple potential
states.
In its simplest form, a switch statement compares a value against one or more values of the same
type:

switch
case

some value to consider

value 1 :
respond to value 1

case

value 2 ,

value 3 :
respond to value 2 or 3
default:
otherwise, do something else
}

Every switch statement consists of multiple possible cases, each of which begins with the case
keyword. In addition to comparing against specific values, Swift provides several ways for each case
to specify more complex matching patterns. These options are described later in this section.
The body of each switch case is a separate branch of code execution, in a similar manner to the
branches of an if statement. The switch statement determines which branch should be selected. This
is known as switching on the value that is being considered.
Every switch statement must be exhaustive. That is, every possible value of the type being
considered must be matched by one of the switch cases. If it is not appropriate to provide a switch
case for every possible value, you can define a default catch-all case to cover any values that are not
addressed explicitly. This catch-all case is indicated by the keyword default, and must always
appear last.
This example uses a switch statement to consider a single lowercase character called someCharacter:

let someCharacter: Character = "e"

switch someCharacter {

case "a", "e", "i", "o", "u":

println("\(someCharacter) is a vowel")

case "b", "c", "d", "f", "g", "h", "j", "k", "l", "m",

"n", "p", "q", "r", "s", "t", "v", "w", "x", "y", "z":

println("\(someCharacter) is a consonant")

default:

println("\(someCharacter) is not a vowel or a consonant")

10

11

// prints "e is a vowel"

The switch statements first case matches all five lowercase vowels in the English language.
Similarly, its second case matches all lowercase English consonants.
It is not practical to write all other possible characters as part of a switch case, and so this switch
statement provides a default case to match all other characters that are not vowels or consonants.
This provision ensures that the switch statement is exhaustive.

No Implicit Fallthrough
In contrast with switch statements in C and Objective-C, switch statements in Swift do not fall
through the bottom of each case and into the next one by default. Instead, the entire switch statement
finishes its execution as soon as the first matching switch case is completed, without requiring an
explicit break statement. This makes the switch statement safer and easier to use than in C, and
avoids executing more than one switch case by mistake.

NOTE
Although break is not required in Swift, you can still use a break statement to match and ignore a particular case, or to
break out of a matched case before that case has completed its execution. See Break in a Switch Statement for details.

The body of each case must contain at least one executable statement. It is not valid to write the
following code, because the first case is empty:

let anotherCharacter: Character = "a"

switch anotherCharacter {

case "a":

case "A":

println("The letter A")

default:

println("Not the letter A")

// this will report a compile-time error

Unlike a switch statement in C, this switch statement does not match both "a" and "A". Rather, it
reports a compile-time error that case "a": does not contain any executable statements. This
approach avoids accidental fallthrough from one case to another, and makes for safer code that is
clearer in its intent.
Multiple matches for a single switch case can be separated by commas, and can be written over
multiple lines if the list is long:
switch
case

some value to consider

value 1 ,

value 2 :
statements
}

NOTE
To opt in to fallthrough behavior for a particular switch case, use the fallthrough keyword, as described in
Fallthrough.

Interval Matching
Values in switch cases can be checked for their inclusion in an interval. This example uses number
intervals to provide a natural-language count for numbers of any size:

let count = 3_000_000_000_000

let countedThings = "stars in the Milky Way"

var naturalCount: String

switch count {

case 0:

naturalCount = "no"

case 1...3:

naturalCount = "a few"

case 4...9:

10

11

naturalCount = "several"
case 10...99:

12

13

naturalCount = "tens of"

case 100...999:

14

15

naturalCount = "hundreds of"

case 1000...999_999:

16

17

naturalCount = "thousands of"

default:

18

naturalCount = "millions and millions of"

19

20

println("There are \(naturalCount) \(countedThings).")

21

// prints "There are millions and millions of stars in the Milky Way."

NOTE
Both the closed range operator (...) and half-open range operator (..<) functions are overloaded to return either an
IntervalType or Range. An interval can determine whether it contains a particular element, such as when matching
a switch statement case. A range is a collection of consecutive values, which can be iterated on in a for-in
statement.

Tuples
You can use tuples to test multiple values in the same switch statement. Each element of the tuple can

be tested against a different value or interval of values. Alternatively, use the underscore (_)
identifier to match any possible value.
The example below takes an (x, y) point, expressed as a simple tuple of type (Int,
categorizes it on the graph that follows the example:
1

let somePoint = (1, 1)

switch somePoint {

case (0, 0):

4
5

case (_, 0):

println("(\(somePoint.0), 0) is on the x-axis")
case (0, _):

8
9

10

11

and

println("(0, 0) is at the origin")

6
7

Int),

println("(0, \(somePoint.1)) is on the y-axis")

case (-2...2, -2...2):
println("(\(somePoint.0), \(somePoint.1)) is inside the box")

default:

12

println("(\(somePoint.0), \(somePoint.1)) is outside of the box")

13

14

// prints "(1, 1) is inside the box"

The switch statement determines if the point is at the origin (0, 0); on the red x-axis; on the orange yaxis; inside the blue 4-by-4 box centered on the origin; or outside of the box.
Unlike C, Swift allows multiple switch cases to consider the same value or values. In fact, the point

(0, 0) could match all four of the cases in this example. However, if multiple matches are possible,
the first matching case is always used. The point (0, 0) would match case (0, 0) first, and so all
other matching cases would be ignored.

Value Bindings
A switch case can bind the value or values it matches to temporary constants or variables, for use in
the body of the case. This is known as value binding, because the values are bound to temporary
constants or variables within the cases body.
The example below takes an (x, y) point, expressed as a tuple of type (Int,
on the graph that follows:
1

let anotherPoint = (2, 0)

switch anotherPoint {

case (let x, 0):

4
5

case (0, let y):

println("on the y-axis with a y value of \(y)")
case let (x, y):

8
9

10

and categorizes it

println("on the x-axis with an x value of \(x)")

6
7

Int)

println("somewhere else at (\(x), \(y))")

}

// prints "on the x-axis with an x value of 2"

The switch statement determines if the point is on the red x-axis, on the orange y-axis, or elsewhere,

on neither axis.
The three switch cases declare placeholder constants x and y, which temporarily take on one or both
tuple values from anotherPoint. The first case, case (let x, 0), matches any point with a y value of
0 and assigns the points x value to the temporary constant x. Similarly, the second case, case (0, let
y), matches any point with an x value of 0 and assigns the points y value to the temporary constant y.
Once the temporary constants are declared, they can be used within the cases code block. Here, they
are used as shorthand for printing the values with the println function.
Note that this switch statement does not have a default case. The final case, case let (x, y),
declares a tuple of two placeholder constants that can match any value. As a result, it matches all
possible remaining values, and a default case is not needed to make the switch statement exhaustive.
In the example above, x and y are declared as constants with the let keyword, because there is no
need to modify their values within the body of the case. However, they could have been declared as
variables instead, with the var keyword. If this had been done, a temporary variable would have been
created and initialized with the appropriate value. Any changes to that variable would only have an
effect within the body of the case.

Where
A switch case can use a where clause to check for additional conditions.
The example below categorizes an (x, y) point on the following graph:

10

let yetAnotherPoint = (1, -1)

switch yetAnotherPoint {

case let (x, y) where x == y:

4
5

println("(\(x), \(y)) is on the line x == y")

case let (x, y) where x == -y:

6
7

println("(\(x), \(y)) is on the line x == -y")

case let (x, y):

8
9

println("(\(x), \(y)) is just some arbitrary point")

}

// prints "(1, -1) is on the line x == -y"

The switch statement determines if the point is on the green diagonal line where x
diagonal line where x == -y, or neither.

== y,

on the purple

The three switch cases declare placeholder constants x and y, which temporarily take on the two
tuple values from yetAnotherPoint. These constants are used as part of a where clause, to create a
dynamic filter. The switch case matches the current value of point only if the where clauses
condition evaluates to true for that value.
As in the previous example, the final case matches all possible remaining values, and so a default
case is not needed to make the switch statement exhaustive.

Control Transfer Statements

Control transfer statements change the order in which your code is executed, by transferring control
from one piece of code to another. Swift has four control transfer statements:

continue
break
fallthrough
return

The continue, break, and fallthrough statements are described below. The return statement is
described in Functions.

Continue
The continue statement tells a loop to stop what it is doing and start again at the beginning of the next

iteration through the loop. It says I am done with the current loop iteration without leaving the loop
altogether.

NOTE
In a for loop with a condition and incrementer, the loops incrementer is still evaluated after calling the continue
statement. The loop itself continues to work as usual; only the code within the loops body is skipped.

The following example removes all vowels and spaces from a lowercase string to create a cryptic
puzzle phrase:
1

let puzzleInput = "great minds think alike"

var puzzleOutput = ""

for character in puzzleInput {

switch character {

case "a", "e", "i", "o", "u", " ":

6
7

continue
default:

8
9

puzzleOutput.append(character)
}

10

11

println(puzzleOutput)

12

// prints "grtmndsthnklk"

The code above calls the continue keyword whenever it matches a vowel or a space, causing the
current iteration of the loop to end immediately and to jump straight to the start of the next iteration.
This behavior enables the switch block to match (and ignore) only the vowel and space characters,
rather than requiring the block to match every character that should get printed.

Break
The break statement ends execution of an entire control flow statement immediately. The break
statement can be used inside a switch statement or loop statement when you want to terminate the
execution of the switch or loop statement earlier than would otherwise be the case.

Break in a Loop Statement

When used inside a loop statement, break ends the loops execution immediately, and transfers
control to the first line of code after the loops closing brace (}). No further code from the current
iteration of the loop is executed, and no further iterations of the loop are started.

Break in a Switch Statement

When used inside a switch statement, break causes the switch statement to end its execution
immediately, and to transfer control to the first line of code after the switch statements closing brace
(}).
This behavior can be used to match and ignore one or more cases in a switch statement. Because
Swifts switch statement is exhaustive and does not allow empty cases, it is sometimes necessary to
deliberately match and ignore a case in order to make your intentions explicit. You do this by writing
the break statement as the entire body of the case you want to ignore. When that case is matched by
the switch statement, the break statement inside the case ends the switch statements execution
immediately.

NOTE
A switch case that only contains a comment is reported as a compile-time error. Comments are not statements and do
not cause a switch case to be ignored. Always use a break statement to ignore a switch case.

The following example switches on a Character value and determines whether it represents a number
symbol in one of four languages. Multiple values are covered in a single switch case for brevity:

let numberSymbol: Character = ""

var possibleIntegerValue: Int?

switch numberSymbol {

case "1", "", "", "":

5
6
7
8
9

10

possibleIntegerValue = 1
case "2", "", "", "":
possibleIntegerValue = 2
case "3", "", "", "":
possibleIntegerValue = 3

case "4", "", "", "":

11

12

// Simplified Chinese for the number 3

possibleIntegerValue = 4
default:

13

break

14

15

if let integerValue = possibleIntegerValue {

16

17

println("The integer value of \(numberSymbol) is \(integerValue).")

} else {

18

println("An integer value could not be found for \(numberSymbol).")

19

20

// prints "The integer value of is 3."

This example checks numberSymbol to determine whether it is a Latin, Arabic, Chinese, or Thai
symbol for the numbers 1 to 4. If a match is found, one of the switch statements cases sets an optional
Int? variable called possibleIntegerValue to an appropriate integer value.
After the switch statement completes its execution, the example uses optional binding to determine
whether a value was found. The possibleIntegerValue variable has an implicit initial value of nil
by virtue of being an optional type, and so the optional binding will succeed only if
possibleIntegerValue was set to an actual value by one of the switch statements first four cases.
It is not practical to list every possible Character value in the example above, so a default case
provides a catchall for any characters that are not matched. This default case does not need to
perform any action, and so it is written with a single break statement as its body. As soon as the
default case is matched, the break statement ends the switch statements execution, and code
execution continues from the if let statement.

Fallthrough
Switch statements in Swift do not fall through the bottom of each case and into the next one. Instead,
the entire switch statement completes its execution as soon as the first matching case is completed. By
contrast, C requires you to insert an explicit break statement at the end of every switch case to
prevent fallthrough. Avoiding default fallthrough means that Swift switch statements are much more
concise and predictable than their counterparts in C, and thus they avoid executing multiple switch
cases by mistake.
If you really need C-style fallthrough behavior, you can opt in to this behavior on a case-by-case
basis with the fallthrough keyword. The example below uses fallthrough to create a textual
description of a number:
1

let integerToDescribe = 5

var description = "The number \(integerToDescribe) is"

switch integerToDescribe {

case 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19:

description += " a prime number, and also"

fallthrough

default:

8
9

description += " an integer."

}

10

println(description)

11

// prints "The number 5 is a prime number, and also an integer."

This example declares a new String variable called description and assigns it an initial value. The
function then considers the value of integerToDescribe using a switch statement. If the value of
integerToDescribe is one of the prime numbers in the list, the function appends text to the end of
description, to note that the number is prime. It then uses the fallthrough keyword to fall into the
default case as well. The default case adds some extra text to the end of the description, and the
switch statement is complete.
If the value of integerToDescribe is not in the list of known prime numbers, it is not matched by the
first switch case at all. There are no other specific cases, and so integerToDescribe is matched by
the catchall default case.
After the switch statement has finished executing, the numbers description is printed using the
println function. In this example, the number 5 is correctly identified as a prime number.

NOTE
The fallthrough keyword does not check the case conditions for the switch case that it causes execution to fall
into. The fallthrough keyword simply causes code execution to move directly to the statements inside the next case
(or default case) block, as in Cs standard switch statement behavior.

Labeled Statements
You can nest loops and switch statements inside other loops and switch statements in Swift to create
complex control flow structures. However, loops and switch statements can both use the break
statement to end their execution prematurely. Therefore, it is sometimes useful to be explicit about
which loop or switch statement you want a break statement to terminate. Similarly, if you have
multiple nested loops, it can be useful to be explicit about which loop the continue statement should
affect.
To achieve these aims, you can mark a loop statement or switch statement with a statement label, and
use this label with the break statement or continue statement to end or continue the execution of the
labeled statement.
A labeled statement is indicated by placing a label on the same line as the statements introducer
keyword, followed by a colon. Heres an example of this syntax for a while loop, although the
principle is the same for all loops and switch statements:
label name : while

condition

statements
}

The following example uses the break and continue statements with a labeled while loop for an
adapted version of the Snakes and Ladders game that you saw earlier in this chapter. This time
around, the game has an extra rule:
To win, you must land exactly on square 25.
If a particular dice roll would take you beyond square 25, you must roll again until you roll the exact
number needed to land on square 25.
The game board is the same as before:

The values of finalSquare, board, square, and diceRoll are initialized in the same way as before:
1

let finalSquare = 25

var board = [Int](count: finalSquare + 1, repeatedValue: 0)

board[03] = +08; board[06] = +11; board[09] = +09; board[10] = +02

board[14] = -10; board[19] = -11; board[22] = -02; board[24] = -08

var square = 0

var diceRoll = 0

This version of the game uses a while loop and a switch statement to implement the games logic. The
while loop has a statement label called gameLoop, to indicate that it is the main game loop for the
Snakes and Ladders game.
The while loops condition is while
square 25:

square != finalSquare,

to reflect that you must land exactly on

gameLoop: while square != finalSquare {

if ++diceRoll == 7 { diceRoll = 1 }

switch square + diceRoll {

case finalSquare:

// diceRoll will move us to the final square, so the game is over

break gameLoop

case let newSquare where newSquare > finalSquare:

// diceRoll will move us beyond the final square, so roll again

continue gameLoop

10

default:

11

// this is a valid move, so find out its effect

12

square += diceRoll

13

square += board[square]

14

15

16

println("Game over!")

The dice is rolled at the start of each loop. Rather than moving the player immediately, a switch
statement is used to consider the result of the move, and to work out if the move is allowed:
If the dice roll will move the player onto the final square, the game is over. The break
gameLoop statement transfers control to the first line of code outside of the while loop, which
ends the game.
If the dice roll will move the player beyond the final square, the move is invalid, and the
player needs to roll again. The continue gameLoop statement ends the current while loop
iteration and begins the next iteration of the loop.
In all other cases, the dice roll is a valid move. The player moves forward by diceRoll
squares, and the game logic checks for any snakes and ladders. The loop then ends, and
control returns to the while condition to decide whether another turn is required.

NOTE
If the break statement above did not use the gameLoop label, it would break out of the switch statement, not the
while statement. Using the gameLoop label makes it clear which control statement should be terminated.
Note also that it is not strictly necessary to use the gameLoop label when calling continue gameLoop to jump to the
next iteration of the loop. There is only one loop in the game, and so there is no ambiguity as to which loop the continue
statement will affect. However, there is no harm in using the gameLoop label with the continue statement. Doing so is
consistent with the labels use alongside the break statement, and helps make the games logic clearer to read and
understand.

Functions
Functions are self-contained chunks of code that perform a specific task. You give a function a name
that identifies what it does, and this name is used to call the function to perform its task when
needed.
Swifts unified function syntax is flexible enough to express anything from a simple C-style function
with no parameter names to a complex Objective-C-style method with local and external parameter
names for each parameter. Parameters can provide default values to simplify function calls and can be
passed as in-out parameters, which modify a passed variable once the function has completed its
execution.
Every function in Swift has a type, consisting of the functions parameter types and return type. You
can use this type like any other type in Swift, which makes it easy to pass functions as parameters to
other functions, and to return functions from functions. Functions can also be written within other
functions to encapsulate useful functionality within a nested function scope.

Defining and Calling Functions

When you define a function, you can optionally define one or more named, typed values that the
function takes as input (known as parameters), and/or a type of value that the function will pass back
as output when it is done (known as its return type).
Every function has a function name, which describes the task that the function performs. To use a
function, you call that function with its name and pass it input values (known as arguments) that
match the types of the functions parameters. A functions arguments must always be provided in the
same order as the functions parameter list.
The function in the example below is called sayHello, because thats what it doesit takes a
persons name as input and returns a greeting for that person. To accomplish this, you define one input
parametera String value called personNameand a return type of String, which will contain a
greeting for that person:
1

func sayHello(personName: String) -> String {

let greeting = "Hello, " + personName + "!"

return greeting

All of this information is rolled up into the functions definition, which is prefixed with the func
keyword. You indicate the functions return type with the return arrow -> (a hyphen followed by a
right angle bracket), which is followed by the name of the type to return.
The definition describes what the function does, what it expects to receive, and what it returns when
it is done. The definition makes it easy for the function to be called unambiguously from elsewhere in
your code:
1

println(sayHello("Anna"))

// prints "Hello, Anna!"

println(sayHello("Brian"))

// prints "Hello, Brian!"

You call the sayHello function by passing it a String argument value in parentheses, such as
sayHello("Anna"). Because the function returns a String value, sayHello can be wrapped in a call to
the println function to print that string and see its return value, as shown above.
The body of the sayHello function starts by defining a new String constant called greeting and
setting it to a simple greeting message for personName. This greeting is then passed back out of the
function using the return keyword. As soon as return greeting is called, the function finishes its
execution and returns the current value of greeting.
You can call the sayHello function multiple times with different input values. The example above
shows what happens if it is called with an input value of "Anna", and an input value of "Brian". The
function returns a tailored greeting in each case.
To simplify the body of this function, combine the message creation and the return statement into one
line:
1

func sayHelloAgain(personName: String) -> String {

return "Hello again, " + personName + "!"

println(sayHelloAgain("Anna"))

// prints "Hello again, Anna!"

Function Parameters and Return Values

Function parameters and return values are extremely flexible in Swift. You can define anything from a
simple utility function with a single unnamed parameter to a complex function with expressive

parameter names and different parameter options.

Multiple Input Parameters

Functions can have multiple input parameters, which are written within the functions parentheses,
separated by commas.
This function takes a start and an end index for a half-open range, and works out how many elements
the range contains:
1

func halfOpenRangeLength(start: Int, end: Int) -> Int {

return end - start

println(halfOpenRangeLength(1, 10))

// prints "9"

Functions Without Parameters

Functions are not required to define input parameters. Heres a function with no input parameters,
which always returns the same String message whenever it is called:
1

func sayHelloWorld() -> String {

return "hello, world"

println(sayHelloWorld())

// prints "hello, world"

The function definition still needs parentheses after the functions name, even though it does not take
any parameters. The function name is also followed by an empty pair of parentheses when the
function is called.

Functions Without Return Values

Functions are not required to define a return type. Heres a version of the sayHello function, called
sayGoodbye, which prints its own String value rather than returning it:

func sayGoodbye(personName: String) {

println("Goodbye, \(personName)!")

sayGoodbye("Dave")

// prints "Goodbye, Dave!"

Because it does not need to return a value, the functions definition does not include the return arrow
(->) or a return type.

NOTE
Strictly speaking, the sayGoodbye function does still return a value, even though no return value is defined. Functions
without a defined return type return a special value of type Void. This is simply an empty tuple, in effect a tuple with zero
elements, which can be written as ().

The return value of a function can be ignored when it is called:

1

func printAndCount(stringToPrint: String) -> Int {

println(stringToPrint)

return count(stringToPrint)

func printWithoutCounting(stringToPrint: String) {

printAndCount(stringToPrint)

printAndCount("hello, world")

// prints "hello, world" and returns a value of 12

10

printWithoutCounting("hello, world")

11

// prints "hello, world" but does not return a value

The first function, printAndCount, prints a string, and then returns its character count as an Int. The
second function, printWithoutCounting, calls the first function, but ignores its return value. When the
second function is called, the message is still printed by the first function, but the returned value is not
used.

NOTE
Return values can be ignored, but a function that says it will return a value must always do so. A function with a defined
return type cannot allow control to fall out of the bottom of the function without returning a value, and attempting to do so
will result in a compile-time error.

Functions with Multiple Return Values

You can use a tuple type as the return type for a function to return multiple values as part of one
compound return value.
The example below defines a function called minMax, which finds the smallest and largest numbers in
an array of Int values:
1

func minMax(array: [Int]) -> (min: Int, max: Int) {

var currentMin = array[0]

var currentMax = array[0]

for value in array[1..<array.count] {

if value < currentMin {

currentMin = value

} else if value > currentMax {

currentMax = value

10

11

return (currentMin, currentMax)

12

The minMax function returns a tuple containing two Int values. These values are labeled min and max
so that they can be accessed by name when querying the functions return value.
The body of the minMax function starts by setting two working variables called currentMin and
currentMax to the value of the first integer in the array. The function then iterates over the remaining
values in the array and checks each value to see if it is smaller or larger than the values of currentMin
and currentMax respectively. Finally, the overall minimum and maximum values are returned as a
tuple of two Int values.
Because the tuples member values are named as part of the functions return type, they can be

accessed with dot syntax to retrieve the minimum and maximum found values:
1

let bounds = minMax([8, -6, 2, 109, 3, 71])

println("min is \(bounds.min) and max is \(bounds.max)")

// prints "min is -6 and max is 109"

Note that the tuples members do not need to be named at the point that the tuple is returned from the
function, because their names are already specified as part of the functions return type.

Optional Tuple Return Types

If the tuple type to be returned from a function has the potential to have no value for the entire tuple,
you can use an optional tuple return type to reflect the fact that the entire tuple can be nil. You write
an optional tuple return type by placing a question mark after the tuple types closing parenthesis, such
as (Int, Int)? or (String, Int, Bool)?.

NOTE
An optional tuple type such as (Int, Int)? is different from a tuple that contains optional types such as (Int?,
Int?). With an optional tuple type, the entire tuple is optional, not just each individual value within the tuple.

The minMax function above returns a tuple containing two Int values. However, the function does not
perform any safety checks on the array it is passed. If the array argument contains an empty array, the
minMax function, as defined above, will trigger a runtime error when attempting to access array[0].
To handle this empty array scenario safely, write the minMax function with an optional tuple return
type and return a value of nil when the array is empty:

func minMax(array: [Int]) -> (min: Int, max: Int)? {

if array.isEmpty { return nil }

var currentMin = array[0]

var currentMax = array[0]

for value in array[1..<array.count] {

if value < currentMin {

currentMin = value

} else if value > currentMax {

currentMax = value

10

11

12

return (currentMin, currentMax)

13

You can use optional binding to check whether this version of the minMax function returns an actual
tuple value or nil:
1

if let bounds = minMax([8, -6, 2, 109, 3, 71]) {

println("min is \(bounds.min) and max is \(bounds.max)")

// prints "min is -6 and max is 109"

Function Parameter Names

All of the above functions define parameter names for their parameters:
1

func someFunction(parameterName: Int) {

// function body goes here, and can use parameterName

// to refer to the argument value for that parameter

However, these parameter names are only used within the body of the function itself, and cannot be
used when calling the function. These kinds of parameter names are known as local parameter

names, because they are only available for use within the functions body.

External Parameter Names

Sometimes its useful to name each parameter when you call a function, to indicate the purpose of
each argument you pass to the function.
If you want users of your function to provide parameter names when they call your function, define an
external parameter name for each parameter, in addition to the local parameter name. You write an
external parameter name before the local parameter name it supports, separated by a space:
1

func someFunction(externalParameterName localParameterName: Int) {

// function body goes here, and can use localParameterName

// to refer to the argument value for that parameter

NOTE
If you provide an external parameter name for a parameter, that external name must always be used when you call the
function.

As an example, consider the following function, which joins two strings by inserting a third joiner
string between them:
1

func join(s1: String, s2: String, joiner: String) -> String {

2
3

return s1 + joiner + s2
}

When you call this function, the purpose of the three strings that you pass to the function is unclear:
1

join("hello", "world", ", ")

// returns "hello, world"

To make the purpose of these String values clearer, define external parameter names for each join
function parameter:

func join(string s1: String, toString s2: String, withJoiner joiner: String)

-> String {

3
4

return s1 + joiner + s2
}

In this version of the join function, the first parameter has an external name of string and a local
name of s1; the second parameter has an external name of toString and a local name of s2; and the
third parameter has an external name of withJoiner and a local name of joiner.
You can now use these external parameter names to call the function unambiguously:
1

join(string: "hello", toString: "world", withJoiner: ", ")

// returns "hello, world"

The use of external parameter names enables this second version of the join function to be called in
an expressive, sentence-like manner by users of the function, while still providing a function body that
is readable and clear in intent.

NOTE
Consider using external parameter names whenever the purpose of a functions arguments would be unclear to someone
reading your code for the first time. You do not need to specify external parameter names if the purpose of each parameter
is unambiguous when the function is called.

Shorthand External Parameter Names

If you want to provide an external parameter name for a function parameter, and the local parameter
name is already an appropriate name to use, you do not need to write the same name twice for that
parameter. Instead, write the name once, and prefix the name with a hash symbol (#). This tells Swift
to use that name as both the local parameter name and the external parameter name.
This example defines a function called containsCharacter, which defines external parameter names
for both of its parameters by placing a hash symbol before their local parameter names:

func containsCharacter(#string: String, #characterToFind: Character) -> Bool {

for character in string {

if character == characterToFind {

return true

return false

This functions choice of parameter names makes for a clear, readable function body, while also
enabling the function to be called without ambiguity:
1

let containsAVee = containsCharacter(string: "aardvark", characterToFind: "v")

// containsAVee equals true, because "aardvark" contains a "v"

Default Parameter Values

You can define a default value for any parameter as part of a functions definition. If a default value
is defined, you can omit that parameter when calling the function.

NOTE
Place parameters with default values at the end of a functions parameter list. This ensures that all calls to the function use
the same order for their non-default arguments, and makes it clear that the same function is being called in each case.

Heres a version of the join function from earlier, which provides a default value for its joiner
parameter:
1

func join(string s1: String, toString s2: String,

withJoiner joiner: String = " ") -> String {

3
4

return s1 + joiner + s2
}

If a string value for joiner is provided when the join function is called, that string value is used to
join the two strings together, as before:

join(string: "hello", toString: "world", withJoiner: "-")

// returns "hello-world"

However, if no value of joiner is provided when the function is called, the default value of a single
space (" ") is used instead:
1

join(string: "hello", toString: "world")

// returns "hello world"

External Names for Parameters with Default Values

In most cases, it is useful to provide (and therefore require) an external name for any parameter with
a default value. This ensures that the argument for that parameter is clear in purpose if a value is
provided when the function is called.
To make this process easier, Swift provides an automatic external name for any parameter that has a
default value. The automatic external name is the same as the local name, as if you had written a hash
symbol before the local name in your code.
Heres a version of the join function from earlier, which does not provide external names for any of
its parameters, but still provides a default value for its joiner parameter:
1

func join(s1: String, s2: String, joiner: String = " ") -> String {

2
3

return s1 + joiner + s2
}

In this case, Swift automatically provides an external parameter name for the joiner parameter. The
external name must therefore be provided when calling the function, making the parameters purpose
clear and unambiguous:
1

join("hello", "world", joiner: "-")

// returns "hello-world"

NOTE
You can opt out of this behavior by writing an underscore (_) instead of an explicit external name when you define the
parameter. However, external names for parameters with default values are preferred.

Variadic Parameters
A variadic parameter accepts zero or more values of a specified type. You use a variadic parameter
to specify that the parameter can be passed a varying number of input values when the function is
called. Write variadic parameters by inserting three period characters (...) after the parameters type
name.
The values passed to a variadic parameter are made available within the functions body as an array
of the appropriate type. For example, a variadic parameter with a name of numbers and a type of
Double... is made available within the functions body as a constant array called numbers of type
[Double].
The example below calculates the arithmetic mean (also known as the average) for a list of numbers
of any length:
1

func arithmeticMean(numbers: Double...) -> Double {

var total: Double = 0

for number in numbers {

total += number

return total / Double(numbers.count)

arithmeticMean(1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

// returns 3.0, which is the arithmetic mean of these five numbers

10

arithmeticMean(3, 8.25, 18.75)

11

// returns 10.0, which is the arithmetic mean of these three numbers

NOTE
A function may have at most one variadic parameter, and it must always appear last in the parameter list, to avoid
ambiguity when calling the function with multiple parameters.
If your function has one or more parameters with a default value, and also has a variadic parameter, place the variadic
parameter after all the defaulted parameters at the very end of the list.

Constant and Variable Parameters

Function parameters are constants by default. Trying to change the value of a function parameter from
within the body of that function results in a compile-time error. This means that you cant change the
value of a parameter by mistake.
However, sometimes it is useful for a function to have a variable copy of a parameters value to work
with. You can avoid defining a new variable yourself within the function by specifying one or more
parameters as variable parameters instead. Variable parameters are available as variables rather
than as constants, and give a new modifiable copy of the parameters value for your function to work
with.
Define variable parameters by prefixing the parameter name with the keyword var:
1

func alignRight(var string: String, count: Int, pad: Character) -> String {

let amountToPad = count - count(string)

if amountToPad < 1 {

return string

let padString = String(pad)

for _ in 1...amountToPad {

8
9

10

string = padString + string

}
return string

11

12

let originalString = "hello"

13

let paddedString = alignRight(originalString, 10, "-")

14

// paddedString is equal to "-----hello"

15

// originalString is still equal to "hello"

This example defines a new function called alignRight, which aligns an input string to the right edge
of a longer output string. Any space on the left is filled with a specified padding character. In this
example, the string "hello" is converted to the string "-----hello".
The alignRight function defines the input parameter string to be a variable parameter. This means
that string is now available as a local variable, initialized with the passed-in string value, and can
be manipulated within the body of the function.
The function starts by working out how many characters need to be added to the left of string in

order to right-align it within the overall string. This value is stored in a local constant called
amountToPad. If no padding is needed (that is, if amountToPad is less than 1), the function simply
returns the input value of string without any padding.
Otherwise, the function creates a new temporary String constant called padString, initialized with
the pad character, and adds amountToPad copies of padString to the left of the existing string. (A
String value cannot be added on to a Character value, and so the padString constant is used to
ensure that both sides of the + operator are String values.)

NOTE
The changes you make to a variable parameter do not persist beyond the end of each call to the function, and are not
visible outside the functions body. The variable parameter only exists for the lifetime of that function call.

In-Out Parameters
Variable parameters, as described above, can only be changed within the function itself. If you want a
function to modify a parameters value, and you want those changes to persist after the function call
has ended, define that parameter as an in-out parameter instead.
You write an in-out parameter by placing the inout keyword at the start of its parameter definition.
An in-out parameter has a value that is passed in to the function, is modified by the function, and is
passed back out of the function to replace the original value.
You can only pass a variable as the argument for an in-out parameter. You cannot pass a constant or a
literal value as the argument, because constants and literals cannot be modified. You place an
ampersand (&) directly before a variables name when you pass it as an argument to an inout
parameter, to indicate that it can be modified by the function.

NOTE
In-out parameters cannot have default values, and variadic parameters cannot be marked as inout. If you mark a
parameter as inout, it cannot also be marked as var or let.

Heres an example of a function called swapTwoInts, which has two in-out integer parameters called a
and b:

func swapTwoInts(inout a: Int, inout b: Int) {

let temporaryA = a

a = b

b = temporaryA

The swapTwoInts function simply swaps the value of b into a, and the value of a into b. The function
performs this swap by storing the value of a in a temporary constant called temporaryA, assigning the
value of b to a, and then assigning temporaryA to b.
You can call the swapTwoInts function with two variables of type Int to swap their values. Note that
the names of someInt and anotherInt are prefixed with an ampersand when they are passed to the
swapTwoInts function:
1

var someInt = 3

var anotherInt = 107

swapTwoInts(&someInt, &anotherInt)

println("someInt is now \(someInt), and anotherInt is now \(anotherInt)")

// prints "someInt is now 107, and anotherInt is now 3"

The example above shows that the original values of someInt and anotherInt are modified by the
swapTwoInts function, even though they were originally defined outside of the function.

NOTE
In-out parameters are not the same as returning a value from a function. The swapTwoInts example above does not
define a return type or return a value, but it still modifies the values of someInt and anotherInt. In-out parameters
are an alternative way for a function to have an effect outside of the scope of its function body.

Function Types
Every function has a specific function type, made up of the parameter types and the return type of the
function.
For example:

func addTwoInts(a: Int, b: Int) -> Int {

return a + b

func multiplyTwoInts(a: Int, b: Int) -> Int {

5
6

return a * b
}

This example defines two simple mathematical functions called addTwoInts and multiplyTwoInts.
These functions each take two Int values, and return an Int value, which is the result of performing
an appropriate mathematical operation.
The type of both of these functions is (Int,

Int) -> Int.

This can be read as:

A function type that has two parameters, both of type Int, and that returns a value of type Int.
Heres another example, for a function with no parameters or return value:
1

func printHelloWorld() {

2
3

println("hello, world")
}

The type of this function is () -> (), or a function that has no parameters, and returns Void.
Functions that dont specify a return value always return Void, which is equivalent to an empty tuple
in Swift, shown as ().

Using Function Types

You use function types just like any other types in Swift. For example, you can define a constant or
variable to be of a function type and assign an appropriate function to that variable:
var mathFunction: (Int, Int) -> Int = addTwoInts

This can be read as:

Define a variable called mathFunction, which has a type of a function that takes two Int values,
and returns an Int value. Set this new variable to refer to the function called addTwoInts.
The addTwoInts function has the same type as the mathFunction variable, and so this assignment is
allowed by Swifts type-checker.

You can now call the assigned function with the name mathFunction:
1

println("Result: \(mathFunction(2, 3))")

// prints "Result: 5"

A different function with the same matching type can be assigned to the same variable, in the same
way as for non-function types:
1

mathFunction = multiplyTwoInts

println("Result: \(mathFunction(2, 3))")

// prints "Result: 6"

As with any other type, you can leave it to Swift to infer the function type when you assign a function
to a constant or variable:
1

let anotherMathFunction = addTwoInts

// anotherMathFunction is inferred to be of type (Int, Int) -> Int

Function Types as Parameter Types

You can use a function type such as (Int, Int) -> Int as a parameter type for another function. This
enables you to leave some aspects of a functions implementation for the functions caller to provide
when the function is called.
Heres an example to print the results of the math functions from above:
1

func printMathResult(mathFunction: (Int, Int) -> Int, a: Int, b: Int) {

println("Result: \(mathFunction(a, b))")

printMathResult(addTwoInts, 3, 5)

// prints "Result: 8"

This example defines a function called printMathResult, which has three parameters. The first
parameter is called mathFunction, and is of type (Int, Int) -> Int. You can pass any function of
that type as the argument for this first parameter. The second and third parameters are called a and b,
and are both of type Int. These are used as the two input values for the provided math function.
When printMathResult is called, it is passed the addTwoInts function, and the integer values 3 and 5.

It calls the provided function with the values 3 and 5, and prints the result of 8.
The role of printMathResult is to print the result of a call to a math function of an appropriate type. It
doesnt matter what that functions implementation actually doesit matters only that the function is
of the correct type. This enables printMathResult to hand off some of its functionality to the caller of
the function in a type-safe way.

Function Types as Return Types

You can use a function type as the return type of another function. You do this by writing a complete
function type immediately after the return arrow (->) of the returning function.
The next example defines two simple functions called stepForward and stepBackward. The
stepForward function returns a value one more than its input value, and the stepBackward function
returns a value one less than its input value. Both functions have a type of (Int) -> Int:
1

func stepForward(input: Int) -> Int {

return input + 1

func stepBackward(input: Int) -> Int {

5
6

return input - 1
}

Heres a function called chooseStepFunction, whose return type is a function of type (Int) ->
chooseStepFunction returns the stepForward function or the stepBackward function based on a
Boolean parameter called backwards:
1

func chooseStepFunction(backwards: Bool) -> (Int) -> Int {

2
3

Int.

return backwards ? stepBackward : stepForward

}

You can now use chooseStepFunction to obtain a function that will step in one direction or the other:
1

var currentValue = 3

let moveNearerToZero = chooseStepFunction(currentValue > 0)

// moveNearerToZero now refers to the stepBackward() function

The preceding example determines whether a positive or negative step is needed to move a variable

called currentValue progressively closer to zero. currentValue has an initial value of 3, which
means that currentValue > 0 returns true, causing chooseStepFunction to return the stepBackward
function. A reference to the returned function is stored in a constant called moveNearerToZero.
Now that moveNearerToZero refers to the correct function, it can be used to count to zero:
1

println("Counting to zero:")

// Counting to zero:

while currentValue != 0 {

println("\(currentValue)... ")

currentValue = moveNearerToZero(currentValue)

println("zero!")

// 3...

// 2...

10

// 1...

11

// zero!

Nested Functions
All of the functions you have encountered so far in this chapter have been examples of global
functions, which are defined at a global scope. You can also define functions inside the bodies of
other functions, known as nested functions.
Nested functions are hidden from the outside world by default, but can still be called and used by
their enclosing function. An enclosing function can also return one of its nested functions to allow the
nested function to be used in another scope.
You can rewrite the chooseStepFunction example above to use and return nested functions:

func chooseStepFunction(backwards: Bool) -> (Int) -> Int {

func stepForward(input: Int) -> Int { return input + 1 }

func stepBackward(input: Int) -> Int { return input - 1 }

return backwards ? stepBackward : stepForward

var currentValue = -4

let moveNearerToZero = chooseStepFunction(currentValue > 0)

// moveNearerToZero now refers to the nested stepForward() function

while currentValue != 0 {

10

println("\(currentValue)... ")

11

currentValue = moveNearerToZero(currentValue)

12

13

println("zero!")

14

// -4...

15

// -3...

16

// -2...

17

// -1...

18

// zero!

Closures
Closures are self-contained blocks of functionality that can be passed around and used in your code.
Closures in Swift are similar to blocks in C and Objective-C and to lambdas in other programming
languages.
Closures can capture and store references to any constants and variables from the context in which
they are defined. This is known as closing over those constants and variables, hence the name
closures. Swift handles all of the memory management of capturing for you.

NOTE
Dont worry if you are not familiar with the concept of capturing. It is explained in detail below in Capturing Values.

Global and nested functions, as introduced in Functions, are actually special cases of closures.
Closures take one of three forms:
Global functions are closures that have a name and do not capture any values.
Nested functions are closures that have a name and can capture values from their enclosing
function.
Closure expressions are unnamed closures written in a lightweight syntax that can capture
values from their surrounding context.
Swifts closure expressions have a clean, clear style, with optimizations that encourage brief, clutterfree syntax in common scenarios. These optimizations include:

Inferring parameter and return value types from context

Implicit returns from single-expression closures
Shorthand argument names
Trailing closure syntax

Closure Expressions
Nested functions, as introduced in Nested Functions, are a convenient means of naming and defining

self-contained blocks of code as part of a larger function. However, it is sometimes useful to write
shorter versions of function-like constructs without a full declaration and name. This is particularly
true when you work with functions that take other functions as one or more of their arguments.
Closure expressions are a way to write inline closures in a brief, focused syntax. Closure
expressions provide several syntax optimizations for writing closures in a shortened form without
loss of clarity or intent. The closure expression examples below illustrate these optimizations by
refining a single example of the sorted function over several iterations, each of which expresses the
same functionality in a more succinct way.

The Sorted Function

Swifts standard library provides a function called sorted, which sorts an array of values of a known
type, based on the output of a sorting closure that you provide. Once it completes the sorting process,
the sorted function returns a new array of the same type and size as the old one, with its elements in
the correct sorted order. The original array is not modified by the sorted function.
The closure expression examples below use the sorted function to sort an array of String values in
reverse alphabetical order. Heres the initial array to be sorted:
let names = ["Chris", "Alex", "Ewa", "Barry", "Daniella"]

The sorted function takes two arguments:

An array of values of a known type.
A closure that takes two arguments of the same type as the arrays contents, and returns a Bool
value to say whether the first value should appear before or after the second value once the
values are sorted. The sorting closure needs to return true if the first value should appear
before the second value, and false otherwise.
This example is sorting an array of String values, and so the sorting closure needs to be a function of
type (String, String) -> Bool.
One way to provide the sorting closure is to write a normal function of the correct type, and to pass it
in as the sorted functions second parameter:

func backwards(s1: String, s2: String) -> Bool {

return s1 > s2

var reversed = sorted(names, backwards)

// reversed is equal to ["Ewa", "Daniella", "Chris", "Barry", "Alex"]

If the first string (s1) is greater than the second string (s2), the backwards function will return true,
indicating that s1 should appear before s2 in the sorted array. For characters in strings, greater than
means appears later in the alphabet than. This means that the letter "B" is greater than the letter
"A", and the string "Tom" is greater than the string "Tim". This gives a reverse alphabetical sort, with
"Barry" being placed before "Alex", and so on.
However, this is a rather long-winded way to write what is essentially a single-expression function (a
> b). In this example, it would be preferable to write the sorting closure inline, using closure
expression syntax.

Closure Expression Syntax

Closure expression syntax has the following general form:
{ ( parameters ) ->

return type

in

statements
}

Closure expression syntax can use constant parameters, variable parameters, and inout parameters.
Default values cannot be provided. Variadic parameters can be used if you name the variadic
parameter and place it last in the parameter list. Tuples can also be used as parameter types and
return types.
The example below shows a closure expression version of the backwards function from earlier:
1

reversed = sorted(names, { (s1: String, s2: String) -> Bool in

2
3

return s1 > s2
})

Note that the declaration of parameters and return type for this inline closure is identical to the
declaration from the backwards function. In both cases, it is written as (s1: String, s2: String) ->
Bool. However, for the inline closure expression, the parameters and return type are written inside the

curly braces, not outside of them.

The start of the closures body is introduced by the in keyword. This keyword indicates that the
definition of the closures parameters and return type has finished, and the body of the closure is
about to begin.
Because the body of the closure is so short, it can even be written on a single line:
reversed = sorted(names, { (s1: String, s2: String) -> Bool in return s1 > s2 } )

This illustrates that the overall call to the sorted function has remained the same. A pair of
parentheses still wrap the entire set of arguments for the function. However, one of those arguments is
now an inline closure.

Inferring Type From Context

Because the sorting closure is passed as an argument to a function, Swift can infer the types of its
parameters and the type of the value it returns from the type of the sorted functions second
parameter. This parameter is expecting a function of type (String, String) -> Bool. This means that
the (String, String) and Bool types do not need to be written as part of the closure expressions
definition. Because all of the types can be inferred, the return arrow (->) and the parentheses around
the names of the parameters can also be omitted:
reversed = sorted(names, { s1, s2 in return s1 > s2 } )

It is always possible to infer the parameter types and return type when passing a closure to a function
as an inline closure expression. As a result, you never need to write an inline closure in its fullest
form when the closure is used as a function argument.
Nonetheless, you can still make the types explicit if you wish, and doing so is encouraged if it avoids
ambiguity for readers of your code. In the case of the sorted function, the purpose of the closure is
clear from the fact that sorting is taking place, and it is safe for a reader to assume that the closure is
likely to be working with String values, because it is assisting with the sorting of an array of strings.

Implicit Returns from Single-Expression Closures

Single-expression closures can implicitly return the result of their single expression by omitting the
return keyword from their declaration, as in this version of the previous example:
reversed = sorted(names, { s1, s2 in s1 > s2 } )

Here, the function type of the sorted functions second argument makes it clear that a Bool value must
be returned by the closure. Because the closures body contains a single expression (s1 > s2) that
returns a Bool value, there is no ambiguity, and the return keyword can be omitted.

Shorthand Argument Names

Swift automatically provides shorthand argument names to inline closures, which can be used to refer
to the values of the closures arguments by the names $0, $1, $2, and so on.
If you use these shorthand argument names within your closure expression, you can omit the closures
argument list from its definition, and the number and type of the shorthand argument names will be
inferred from the expected function type. The in keyword can also be omitted, because the closure
expression is made up entirely of its body:
reversed = sorted(names, { $0 > $1 } )

Here, $0 and $1 refer to the closures first and second String arguments.

Operator Functions
Theres actually an even shorter way to write the closure expression above. Swifts String type
defines its string-specific implementation of the greater-than operator (>) as a function that has two
parameters of type String, and returns a value of type Bool. This exactly matches the function type
needed for the sorted functions second parameter. Therefore, you can simply pass in the greater-than
operator, and Swift will infer that you want to use its string-specific implementation:
reversed = sorted(names, >)

For more about operator functions, see Operator Functions.

Trailing Closures
If you need to pass a closure expression to a function as the functions final argument and the closure
expression is long, it can be useful to write it as a trailing closure instead. A trailing closure is a
closure expression that is written outside of (and after) the parentheses of the function call it
supports:

func someFunctionThatTakesAClosure(closure: () -> ()) {

// function body goes here

4
5

// here's how you call this function without using a trailing closure:

6
7

someFunctionThatTakesAClosure({

// closure's body goes here

})

10

11

// here's how you call this function with a trailing closure instead:

12

13

someFunctionThatTakesAClosure() {

14

15

// trailing closure's body goes here

}

NOTE
If a closure expression is provided as the functions only argument and you provide that expression as a trailing closure, you
do not need to write a pair of parentheses () after the functions name when you call the function.

The string-sorting closure from the Closure Expression Syntax section above can be written outside
of the sorted functions parentheses as a trailing closure:
reversed = sorted(names) { $0 > $1 }

Trailing closures are most useful when the closure is sufficiently long that it is not possible to write it
inline on a single line. As an example, Swifts Array type has a map(_:) method which takes a closure
expression as its single argument. The closure is called once for each item in the array, and returns an
alternative mapped value (possibly of some other type) for that item. The nature of the mapping and
the type of the returned value is left up to the closure to specify.
After applying the provided closure to each array element, the map(_:) method returns a new array
containing all of the new mapped values, in the same order as their corresponding values in the
original array.

Heres how you can use the map(_:) method with a trailing closure to convert an array of Int values
into an array of String values. The array [16, 58, 510] is used to create the new array ["OneSix",
"FiveEight", "FiveOneZero"]:
1

let digitNames = [

0: "Zero", 1: "One", 2: "Two",

5: "Five", 6: "Six", 7: "Seven", 8: "Eight", 9: "Nine"

let numbers = [16, 58, 510]

3: "Three", 4: "Four",

The code above creates a dictionary of mappings between the integer digits and English-language
versions of their names. It also defines an array of integers, ready to be converted into strings.
You can now use the numbers array to create an array of String values, by passing a closure
expression to the arrays map(_:) method as a trailing closure. Note that the call to numbers.map does
not need to include any parentheses after map, because the map(_:) method has only one parameter,
and that parameter is provided as a trailing closure:
1

let strings = numbers.map {

(var number) -> String in

var output = ""

while number > 0 {

output = digitNames[number % 10]! + output

number /= 10

return output

10

// strings is inferred to be of type [String]

11

// its value is ["OneSix", "FiveEight", "FiveOneZero"]

The map(_:) method calls the closure expression once for each item in the array. You do not need to
specify the type of the closures input parameter, number, because the type can be inferred from the
values in the array to be mapped.
In this example, the closures number parameter is defined as a variable parameter, as described in
Constant and Variable Parameters, so that the parameters value can be modified within the closure
body, rather than declaring a new local variable and assigning the passed number value to it. The
closure expression also specifies a return type of String, to indicate the type that will be stored in the

mapped output array.

The closure expression builds a string called output each time it is called. It calculates the last digit
of number by using the remainder operator (number % 10), and uses this digit to look up an appropriate
string in the digitNames dictionary. The closure can be used to create a string representation of any
integer number greater than zero.

NOTE
The call to the digitNames dictionarys subscript is followed by an exclamation mark (!), because dictionary subscripts
return an optional value to indicate that the dictionary lookup can fail if the key does not exist. In the example above, it is
guaranteed that number % 10 will always be a valid subscript key for the digitNames dictionary, and so an
exclamation mark is used to force-unwrap the String value stored in the subscripts optional return value.

The string retrieved from the digitNames dictionary is added to the front of output, effectively
building a string version of the number in reverse. (The expression number % 10 gives a value of 6 for
16, 8 for 58, and 0 for 510.)
The number variable is then divided by 10. Because it is an integer, it is rounded down during the
division, so 16 becomes 1, 58 becomes 5, and 510 becomes 51.
The process is repeated until number /= 10 is equal to 0, at which point the output string is returned
by the closure, and is added to the output array by the map function.
The use of trailing closure syntax in the example above neatly encapsulates the closures functionality
immediately after the function that closure supports, without needing to wrap the entire closure within
the map functions outer parentheses.

Capturing Values
A closure can capture constants and variables from the surrounding context in which it is defined.
The closure can then refer to and modify the values of those constants and variables from within its
body, even if the original scope that defined the constants and variables no longer exists.
In Swift, the simplest form of a closure that can capture values is a nested function, written within the
body of another function. A nested function can capture any of its outer functions arguments and can
also capture any constants and variables defined within the outer function.
Heres an example of a function called makeIncrementer, which contains a nested function called
incrementer. The nested incrementer function captures two values, runningTotal and amount, from
its surrounding context. After capturing these values, incrementer is returned by makeIncrementer as
a closure that increments runningTotal by amount each time it is called.

func makeIncrementer(forIncrement amount: Int) -> () -> Int {

var runningTotal = 0

func incrementer() -> Int {

runningTotal += amount

return runningTotal

return incrementer

The return type of makeIncrementer is () -> Int. This means that it returns a function, rather than a
simple value. The function it returns has no parameters, and returns an Int value each time it is
called. To learn how functions can return other functions, see Function Types as Return Types.
The makeIncrementer function defines an integer variable called runningTotal, to store the current
running total of the incrementer that will be returned. This variable is initialized with a value of 0.
The makeIncrementer function has a single Int parameter with an external name of forIncrement, and
a local name of amount. The argument value passed to this parameter specifies how much
runningTotal should be incremented by each time the returned incrementer function is called.
defines a nested function called incrementer, which performs the actual
incrementing. This function simply adds amount to runningTotal, and returns the result.
makeIncrementer

When considered in isolation, the nested incrementer function might seem unusual:
1

func incrementer() -> Int {

runningTotal += amount

return runningTotal

The incrementer function doesnt have any parameters, and yet it refers to runningTotal and amount
from within its function body. It does this by capturing the existing values of runningTotal and
amount from its surrounding function and using them within its own function body.
Because it modifies the runningTotal variable each time it is called, incrementer captures a
reference to the current runningTotal variable, and not just a copy of its initial value. Capturing a
reference ensures that runningTotal does not disappear when the call to makeIncrementer ends, and
ensures that runningTotal is available the next time the incrementer function is called..
However, because it does not modify amount, and amount is not mutated outside it, incrementer
actually captures and stores a copy of the value stored in amount. This value is stored along with the

new incrementer function.

NOTE
Swift determines what should be captured by reference and what should be copied by value. You dont need to annotate
amount or runningTotal to say that they can be used within the nested incrementer function. Swift also handles
all memory management involved in disposing of runningTotal when it is no longer needed by the incrementer
function.

Heres an example of makeIncrementer in action:

let incrementByTen = makeIncrementer(forIncrement: 10)

This example sets a constant called incrementByTen to refer to an incrementer function that adds 10 to
its runningTotal variable each time it is called. Calling the function multiple times shows this
behavior in action:
1

incrementByTen()

// returns a value of 10

incrementByTen()

// returns a value of 20

incrementByTen()

// returns a value of 30

If you create a second incrementer, it will have its own stored reference to a new, separate
runningTotal variable:
1

let incrementBySeven = makeIncrementer(forIncrement: 7)

incrementBySeven()

// returns a value of 7

Calling the original incrementer (incrementByTen) again continues to increment its own runningTotal
variable, and does not affect the variable captured by incrementBySeven:
1

incrementByTen()

// returns a value of 40

NOTE
If you assign a closure to a property of a class instance, and the closure captures that instance by referring to the instance
or its members, you will create a strong reference cycle between the closure and the instance. Swift uses capture lists to
break these strong reference cycles. For more information, see Strong Reference Cycles for Closures.

Closures Are Reference Types

In the example above, incrementBySeven and incrementByTen are constants, but the closures these
constants refer to are still able to increment the runningTotal variables that they have captured. This
is because functions and closures are reference types.
Whenever you assign a function or a closure to a constant or a variable, you are actually setting that
constant or variable to be a reference to the function or closure. In the example above, it is the choice
of closure that incrementByTen refers to that is constant, and not the contents of the closure itself.
This also means that if you assign a closure to two different constants or variables, both of those
constants or variables will refer to the same closure:
1

let alsoIncrementByTen = incrementByTen

alsoIncrementByTen()

// returns a value of 50

Enumerations
An enumeration defines a common type for a group of related values and enables you to work with
those values in a type-safe way within your code.
If you are familiar with C, you will know that C enumerations assign related names to a set of integer
values. Enumerations in Swift are much more flexible, and do not have to provide a value for each
member of the enumeration. If a value (known as a raw value) is provided for each enumeration
member, the value can be a string, a character, or a value of any integer or floating-point type.
Alternatively, enumeration members can specify associated values of any type to be stored along with
each different member value, much as unions or variants do in other languages. You can define a
common set of related members as part of one enumeration, each of which has a different set of
values of appropriate types associated with it.
Enumerations in Swift are first-class types in their own right. They adopt many features traditionally
supported only by classes, such as computed properties to provide additional information about the
enumerations current value, and instance methods to provide functionality related to the values the
enumeration represents. Enumerations can also define initializers to provide an initial member value;
can be extended to expand their functionality beyond their original implementation; and can conform
to protocols to provide standard functionality.
For more on these capabilities, see Properties, Methods, Initialization, Extensions, and Protocols.

Enumeration Syntax
You introduce enumerations with the enum keyword and place their entire definition within a pair of
braces:
1

enum SomeEnumeration {

2
3

// enumeration definition goes here

}

Heres an example for the four main points of a compass:

enum CompassPoint {

case North

case South

case East

case West

The values defined in an enumeration (such as North, South, East, and West) are the member values
(or members) of that enumeration. The case keyword indicates that a new line of member values is
about to be defined.

NOTE
Unlike C and Objective-C, Swift enumeration members are not assigned a default integer value when they are created. In
the CompassPoint example above, North, South, East and West do not implicitly equal 0, 1, 2 and 3. Instead,
the different enumeration members are fully-fledged values in their own right, with an explicitly-defined type of
CompassPoint.

Multiple member values can appear on a single line, separated by commas:

1

enum Planet {

2
3

case Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

}

Each enumeration definition defines a brand new type. Like other types in Swift, their names (such as
CompassPoint and Planet) should start with a capital letter. Give enumeration types singular rather
than plural names, so that they read as self-evident:
var directionToHead = CompassPoint.West

The type of directionToHead is inferred when it is initialized with one of the possible values of
CompassPoint. Once directionToHead is declared as a CompassPoint, you can set it to a different
CompassPoint value using a shorter dot syntax:
directionToHead = .East

The type of directionToHead is already known, and so you can drop the type when setting its value.
This makes for highly readable code when working with explicitly-typed enumeration values.

Matching Enumeration Values with a Switch Statement

You can match individual enumeration values with a switch statement:
1

directionToHead = .South

switch directionToHead {

case .North:

4
5

println("Lots of planets have a north")

case .South:

6
7

println("Watch out for penguins")

case .East:

8
9

10

println("Where the sun rises")

case .West:
println("Where the skies are blue")

11

12

// prints "Watch out for penguins"

You can read this code as:

Consider the value of directionToHead. In the case where it equals .North, print "Lots
have a north". In the case where it equals .South, print "Watch out for penguins".

of planets

and so on.
As described in Control Flow, a switch statement must be exhaustive when considering an
enumerations members. If the case for .West is omitted, this code does not compile, because it does
not consider the complete list of CompassPoint members. Requiring exhaustiveness ensures that
enumeration members are not accidentally omitted.
When it is not appropriate to provide a case for every enumeration member, you can provide a
default case to cover any members that are not addressed explicitly:

let somePlanet = Planet.Earth

switch somePlanet {

case .Earth:

4
5

println("Mostly harmless")
default:

println("Not a safe place for humans")

// prints "Mostly harmless"

Associated Values
The examples in the previous section show how the members of an enumeration are a defined (and
typed) value in their own right. You can set a constant or variable to Planet.Earth, and check for this
value later. However, it is sometimes useful to be able to store associated values of other types
alongside these member values. This enables you to store additional custom information along with
the member value, and permits this information to vary each time you use that member in your code.
You can define Swift enumerations to store associated values of any given type, and the value types
can be different for each member of the enumeration if needed. Enumerations similar to these are
known as discriminated unions, tagged unions, or variants in other programming languages.
For example, suppose an inventory tracking system needs to track products by two different types of
barcode. Some products are labeled with 1D barcodes in UPC-A format, which uses the numbers 0 to
9. Each barcode has a number system digit, followed by five manufacturer code digits and five
product code digits. These are followed by a check digit to verify that the code has been scanned
correctly:

Other products are labeled with 2D barcodes in QR code format, which can use any ISO 8859-1
character and can encode a string up to 2,953 characters long:

It would be convenient for an inventory tracking system to be able to store UPC-A barcodes as a tuple
of four integers, and QR code barcodes as a string of any length.
In Swift, an enumeration to define product barcodes of either type might look like this:
1

enum Barcode {

case UPCA(Int, Int, Int, Int)

case QRCode(String)

This can be read as:

Define an enumeration type called Barcode, which can take either a value of UPCA with an associated
value of type (Int, Int, Int, Int), or a value of QRCode with an associated value of type String.
This definition does not provide any actual Int or String valuesit just defines the type of
associated values that Barcode constants and variables can store when they are equal to Barcode.UPCA
or Barcode.QRCode.
New barcodes can then be created using either type:
var productBarcode = Barcode.UPCA(8, 85909, 51226, 3)

This example creates a new variable called productBarcode and assigns it a value of Barcode.UPCA
with an associated tuple value of (8, 85909, 51226, 3).
The same product can be assigned a different type of barcode:
productBarcode = .QRCode("ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOP")

At this point, the original Barcode.UPCA and its integer values are replaced by the new
Barcode.QRCode and its string value. Constants and variables of type Barcode can store either a .UPCA
or a .QRCode (together with their associated values), but they can only store one of them at any given
time.
The different barcode types can be checked using a switch statement, as before. This time, however,

the associated values can be extracted as part of the switch statement. You extract each associated
value as a constant (with the let prefix) or a variable (with the var prefix) for use within the switch
cases body:
1

switch productBarcode {

case .UPCA(let numberSystem, let manufacturer, let product, let check):

3
4

println("UPC-A: \(numberSystem), \(manufacturer), \(product), \(check).")

case .QRCode(let productCode):

println("QR code: \(productCode).")

// prints "QR code: ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOP."

If all of the associated values for an enumeration member are extracted as constants, or if all are
extracted as variables, you can place a single var or let annotation before the member name, for
brevity:
1

switch productBarcode {

case let .UPCA(numberSystem, manufacturer, product, check):

3
4

println("UPC-A: \(numberSystem), \(manufacturer), \(product), \(check).")

case let .QRCode(productCode):

println("QR code: \(productCode).")

// prints "QR code: ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOP."

Raw Values
The barcode example in Associated Values shows how members of an enumeration can declare that
they store associated values of different types. As an alternative to associated values, enumeration
members can come prepopulated with default values (called raw values), which are all of the same
type.
Heres an example that stores raw ASCII values alongside named enumeration members:

enum ASCIIControlCharacter: Character {

case Tab = "\t"

case LineFeed = "\n"

case CarriageReturn = "\r"

Here, the raw values for an enumeration called ASCIIControlCharacter are defined to be of type
Character, and are set to some of the more common ASCII control characters. Character values are
described in Strings and Characters.
Note that raw values are not the same as associated values. Raw values are set to prepopulated
values when you first define the enumeration in your code, like the three ASCII codes above. The raw
value for a particular enumeration member is always the same. Associated values are set when you
create a new constant or variable based on one of the enumerations members, and can be different
each time you do so.
Raw values can be strings, characters, or any of the integer or floating-point number types. Each raw
value must be unique within its enumeration declaration. When integers are used for raw values, they
auto-increment if no value is specified for some of the enumeration members.
The enumeration below is a refinement of the earlier Planet enumeration, with raw integer values to
represent each planets order from the sun:
1

enum Planet: Int {

2
3

case Mercury = 1, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

}

Auto-incrementation means that Planet.Venus has a raw value of 2, and so on.

Access the raw value of an enumeration member with its rawValue property:
1

let earthsOrder = Planet.Earth.rawValue

// earthsOrder is 3

Initializing from a Raw Value

If you define an enumeration with a raw-value type, the enumeration automatically receives an
initializer that takes a value of the raw values type (as a parameter called rawValue) and returns
either an enumeration member or nil. You can use this initializer to try to create a new instance of the

enumeration.
This example identifies Uranus from its raw value of 7:
1

let possiblePlanet = Planet(rawValue: 7)

// possiblePlanet is of type Planet? and equals Planet.Uranus

Not all possible Int values will find a matching planet, however. Because of this, the raw value
initializer always returns an optional enumeration member. In the example above, possiblePlanet is
of type Planet?, or optional Planet.

NOTE
The raw value initializer is a failable initializer, because not every raw value will return an enumeration member. For more
information, see Failable Initializers.

If you try to find a planet with a position of 9, the optional Planet value returned by the raw value
initializer will be nil:
1

let positionToFind = 9

if let somePlanet = Planet(rawValue: positionToFind) {

switch somePlanet {

case .Earth:

5
6

println("Mostly harmless")
default:

println("Not a safe place for humans")

} else {

10

println("There isn't a planet at position \(positionToFind)")

11

12

// prints "There isn't a planet at position 9"

This example uses optional binding to try to access a planet with a raw value of 9. The statement if
let somePlanet = Planet(rawValue: 9) creates an optional Planet, and sets somePlanet to the value
of that optional Planet if it can be retrieved. In this case, it is not possible to retrieve a planet with a
position of 9, and so the else branch is executed instead.

Classes and Structures

Classes and structures are general-purpose, flexible constructs that become the building blocks of
your programs code. You define properties and methods to add functionality to your classes and
structures by using exactly the same syntax as for constants, variables, and functions.
Unlike other programming languages, Swift does not require you to create separate interface and
implementation files for custom classes and structures. In Swift, you define a class or a structure in a
single file, and the external interface to that class or structure is automatically made available for
other code to use.

NOTE
An instance of a class is traditionally known as an object. However, Swift classes and structures are much closer in
functionality than in other languages, and much of this chapter describes functionality that can apply to instances of either a
class or a structure type. Because of this, the more general term instance is used.

Comparing Classes and Structures

Classes and structures in Swift have many things in common. Both can:

Define properties to store values

Define methods to provide functionality
Define subscripts to provide access to their values using subscript syntax
Define initializers to set up their initial state
Be extended to expand their functionality beyond a default implementation
Conform to protocols to provide standard functionality of a certain kind

For more information, see Properties, Methods, Subscripts, Initialization, Extensions, and Protocols.
Classes have additional capabilities that structures do not:
Inheritance enables one class to inherit the characteristics of another.
Type casting enables you to check and interpret the type of a class instance at runtime.
Deinitializers enable an instance of a class to free up any resources it has assigned.

 Reference counting allows more than one reference to a class instance.

For more information, see Inheritance, Type Casting, Deinitialization, and Automatic Reference
Counting.

NOTE
Structures are always copied when they are passed around in your code, and do not use reference counting.

Definition Syntax
Classes and structures have a similar definition syntax. You introduce classes with the class keyword
and structures with the struct keyword. Both place their entire definition within a pair of braces:
1

class SomeClass {

// class definition goes here

struct SomeStructure {

5
6

// structure definition goes here

}

NOTE
Whenever you define a new class or structure, you effectively define a brand new Swift type. Give types
UpperCamelCase names (such as SomeClass and SomeStructure here) to match the capitalization of standard
Swift types (such as String, Int, and Bool). Conversely, always give properties and methods lowerCamelCase
names (such as frameRate and incrementCount) to differentiate them from type names.

Heres an example of a structure definition and a class definition:

10

struct Resolution {

var width = 0

var height = 0

class VideoMode {

var resolution = Resolution()

var interlaced = false

var frameRate = 0.0

var name: String?

The example above defines a new structure called Resolution, to describe a pixel-based display
resolution. This structure has two stored properties called width and height. Stored properties are
constants or variables that are bundled up and stored as part of the class or structure. These two
properties are inferred to be of type Int by setting them to an initial integer value of 0.
The example above also defines a new class called VideoMode, to describe a specific video mode for
video display. This class has four variable stored properties. The first, resolution, is initialized with
a new Resolution structure instance, which infers a property type of Resolution. For the other three
properties, new VideoMode instances will be initialized with an interlaced setting of false (meaning
non-interlaced video), a playback frame rate of 0.0, and an optional String value called name. The
name property is automatically given a default value of nil, or no name value, because it is of an
optional type.

Class and Structure Instances

The Resolution structure definition and the VideoMode class definition only describe what a
Resolution or VideoMode will look like. They themselves do not describe a specific resolution or
video mode. To do that, you need to create an instance of the structure or class.
The syntax for creating instances is very similar for both structures and classes:
1

let someResolution = Resolution()

let someVideoMode = VideoMode()

Structures and classes both use initializer syntax for new instances. The simplest form of initializer
syntax uses the type name of the class or structure followed by empty parentheses, such as
Resolution() or VideoMode(). This creates a new instance of the class or structure, with any

properties initialized to their default values. Class and structure initialization is described in more
detail in Initialization.

Accessing Properties
You can access the properties of an instance using dot syntax. In dot syntax, you write the property
name immediately after the instance name, separated by a period (.), without any spaces:
1

println("The width of someResolution is \(someResolution.width)")

// prints "The width of someResolution is 0"

In this example, someResolution.width refers to the width property of someResolution, and returns its
default initial value of 0.
You can drill down into sub-properties, such as the width property in the resolution property of a
VideoMode:
1

println("The width of someVideoMode is \(someVideoMode.resolution.width)")

// prints "The width of someVideoMode is 0"

You can also use dot syntax to assign a new value to a variable property:
1

someVideoMode.resolution.width = 1280

println("The width of someVideoMode is now \(someVideoMode.resolution.width)")

// prints "The width of someVideoMode is now 1280"

NOTE
Unlike Objective-C, Swift enables you to set sub-properties of a structure property directly. In the last example above, the
width property of the resolution property of someVideoMode is set directly, without your needing to set the
entire resolution property to a new value.

Memberwise Initializers for Structure Types

All structures have an automatically-generated memberwise initializer, which you can use to
initialize the member properties of new structure instances. Initial values for the properties of the new
instance can be passed to the memberwise initializer by name:

let vga = Resolution(width: 640, height: 480)

Unlike structures, class instances do not receive a default memberwise initializer. Initializers are
described in more detail in Initialization.

Structures and Enumerations Are Value Types

A value type is a type whose value is copied when it is assigned to a variable or constant, or when it
is passed to a function.
Youve actually been using value types extensively throughout the previous chapters. In fact, all of the
basic types in Swiftintegers, floating-point numbers, Booleans, strings, arrays and dictionaries
are value types, and are implemented as structures behind the scenes.
All structures and enumerations are value types in Swift. This means that any structure and
enumeration instances you createand any value types they have as propertiesare always copied
when they are passed around in your code.
Consider this example, which uses the Resolution structure from the previous example:
1

let hd = Resolution(width: 1920, height: 1080)

var cinema = hd

This example declares a constant called hd and sets it to a Resolution instance initialized with the
width and height of full HD video (1920 pixels wide by 1080 pixels high).
It then declares a variable called cinema and sets it to the current value of hd. Because Resolution is
a structure, a copy of the existing instance is made, and this new copy is assigned to cinema. Even
though hd and cinema now have the same width and height, they are two completely different instances
behind the scenes.
Next, the width property of cinema is amended to be the width of the slightly-wider 2K standard used
for digital cinema projection (2048 pixels wide and 1080 pixels high):
cinema.width = 2048

Checking the width property of cinema shows that it has indeed changed to be 2048:
1

println("cinema is now \(cinema.width) pixels wide")

// prints "cinema is now 2048 pixels wide"

However, the width property of the original hd instance still has the old value of 1920:

println("hd is still \(hd.width) pixels wide")

// prints "hd is still 1920 pixels wide"

When cinema was given the current value of hd, the values stored in hd were copied into the new
cinema instance. The end result is two completely separate instances, which just happened to contain
the same numeric values. Because they are separate instances, setting the width of cinema to 2048
doesnt affect the width stored in hd.
The same behavior applies to enumerations:
1

enum CompassPoint {

case North, South, East, West

var currentDirection = CompassPoint.West

let rememberedDirection = currentDirection

currentDirection = .East

if rememberedDirection == .West {

8
9

10

println("The remembered direction is still .West")

}

// prints "The remembered direction is still .West"

When rememberedDirection is assigned the value of currentDirection, it is actually set to a copy of

that value. Changing the value of currentDirection thereafter does not affect the copy of the original
value that was stored in rememberedDirection.

Classes Are Reference Types

Unlike value types, reference types are not copied when they are assigned to a variable or constant,
or when they are passed to a function. Rather than a copy, a reference to the same existing instance is
used instead.
Heres an example, using the VideoMode class defined above:

let tenEighty = VideoMode()

tenEighty.resolution = hd

tenEighty.interlaced = true

tenEighty.name = "1080i"

tenEighty.frameRate = 25.0

This example declares a new constant called tenEighty and sets it to refer to a new instance of the
VideoMode class. The video mode is assigned a copy of the HD resolution of 1920 by 1080 from
before. It is set to be interlaced, and is given a name of "1080i". Finally, it is set to a frame rate of
25.0 frames per second.
Next, tenEighty is assigned to a new constant, called alsoTenEighty, and the frame rate of
alsoTenEighty is modified:
1

let alsoTenEighty = tenEighty

alsoTenEighty.frameRate = 30.0

Because classes are reference types, tenEighty and alsoTenEighty actually both refer to the same
VideoMode instance. Effectively, they are just two different names for the same single instance.
Checking the frameRate property of tenEighty shows that it correctly reports the new frame rate of
30.0 from the underlying VideoMode instance:
1

println("The frameRate property of tenEighty is now \(tenEighty.frameRate)")

// prints "The frameRate property of tenEighty is now 30.0"

Note that tenEighty and alsoTenEighty are declared as constants, rather than variables. However,
you can still change tenEighty.frameRate and alsoTenEighty.frameRate because the values of the
tenEighty and alsoTenEighty constants themselves do not actually change. tenEighty and
alsoTenEighty themselves do not store the VideoMode instanceinstead, they both refer to a
VideoMode instance behind the scenes. It is the frameRate property of the underlying VideoMode that is
changed, not the values of the constant references to that VideoMode.

Identity Operators
Because classes are reference types, it is possible for multiple constants and variables to refer to the
same single instance of a class behind the scenes. (The same is not true for structures and
enumerations, because they are always copied when they are assigned to a constant or variable, or
passed to a function.)

It can sometimes be useful to find out if two constants or variables refer to exactly the same instance
of a class. To enable this, Swift provides two identity operators:
Identical to (===)
Not identical to (!==)
Use these operators to check whether two constants or variables refer to the same single instance:
1

if tenEighty === alsoTenEighty {

println("tenEighty and alsoTenEighty refer to the same VideoMode instance.")

// prints "tenEighty and alsoTenEighty refer to the same VideoMode instance."

Note that identical to (represented by three equals signs, or ===) does not mean the same thing as
equal to (represented by two equals signs, or ==):
Identical to means that two constants or variables of class type refer to exactly the same
class instance.
Equal to means that two instances are considered equal or equivalent in value, for
some appropriate meaning of equal, as defined by the types designer.
When you define your own custom classes and structures, it is your responsibility to decide what
qualifies as two instances being equal. The process of defining your own implementations of the
equal to and not equal to operators is described in Equivalence Operators.

Pointers
If you have experience with C, C++, or Objective-C, you may know that these languages use pointers
to refer to addresses in memory. A Swift constant or variable that refers to an instance of some
reference type is similar to a pointer in C, but is not a direct pointer to an address in memory, and
does not require you to write an asterisk (*) to indicate that you are creating a reference. Instead,
these references are defined like any other constant or variable in Swift.

Choosing Between Classes and Structures

You can use both classes and structures to define custom data types to use as the building blocks of

your programs code.

However, structure instances are always passed by value, and class instances are always passed by
reference. This means that they are suited to different kinds of tasks. As you consider the data
constructs and functionality that you need for a project, decide whether each data construct should be
defined as a class or as a structure.
As a general guideline, consider creating a structure when one or more of these conditions apply:
The structures primary purpose is to encapsulate a few relatively simple data values.
It is reasonable to expect that the encapsulated values will be copied rather than referenced
when you assign or pass around an instance of that structure.
Any properties stored by the structure are themselves value types, which would also be
expected to be copied rather than referenced.
The structure does not need to inherit properties or behavior from another existing type.
Examples of good candidates for structures include:
The size of a geometric shape, perhaps encapsulating a width property and a height property,
both of type Double.
A way to refer to ranges within a series, perhaps encapsulating a start property and a length
property, both of type Int.
A point in a 3D coordinate system, perhaps encapsulating x, y and z properties, each of type
Double.
In all other cases, define a class, and create instances of that class to be managed and passed by
reference. In practice, this means that most custom data constructs should be classes, not structures.

Assignment and Copy Behavior for Strings, Arrays, and Dictionaries

Swifts String, Array, and Dictionary types are implemented as structures. This means that strings,
arrays, and dictionaries are copied when they are assigned to a new constant or variable, or when
they are passed to a function or method.
This behavior is different from NSString, NSArray, and NSDictionary in Foundation, which are
implemented as classes, not structures. NSString, NSArray, and NSDictionary instances are always
assigned and passed around as a reference to an existing instance, rather than as a copy.

NOTE
The description above refers to the copying of strings, arrays, and dictionaries. The behavior you see in your code will
always be as if a copy took place. However, Swift only performs an actual copy behind the scenes when it is absolutely
necessary to do so. Swift manages all value copying to ensure optimal performance, and you should not avoid assignment
to try to preempt this optimization.

Properties
Properties associate values with a particular class, structure, or enumeration. Stored properties store
constant and variable values as part of an instance, whereas computed properties calculate (rather
than store) a value. Computed properties are provided by classes, structures, and enumerations.
Stored properties are provided only by classes and structures.
Stored and computed properties are usually associated with instances of a particular type. However,
properties can also be associated with the type itself. Such properties are known as type properties.
In addition, you can define property observers to monitor changes in a propertys value, which you
can respond to with custom actions. Property observers can be added to stored properties you define
yourself, and also to properties that a subclass inherits from its superclass.

Stored Properties
In its simplest form, a stored property is a constant or variable that is stored as part of an instance of
a particular class or structure. Stored properties can be either variable stored properties (introduced
by the var keyword) or constant stored properties (introduced by the let keyword).
You can provide a default value for a stored property as part of its definition, as described in Default
Property Values. You can also set and modify the initial value for a stored property during
initialization. This is true even for constant stored properties, as described in Assigning Constant
Properties During Initialization.
The example below defines a structure called FixedLengthRange, which describes a range of integers
whose range length cannot be changed once it is created:
1

struct FixedLengthRange {

var firstValue: Int

let length: Int

var rangeOfThreeItems = FixedLengthRange(firstValue: 0, length: 3)

// the range represents integer values 0, 1, and 2

rangeOfThreeItems.firstValue = 6

// the range now represents integer values 6, 7, and 8

Instances of FixedLengthRange have a variable stored property called firstValue and a constant
stored property called length. In the example above, length is initialized when the new range is
created and cannot be changed thereafter, because it is a constant property.

Stored Properties of Constant Structure Instances

If you create an instance of a structure and assign that instance to a constant, you cannot modify the
instances properties, even if they were declared as variable properties:
1

let rangeOfFourItems = FixedLengthRange(firstValue: 0, length: 4)

// this range represents integer values 0, 1, 2, and 3

rangeOfFourItems.firstValue = 6

// this will report an error, even though firstValue is a variable property

Because rangeOfFourItems is declared as a constant (with the let keyword), it is not possible to
change its firstValue property, even though firstValue is a variable property.
This behavior is due to structures being value types. When an instance of a value type is marked as a
constant, so are all of its properties.
The same is not true for classes, which are reference types. If you assign an instance of a reference
type to a constant, you can still change that instances variable properties.

Lazy Stored Properties

A lazy stored property is a property whose initial value is not calculated until the first time it is used.
You indicate a lazy stored property by writing the lazy modifier before its declaration.

NOTE
You must always declare a lazy property as a variable (with the var keyword), because its initial value might not be
retrieved until after instance initialization completes. Constant properties must always have a value before initialization
completes, and therefore cannot be declared as lazy.

Lazy properties are useful when the initial value for a property is dependent on outside factors whose
values are not known until after an instances initialization is complete. Lazy properties are also
useful when the initial value for a property requires complex or computationally expensive setup that
should not be performed unless or until it is needed.

The example below uses a lazy stored property to avoid unnecessary initialization of a complex
class. This example defines two classes called DataImporter and DataManager, neither of which is
shown in full:
1

class DataImporter {

/*

DataImporter is a class to import data from an external file.

The class is assumed to take a non-trivial amount of time to initialize.

*/

var fileName = "data.txt"

// the DataImporter class would provide data importing functionality here

10

class DataManager {

11

lazy var importer = DataImporter()

12

var data = [String]()

13

// the DataManager class would provide data management functionality here

14

15

16

let manager = DataManager()

17

manager.data.append("Some data")

18

manager.data.append("Some more data")

19

// the DataImporter instance for the importer property has not yet been created

The DataManager class has a stored property called data, which is initialized with a new, empty array
of String values. Although the rest of its functionality is not shown, the purpose of this DataManager
class is to manage and provide access to this array of String data.
Part of the functionality of the DataManager class is the ability to import data from a file. This
functionality is provided by the DataImporter class, which is assumed to take a non-trivial amount of
time to initialize. This might be because a DataImporter instance needs to open a file and read its
contents into memory when the DataImporter instance is initialized.
It is possible for a DataManager instance to manage its data without ever importing data from a file, so
there is no need to create a new DataImporter instance when the DataManager itself is created.
Instead, it makes more sense to create the DataImporter instance if and when it is first used.

Because it is marked with the lazy modifier, the DataImporter instance for the importer property is
only created when the importer property is first accessed, such as when its fileName property is
queried:
1

println(manager.importer.fileName)

// the DataImporter instance for the importer property has now been created

// prints "data.txt"

Stored Properties and Instance Variables

If you have experience with Objective-C, you may know that it provides two ways to store values and
references as part of a class instance. In addition to properties, you can use instance variables as a
backing store for the values stored in a property.
Swift unifies these concepts into a single property declaration. A Swift property does not have a
corresponding instance variable, and the backing store for a property is not accessed directly. This
approach avoids confusion about how the value is accessed in different contexts and simplifies the
propertys declaration into a single, definitive statement. All information about the property
including its name, type, and memory management characteristicsis defined in a single location as
part of the types definition.

Computed Properties
In addition to stored properties, classes, structures, and enumerations can define computed
properties, which do not actually store a value. Instead, they provide a getter and an optional setter to
retrieve and set other properties and values indirectly.

struct Point {

var x = 0.0, y = 0.0

struct Size {

var width = 0.0, height = 0.0

struct Rect {

var origin = Point()

var size = Size()

10

var center: Point {

11

get {

12

let centerX = origin.x + (size.width / 2)

13

let centerY = origin.y + (size.height / 2)

14

return Point(x: centerX, y: centerY)

15

16

set(newCenter) {

17

origin.x = newCenter.x - (size.width / 2)

18

origin.y = newCenter.y - (size.height / 2)

19

20

21

22

var square = Rect(origin: Point(x: 0.0, y: 0.0),

23

size: Size(width: 10.0, height: 10.0))

24

let initialSquareCenter = square.center

25

square.center = Point(x: 15.0, y: 15.0)

26

println("square.origin is now at (\(square.origin.x), \(square.origin.y))")

27

// prints "square.origin is now at (10.0, 10.0)"

This example defines three structures for working with geometric shapes:

Point

encapsulates an (x,

y)

coordinate.

encapsulates a width and a height.

Rect defines a rectangle by an origin point and a size.
Size

The Rect structure also provides a computed property called center. The current center position of a
Rect can always be determined from its origin and size, and so you dont need to store the center
point as an explicit Point value. Instead, Rect defines a custom getter and setter for a computed
variable called center, to enable you to work with the rectangles center as if it were a real stored
property.
The preceding example creates a new Rect variable called square. The square variable is initialized
with an origin point of (0, 0), and a width and height of 10. This square is represented by the blue
square in the diagram below.
The square variables center property is then accessed through dot syntax (square.center), which
causes the getter for center to be called, to retrieve the current property value. Rather than returning
an existing value, the getter actually calculates and returns a new Point to represent the center of the
square. As can be seen above, the getter correctly returns a center point of (5, 5).
The center property is then set to a new value of (15, 15), which moves the square up and to the
right, to the new position shown by the orange square in the diagram below. Setting the center
property calls the setter for center, which modifies the x and y values of the stored origin property,
and moves the square to its new position.

Shorthand Setter Declaration

If a computed propertys setter does not define a name for the new value to be set, a default name of
newValue is used. Heres an alternative version of the Rect structure, which takes advantage of this
shorthand notation:
1

struct AlternativeRect {

var origin = Point()

var size = Size()

var center: Point {

get {

let centerX = origin.x + (size.width / 2)

let centerY = origin.y + (size.height / 2)

return Point(x: centerX, y: centerY)

10

set {

11

origin.x = newValue.x - (size.width / 2)

12

origin.y = newValue.y - (size.height / 2)

13

14

15

}
}

Read-Only Computed Properties

A computed property with a getter but no setter is known as a read-only computed property. A readonly computed property always returns a value, and can be accessed through dot syntax, but cannot be
set to a different value.

NOTE
You must declare computed propertiesincluding read-only computed propertiesas variable properties with the var
keyword, because their value is not fixed. The let keyword is only used for constant properties, to indicate that their
values cannot be changed once they are set as part of instance initialization.

You can simplify the declaration of a read-only computed property by removing the get keyword and
its braces:

struct Cuboid {

var width = 0.0, height = 0.0, depth = 0.0

var volume: Double {

return width * height * depth

let fourByFiveByTwo = Cuboid(width: 4.0, height: 5.0, depth: 2.0)

println("the volume of fourByFiveByTwo is \(fourByFiveByTwo.volume)")

// prints "the volume of fourByFiveByTwo is 40.0"

This example defines a new structure called Cuboid, which represents a 3D rectangular box with
width, height, and depth properties. This structure also has a read-only computed property called
volume, which calculates and returns the current volume of the cuboid. It doesnt make sense for
volume to be settable, because it would be ambiguous as to which values of width, height, and depth
should be used for a particular volume value. Nonetheless, it is useful for a Cuboid to provide a readonly computed property to enable external users to discover its current calculated volume.

Property Observers
Property observers observe and respond to changes in a propertys value. Property observers are
called every time a propertys value is set, even if the new value is the same as the propertys current
value.
You can add property observers to any stored properties you define, apart from lazy stored
properties. You can also add property observers to any inherited property (whether stored or
computed) by overriding the property within a subclass. Property overriding is described in
Overriding.

NOTE
You dont need to define property observers for non-overridden computed properties, because you can observe and
respond to changes to their value from directly within the computed propertys setter.

You have the option to define either or both of these observers on a property:

is called just before the value is stored.

didSet is called immediately after the new value is stored.
willSet

If you implement a willSet observer, it is passed the new property value as a constant parameter. You
can specify a name for this parameter as part of your willSet implementation. If you choose not to
write the parameter name and parentheses within your implementation, the parameter will still be
made available with a default parameter name of newValue.
Similarly, if you implement a didSet observer, it will be passed a constant parameter containing the
old property value. You can name the parameter if you wish, or use the default parameter name of
oldValue.

NOTE
willSet and didSet observers are not called when a property is set in an initializer before delegation takes place.
For more information about initializer delegation, see Initializer Delegation for Value Types and Initializer Delegation for
Class Types.

Heres an example of willSet and didSet in action. The example below defines a new class called
StepCounter, which tracks the total number of steps that a person takes while walking. This class
might be used with input data from a pedometer or other step counter to keep track of a persons
exercise during their daily routine.

class StepCounter {

var totalSteps: Int = 0 {

willSet(newTotalSteps) {

println("About to set totalSteps to \(newTotalSteps)")

didSet {

if totalSteps > oldValue

println("Added \(totalSteps - oldValue) steps")

10

11

12

13

let stepCounter = StepCounter()

14

stepCounter.totalSteps = 200

15

// About to set totalSteps to 200

16

// Added 200 steps

17

stepCounter.totalSteps = 360

18

// About to set totalSteps to 360

19

// Added 160 steps

20

stepCounter.totalSteps = 896

21

// About to set totalSteps to 896

22

// Added 536 steps

The StepCounter class declares a totalSteps property of type Int. This is a stored property with
willSet and didSet observers.
The willSet and didSet observers for totalSteps are called whenever the property is assigned a
new value. This is true even if the new value is the same as the current value.
This examples willSet observer uses a custom parameter name of newTotalSteps for the upcoming
new value. In this example, it simply prints out the value that is about to be set.
The didSet observer is called after the value of totalSteps is updated. It compares the new value of
totalSteps against the old value. If the total number of steps has increased, a message is printed to
indicate how many new steps have been taken. The didSet observer does not provide a custom

parameter name for the old value, and the default name of oldValue is used instead.

NOTE
If you assign a value to a property within its own didSet observer, the new value that you assign will replace the one that
was just set.

Global and Local Variables

The capabilities described above for computing and observing properties are also available to
global variables and local variables. Global variables are variables that are defined outside of any
function, method, closure, or type context. Local variables are variables that are defined within a
function, method, or closure context.
The global and local variables you have encountered in previous chapters have all been stored
variables. Stored variables, like stored properties, provide storage for a value of a certain type and
allow that value to be set and retrieved.
However, you can also define computed variables and define observers for stored variables, in
either a global or local scope. Computed variables calculate rather than store a value, and are written
in the same way as computed properties.

NOTE
Global constants and variables are always computed lazily, in a similar manner to Lazy Stored Properties. Unlike lazy
stored properties, global constants and variables do not need to be marked with the lazy modifier.
Local constants and variables are never computed lazily.

Type Properties
Instance properties are properties that belong to an instance of a particular type. Every time you
create a new instance of that type, it has its own set of property values, separate from any other
instance.
You can also define properties that belong to the type itself, not to any one instance of that type. There
will only ever be one copy of these properties, no matter how many instances of that type you create.
These kinds of properties are called type properties.

Type properties are useful for defining values that are universal to all instances of a particular type,
such as a constant property that all instances can use (like a static constant in C), or a variable
property that stores a value that is global to all instances of that type (like a static variable in C).
For value types (that is, structures and enumerations), you can define stored and computed type
properties. For classes, you can define computed type properties only.
Stored type properties for value types can be variables or constants. Computed type properties are
always declared as variable properties, in the same way as computed instance properties.

NOTE
Unlike stored instance properties, you must always give stored type properties a default value. This is because the type
itself does not have an initializer that can assign a value to a stored type property at initialization time.

Type Property Syntax

In C and Objective-C, you define static constants and variables associated with a type as global static
variables. In Swift, however, type properties are written as part of the types definition, within the
types outer curly braces, and each type property is explicitly scoped to the type it supports.
You define type properties with the static keyword. For computed type properties for class types,
you can use the class keyword instead to allow subclasses to override the superclasss
implementation. The example below shows the syntax for stored and computed type properties:

struct SomeStructure {

static var storedTypeProperty = "Some value."

static var computedTypeProperty: Int {

// return an Int value here

enum SomeEnumeration {

static var storedTypeProperty = "Some value."

static var computedTypeProperty: Int {

10

// return an Int value here

11

12

13

class SomeClass {

14

static var storedTypeProperty = "Some value."

15

static var computedTypeProperty: Int {

16

// return an Int value here

17

18

class var overrideableComputedTypeProperty: Int {

19

// return an Int value here

20

21

}
}

NOTE
The computed type property examples above are for read-only computed type properties, but you can also define readwrite computed type properties with the same syntax as for computed instance properties.

Querying and Setting Type Properties

Type properties are queried and set with dot syntax, just like instance properties. However, type
properties are queried and set on the type, not on an instance of that type. For example:

println(SomeClass.computedTypeProperty)

// prints "42"

3
4

println(SomeStructure.storedTypeProperty)

// prints "Some value."

SomeStructure.storedTypeProperty = "Another value."

println(SomeStructure.storedTypeProperty)

// prints "Another value."

The examples that follow use two stored type properties as part of a structure that models an audio
level meter for a number of audio channels. Each channel has an integer audio level between 0 and 10
inclusive.
The figure below illustrates how two of these audio channels can be combined to model a stereo
audio level meter. When a channels audio level is 0, none of the lights for that channel are lit. When
the audio level is 10, all of the lights for that channel are lit. In this figure, the left channel has a
current level of 9, and the right channel has a current level of 7:

The audio channels described above are represented by instances of the AudioChannel structure:

struct AudioChannel {

static let thresholdLevel = 10

static var maxInputLevelForAllChannels = 0

var currentLevel: Int = 0 {

didSet {

if currentLevel > AudioChannel.thresholdLevel {

// cap the new audio level to the threshold level

currentLevel = AudioChannel.thresholdLevel

10

if currentLevel > AudioChannel.maxInputLevelForAllChannels {

11

// store this as the new overall maximum input level

12

AudioChannel.maxInputLevelForAllChannels = currentLevel

13

14

15

16

}
}

The AudioChannel structure defines two stored type properties to support its functionality. The first,
thresholdLevel, defines the maximum threshold value an audio level can take. This is a constant
value of 10 for all AudioChannel instances. If an audio signal comes in with a higher value than 10, it
will be capped to this threshold value (as described below).
The second type property is a variable stored property called maxInputLevelForAllChannels. This
keeps track of the maximum input value that has been received by any AudioChannel instance. It starts
with an initial value of 0.
The AudioChannel structure also defines a stored instance property called currentLevel, which
represents the channels current audio level on a scale of 0 to 10.
The currentLevel property has a didSet property observer to check the value of currentLevel
whenever it is set. This observer performs two checks:
If the new value of currentLevel is greater than the allowed thresholdLevel, the property
observer caps currentLevel to thresholdLevel.
If the new value of currentLevel (after any capping) is higher than any value previously
received by any AudioChannel instance, the property observer stores the new currentLevel
value in the maxInputLevelForAllChannels type property.

NOTE
In the first of these two checks, the didSet observer sets currentLevel to a different value. This does not, however,
cause the observer to be called again.

You can use the AudioChannel structure to create two new audio channels called leftChannel and
rightChannel, to represent the audio levels of a stereo sound system:
1

var leftChannel = AudioChannel()

var rightChannel = AudioChannel()

If you set the currentLevel of the left channel to 7, you can see that the maxInputLevelForAllChannels
type property is updated to equal 7:
1

leftChannel.currentLevel = 7

println(leftChannel.currentLevel)

// prints "7"

println(AudioChannel.maxInputLevelForAllChannels)

// prints "7"

If you try to set the currentLevel of the right channel to 11, you can see that the right channels
currentLevel property is capped to the maximum value of 10, and the maxInputLevelForAllChannels
type property is updated to equal 10:
1

rightChannel.currentLevel = 11

println(rightChannel.currentLevel)

// prints "10"

println(AudioChannel.maxInputLevelForAllChannels)

// prints "10"

Methods
Methods are functions that are associated with a particular type. Classes, structures, and
enumerations can all define instance methods, which encapsulate specific tasks and functionality for
working with an instance of a given type. Classes, structures, and enumerations can also define type
methods, which are associated with the type itself. Type methods are similar to class methods in
Objective-C.
The fact that structures and enumerations can define methods in Swift is a major difference from C
and Objective-C. In Objective-C, classes are the only types that can define methods. In Swift, you can
choose whether to define a class, structure, or enumeration, and still have the flexibility to define
methods on the type you create.

Instance Methods
Instance methods are functions that belong to instances of a particular class, structure, or
enumeration. They support the functionality of those instances, either by providing ways to access and
modify instance properties, or by providing functionality related to the instances purpose. Instance
methods have exactly the same syntax as functions, as described in Functions.
You write an instance method within the opening and closing braces of the type it belongs to. An
instance method has implicit access to all other instance methods and properties of that type. An
instance method can be called only on a specific instance of the type it belongs to. It cannot be called
in isolation without an existing instance.
Heres an example that defines a simple Counter class, which can be used to count the number of
times an action occurs:

class Counter {

var count = 0

func increment() {

count++

func incrementBy(amount: Int) {

count += amount

func reset() {

10

count = 0

11

12

}
}

The Counter class defines three instance methods:

increments the counter by 1.

incrementBy(amount: Int) increments the counter by a specified integer amount.
reset resets the counter to zero.
increment

The Counter class also declares a variable property, count, to keep track of the current counter value.
You call instance methods with the same dot syntax as properties:
1

let counter = Counter()

// the initial counter value is 0

counter.increment()

// the counter's value is now 1

counter.incrementBy(5)

// the counter's value is now 6

counter.reset()

// the counter's value is now 0

Local and External Parameter Names for Methods

Function parameters can have both a local name (for use within the functions body) and an external
name (for use when calling the function), as described in External Parameter Names. The same is true
for method parameters, because methods are just functions that are associated with a type. However,
the default behavior of local names and external names is different for functions and methods.
Methods in Swift are very similar to their counterparts in Objective-C. As in Objective-C, the name
of a method in Swift typically refers to the methods first parameter using a preposition such as with,
for, or by, as seen in the incrementBy(_:) method from the preceding Counter class example. The use
of a preposition enables the method to be read as a sentence when it is called. Swift makes this
established method naming convention easy to write by using a different default approach for method
parameters than it uses for function parameters.
Specifically, Swift gives the first parameter name in a method a local parameter name by default, and
gives the second and subsequent parameter names both local and external parameter names by
default. This convention matches the typical naming and calling convention you will be familiar with
from writing Objective-C methods, and makes for expressive method calls without the need to qualify
your parameter names.
Consider this alternative version of the Counter class, which defines a more complex form of the
incrementBy(_:) method:
1

class Counter {

var count: Int = 0

func incrementBy(amount: Int, numberOfTimes: Int) {

count += amount * numberOfTimes

5
6

}
}

This incrementBy(_:numberOfTimes:) method has two parametersamount and numberOfTimes. By

default, Swift treats amount as a local name only, but treats numberOfTimes as both a local and an
external name. You call the method as follows:
1

let counter = Counter()

counter.incrementBy(5, numberOfTimes: 3)

// counter value is now 15

You dont need to define an external parameter name for the first argument value, because its purpose
is clear from the function name incrementBy. The second argument, however, is qualified by an
external parameter name to make its purpose clear when the method is called.

This default behavior effectively treats the method as if you had written a hash symbol (#) before the
numberOfTimes parameter:
1

func incrementBy(amount: Int, #numberOfTimes: Int) {

2
3

count += amount * numberOfTimes

}

The default behavior described above means that method definitions in Swift are written with the
same grammatical style as Objective-C, and are called in a natural, expressive way.

Modifying External Parameter Name Behavior for Methods

Sometimes its useful to provide an external parameter name for a methods first parameter, even
though this is not the default behavior. You can either add an explicit external name yourself, or you
can prefix the first parameters name with a hash symbol to use the local name as an external name
too.
Conversely, if you do not want to provide an external name for the second or subsequent parameter of
a method, override the default behavior by using an underscore character (_) as an explicit external
parameter name for that parameter.

The self Property

Every instance of a type has an implicit property called self, which is exactly equivalent to the
instance itself. You use the self property to refer to the current instance within its own instance
methods.
The increment() method in the example above could have been written like this:
1

func increment() {

2
3

self.count++
}

In practice, you dont need to write self in your code very often. If you dont explicitly write self,
Swift assumes that you are referring to a property or method of the current instance whenever you use
a known property or method name within a method. This assumption is demonstrated by the use of
count (rather than self.count) inside the three instance methods for Counter.
The main exception to this rule occurs when a parameter name for an instance method has the same

name as a property of that instance. In this situation, the parameter name takes precedence, and it
becomes necessary to refer to the property in a more qualified way. You use the self property to
distinguish between the parameter name and the property name.
Here, self disambiguates between a method parameter called x and an instance property that is also
called x:
1

struct Point {

var x = 0.0, y = 0.0

func isToTheRightOfX(x: Double) -> Bool {

return self.x > x

let somePoint = Point(x: 4.0, y: 5.0)

if somePoint.isToTheRightOfX(1.0) {

println("This point is to the right of the line where x == 1.0")

10

11

// prints "This point is to the right of the line where x == 1.0"

Without the self prefix, Swift would assume that both uses of x referred to the method parameter
called x.

Modifying Value Types from Within Instance Methods

Structures and enumerations are value types. By default, the properties of a value type cannot be
modified from within its instance methods.
However, if you need to modify the properties of your structure or enumeration within a particular
method, you can opt in to mutating behavior for that method. The method can then mutate (that is,
change) its properties from within the method, and any changes that it makes are written back to the
original structure when the method ends. The method can also assign a completely new instance to its
implicit self property, and this new instance will replace the existing one when the method ends.
You can opt in to this behavior by placing the mutating keyword before the func keyword for that
method:

struct Point {

var x = 0.0, y = 0.0

mutating func moveByX(deltaX: Double, y deltaY: Double) {

x += deltaX

y += deltaY

var somePoint = Point(x: 1.0, y: 1.0)

somePoint.moveByX(2.0, y: 3.0)

10

println("The point is now at (\(somePoint.x), \(somePoint.y))")

11

// prints "The point is now at (3.0, 4.0)"

The Point structure above defines a mutating moveByX(_:y:) method, which moves a Point instance
by a certain amount. Instead of returning a new point, this method actually modifies the point on which
it is called. The mutating keyword is added to its definition to enable it to modify its properties.
Note that you cannot call a mutating method on a constant of structure type, because its properties
cannot be changed, even if they are variable properties, as described in Stored Properties of Constant
Structure Instances:
1

let fixedPoint = Point(x: 3.0, y: 3.0)

fixedPoint.moveByX(2.0, y: 3.0)

// this will report an error

Assigning to self Within a Mutating Method

Mutating methods can assign an entirely new instance to the implicit self property. The Point
example shown above could have been written in the following way instead:

struct Point {

var x = 0.0, y = 0.0

mutating func moveByX(deltaX: Double, y deltaY: Double) {

self = Point(x: x + deltaX, y: y + deltaY)

5
6

}
}

This version of the mutating moveByX(_:y:) method creates a brand new structure whose x and y
values are set to the target location. The end result of calling this alternative version of the method
will be exactly the same as for calling the earlier version.
Mutating methods for enumerations can set the implicit self parameter to be a different member from
the same enumeration:
1

enum TriStateSwitch {

case Off, Low, High

mutating func next() {

switch self {

case Off:

self = Low

case Low:

self = High

case High:

10

self = Off

11

12

13

14

var ovenLight = TriStateSwitch.Low

15

ovenLight.next()

16

// ovenLight is now equal to .High

17

ovenLight.next()

18

// ovenLight is now equal to .Off

This example defines an enumeration for a three-state switch. The switch cycles between three

different power states (Off, Low and High) every time its next() method is called.

Type Methods
Instance methods, as described above, are methods that are called on an instance of a particular type.
You can also define methods that are called on the type itself. These kinds of methods are called type
methods. You indicate type methods by writing the keyword static before the methods func
keyword. Classes may also use the class keyword to allow subclasses to override the superclasss
implementation of that method.

NOTE
In Objective-C, you can define type-level methods only for Objective-C classes. In Swift, you can define type-level
methods for all classes, structures, and enumerations. Each type method is explicitly scoped to the type it supports.

Type methods are called with dot syntax, like instance methods. However, you call type methods on
the type, not on an instance of that type. Heres how you call a type method on a class called
SomeClass:
1

class SomeClass {

class func someTypeMethod() {

// type method implementation goes here

SomeClass.someTypeMethod()

Within the body of a type method, the implicit self property refers to the type itself, rather than an
instance of that type. For structures and enumerations, this means that you can use self to
disambiguate between type properties and type method parameters, just as you do for instance
properties and instance method parameters.
More generally, any unqualified method and property names that you use within the body of a type
method will refer to other type-level methods and properties. A type method can call another type
method with the other methods name, without needing to prefix it with the type name. Similarly, type
methods on structures and enumerations can access type properties by using the type propertys name
without a type name prefix.
The example below defines a structure called LevelTracker, which tracks a players progress through
the different levels or stages of a game. It is a single-player game, but can store information for

multiple players on a single device.

All of the games levels (apart from level one) are locked when the game is first played. Every time a
player finishes a level, that level is unlocked for all players on the device. The LevelTracker
structure uses type properties and methods to keep track of which levels of the game have been
unlocked. It also tracks the current level for an individual player.
1

struct LevelTracker {

static var highestUnlockedLevel = 1

static func unlockLevel(level: Int) {

if level > highestUnlockedLevel { highestUnlockedLevel = level }

static func levelIsUnlocked(level: Int) -> Bool {

return level <= highestUnlockedLevel

var currentLevel = 1

10

mutating func advanceToLevel(level: Int) -> Bool {

11

if LevelTracker.levelIsUnlocked(level) {

12

currentLevel = level

13

return true

14

} else {

15

return false

16

17

18

}
}

The LevelTracker structure keeps track of the highest level that any player has unlocked. This value is
stored in a type property called highestUnlockedLevel.
also defines two type functions to work with the highestUnlockedLevel property. The
first is a type function called unlockLevel, which updates the value of highestUnlockedLevel
whenever a new level is unlocked. The second is a convenience type function called
levelIsUnlocked, which returns true if a particular level number is already unlocked. (Note that
these type methods can access the highestUnlockedLevel type property without your needing to write
it as LevelTracker.highestUnlockedLevel.)
LevelTracker

In addition to its type property and type methods, LevelTracker tracks an individual players progress

through the game. It uses an instance property called currentLevel to track the level that a player is
currently playing.
To help manage the currentLevel property, LevelTracker defines an instance method called
advanceToLevel. Before updating currentLevel, this method checks whether the requested new level
is already unlocked. The advanceToLevel(_:) method returns a Boolean value to indicate whether or
not it was actually able to set currentLevel.
The LevelTracker structure is used with the Player class, shown below, to track and update the
progress of an individual player:
1

class Player {

var tracker = LevelTracker()

let playerName: String

func completedLevel(level: Int) {

LevelTracker.unlockLevel(level + 1)

tracker.advanceToLevel(level + 1)

init(name: String) {

10

11

playerName = name
}

The Player class creates a new instance of LevelTracker to track that players progress. It also
provides a method called completedLevel, which is called whenever a player completes a particular
level. This method unlocks the next level for all players and updates the players progress to move
them to the next level. (The Boolean return value of advanceToLevel is ignored, because the level is
known to have been unlocked by the call to LevelTracker.unlockLevel on the previous line.)
You can create an instance of the Player class for a new player, and see what happens when the
player completes level one:
1

var player = Player(name: "Argyrios")

player.completedLevel(1)

println("highest unlocked level is now \(LevelTracker.highestUnlockedLevel)")

// prints "highest unlocked level is now 2"

If you create a second player, whom you try to move to a level that is not yet unlocked by any player
in the game, the attempt to set the players current level fails:

player = Player(name: "Beto")

if player.tracker.advanceToLevel(6) {

3
4

println("player is now on level 6")

} else {

println("level 6 has not yet been unlocked")

// prints "level 6 has not yet been unlocked"

Subscripts
Classes, structures, and enumerations can define subscripts, which are shortcuts for accessing the
member elements of a collection, list, or sequence. You use subscripts to set and retrieve values by
index without needing separate methods for setting and retrieval. For example, you access elements in
an Array instance as someArray[index] and elements in a Dictionary instance as
someDictionary[key].
You can define multiple subscripts for a single type, and the appropriate subscript overload to use is
selected based on the type of index value you pass to the subscript. Subscripts are not limited to a
single dimension, and you can define subscripts with multiple input parameters to suit your custom
types needs.

Subscript Syntax
Subscripts enable you to query instances of a type by writing one or more values in square brackets
after the instance name. Their syntax is similar to both instance method syntax and computed property
syntax. You write subscript definitions with the subscript keyword, and specify one or more input
parameters and a return type, in the same way as instance methods. Unlike instance methods,
subscripts can be read-write or read-only. This behavior is communicated by a getter and setter in the
same way as for computed properties:
1

subscript(index: Int) -> Int {

get {

// return an appropriate subscript value here

set(newValue) {

// perform a suitable setting action here

7
8

}
}

The type of newValue is the same as the return value of the subscript. As with computed properties,
you can choose not to specify the setters (newValue) parameter. A default parameter called newValue
is provided to your setter if you do not provide one yourself.
As with read-only computed properties, you can drop the get keyword for read-only subscripts:

subscript(index: Int) -> Int {

2
3

// return an appropriate subscript value here

}

Heres an example of a read-only subscript implementation, which defines a TimesTable structure to

represent an n-times-table of integers:
1

struct TimesTable {

let multiplier: Int

subscript(index: Int) -> Int {

return multiplier * index

let threeTimesTable = TimesTable(multiplier: 3)

println("six times three is \(threeTimesTable[6])")

// prints "six times three is 18"

In this example, a new instance of TimesTable is created to represent the three-times-table. This is
indicated by passing a value of 3 to the structures initializer as the value to use for the instances
multiplier parameter.
You can query the threeTimesTable instance by calling its subscript, as shown in the call to
threeTimesTable[6]. This requests the sixth entry in the three-times-table, which returns a value of
18, or 3 times 6.

NOTE
An n-times-table is based on a fixed mathematical rule. It is not appropriate to set threeTimesTable[someIndex]
to a new value, and so the subscript for TimesTable is defined as a read-only subscript.

Subscript Usage
The exact meaning of subscript depends on the context in which it is used. Subscripts are typically
used as a shortcut for accessing the member elements in a collection, list, or sequence. You are free to
implement subscripts in the most appropriate way for your particular class or structures functionality.

For example, Swifts Dictionary type implements a subscript to set and retrieve the values stored in
a Dictionary instance. You can set a value in a dictionary by providing a key of the dictionarys key
type within subscript braces, and assigning a value of the dictionarys value type to the subscript:
1

var numberOfLegs = ["spider": 8, "ant": 6, "cat": 4]

numberOfLegs["bird"] = 2

The example above defines a variable called numberOfLegs and initializes it with a dictionary literal
containing three key-value pairs. The type of the numberOfLegs dictionary is inferred to be [String:
Int]. After creating the dictionary, this example uses subscript assignment to add a String key of
"bird" and an Int value of 2 to the dictionary.
For more information about Dictionary subscripting, see Accessing and Modifying a Dictionary.

NOTE
Swifts Dictionary type implements its key-value subscripting as a subscript that takes and receives an optional type.
For the numberOfLegs dictionary above, the key-value subscript takes and returns a value of type Int?, or optional
int. The Dictionary type uses an optional subscript type to model the fact that not every key will have a value, and to
give a way to delete a value for a key by assigning a nil value for that key.

Subscript Options
Subscripts can take any number of input parameters, and these input parameters can be of any type.
Subscripts can also return any type. Subscripts can use variable parameters and variadic parameters,
but cannot use in-out parameters or provide default parameter values.
A class or structure can provide as many subscript implementations as it needs, and the appropriate
subscript to be used will be inferred based on the types of the value or values that are contained
within the subscript braces at the point that the subscript is used. This definition of multiple
subscripts is known as subscript overloading.
While it is most common for a subscript to take a single parameter, you can also define a subscript
with multiple parameters if it is appropriate for your type. The following example defines a Matrix
structure, which represents a two-dimensional matrix of Double values. The Matrix structures
subscript takes two integer parameters:

struct Matrix {

let rows: Int, columns: Int

var grid: [Double]

init(rows: Int, columns: Int) {

self.rows = rows

self.columns = columns

grid = Array(count: rows * columns, repeatedValue: 0.0)

func indexIsValidForRow(row: Int, column: Int) -> Bool {

10

return row >= 0 && row < rows && column >= 0 && column < columns

11

12

subscript(row: Int, column: Int) -> Double {

13

get {

14

assert(indexIsValidForRow(row, column: column), "Index out of range")

15

return grid[(row * columns) + column]

16

17

set {

18

assert(indexIsValidForRow(row, column: column), "Index out of range")

19

grid[(row * columns) + column] = newValue

20

21

22

}
}

provides an initializer that takes two parameters called rows and columns, and creates an array
that is large enough to store rows * columns values of type Double. Each position in the matrix is
given an initial value of 0.0. To achieve this, the arrays size, and an initial cell value of 0.0, are
passed to an array initializer that creates and initializes a new array of the correct size. This
initializer is described in more detail in Creating and Initializing an Array.
Matrix

You can construct a new Matrix instance by passing an appropriate row and column count to its
initializer:
var matrix = Matrix(rows: 2, columns: 2)

The preceding example creates a new Matrix instance with two rows and two columns. The grid
array for this Matrix instance is effectively a flattened version of the matrix, as read from top left to
bottom right:

Values in the matrix can be set by passing row and column values into the subscript, separated by a
comma:
1

matrix[0, 1] = 1.5

matrix[1, 0] = 3.2

These two statements call the subscripts setter to set a value of 1.5 in the top right position of the
matrix (where row is 0 and column is 1), and 3.2 in the bottom left position (where row is 1 and column
is 0):

The Matrix subscripts getter and setter both contain an assertion to check that the subscripts row and
column values are valid. To assist with these assertions, Matrix includes a convenience method called
indexIsValidForRow(_:column:), which checks whether the requested row and column are inside the
bounds of the matrix:
1

func indexIsValidForRow(row: Int, column: Int) -> Bool {

2
3

return row >= 0 && row < rows && column >= 0 && column < columns
}

An assertion is triggered if you try to access a subscript that is outside of the matrix bounds:
1

let someValue = matrix[2, 2]

// this triggers an assert, because [2, 2] is outside of the matrix bounds

Inheritance
A class can inherit methods, properties, and other characteristics from another class. When one class
inherits from another, the inheriting class is known as a subclass, and the class it inherits from is
known as its superclass. Inheritance is a fundamental behavior that differentiates classes from other
types in Swift.
Classes in Swift can call and access methods, properties, and subscripts belonging to their superclass
and can provide their own overriding versions of those methods, properties, and subscripts to refine
or modify their behavior. Swift helps to ensure your overrides are correct by checking that the
override definition has a matching superclass definition.
Classes can also add property observers to inherited properties in order to be notified when the value
of a property changes. Property observers can be added to any property, regardless of whether it was
originally defined as a stored or computed property.

Defining a Base Class

Any class that does not inherit from another class is known as a base class.

NOTE
Swift classes do not inherit from a universal base class. Classes you define without specifying a superclass automatically
become base classes for you to build upon.

The example below defines a base class called Vehicle. This base class defines a stored property
called currentSpeed, with a default value of 0.0 (inferring a property type of Double). The
currentSpeed propertys value is used by a read-only computed String property called description
to create a description of the vehicle.
The Vehicle base class also defines a method called makeNoise. This method does not actually do
anything for a base Vehicle instance, but will be customized by subclasses of Vehicle later on:

class Vehicle {

var currentSpeed = 0.0

var description: String {

return "traveling at \(currentSpeed) miles per hour"

func makeNoise() {

// do nothing - an arbitrary vehicle doesn't necessarily make a noise

8
9

}
}

You create a new instance of Vehicle with initializer syntax, which is written as a TypeName
followed by empty parentheses:
let someVehicle = Vehicle()

Having created a new Vehicle instance, you can access its description property to print a humanreadable description of the vehicles current speed:
1

println("Vehicle: \(someVehicle.description)")

// Vehicle: traveling at 0.0 miles per hour

The Vehicle class defines common characteristics for an arbitrary vehicle, but is not much use in
itself. To make it more useful, you need to refine it to describe more specific kinds of vehicle.

Subclassing
Subclassing is the act of basing a new class on an existing class. The subclass inherits characteristics
from the existing class, which you can then refine. You can also add new characteristics to the
subclass.
To indicate that a subclass has a superclass, write the subclass name before the superclass name,
separated by a colon:
1

class SomeSubclass: SomeSuperclass {

// subclass definition goes here

The following example defines a subclass called Bicycle, with a superclass of Vehicle:
1

class Bicycle: Vehicle {

2
3

var hasBasket = false

}

The new Bicycle class automatically gains all of the characteristics of Vehicle, such as its
currentSpeed and description properties and its makeNoise() method.
In addition to the characteristics it inherits, the Bicycle class defines a new stored property,
hasBasket, with a default value of false (inferring a type of Bool for the property).
By default, any new Bicycle instance you create will not have a basket. You can set the hasBasket
property to true for a particular Bicycle instance after that instance is created:
1

let bicycle = Bicycle()

bicycle.hasBasket = true

You can also modify the inherited currentSpeed property of a Bicycle instance, and query the
instances inherited description property:
1

bicycle.currentSpeed = 15.0

println("Bicycle: \(bicycle.description)")

// Bicycle: traveling at 15.0 miles per hour

Subclasses can themselves be subclassed. The next example creates a subclass of Bicycle for a twoseater bicycle known as a tandem:
1

class Tandem: Bicycle {

2
3

var currentNumberOfPassengers = 0
}

inherits all of the properties and methods from Bicycle, which in turn inherits all of the
properties and methods from Vehicle. The Tandem subclass also adds a new stored property called
currentNumberOfPassengers, with a default value of 0.
Tandem

If you create an instance of Tandem, you can work with any of its new and inherited properties, and
query the read-only description property it inherits from Vehicle:

let tandem = Tandem()

tandem.hasBasket = true

tandem.currentNumberOfPassengers = 2

tandem.currentSpeed = 22.0

println("Tandem: \(tandem.description)")

// Tandem: traveling at 22.0 miles per hour

Overriding
A subclass can provide its own custom implementation of an instance method, type method, instance
property, type property, or subscript that it would otherwise inherit from a superclass. This is known
as overriding.
To override a characteristic that would otherwise be inherited, you prefix your overriding definition
with the override keyword. Doing so clarifies that you intend to provide an override and have not
provided a matching definition by mistake. Overriding by accident can cause unexpected behavior,
and any overrides without the override keyword are diagnosed as an error when your code is
compiled.
The override keyword also prompts the Swift compiler to check that your overriding classs
superclass (or one of its parents) has a declaration that matches the one you provided for the
override. This check ensures that your overriding definition is correct.

Accessing Superclass Methods, Properties, and Subscripts

When you provide a method, property, or subscript override for a subclass, it is sometimes useful to
use the existing superclass implementation as part of your override. For example, you can refine the
behavior of that existing implementation, or store a modified value in an existing inherited variable.
Where this is appropriate, you access the superclass version of a method, property, or subscript by
using the super prefix:
An overridden method named someMethod() can call the superclass version of someMethod()
by calling super.someMethod() within the overriding method implementation.
An overridden property called someProperty can access the superclass version of
someProperty as super.someProperty within the overriding getter or setter implementation.
An overridden subscript for someIndex can access the superclass version of the same

subscript as super[someIndex] from within the overriding subscript implementation.

Overriding Methods
You can override an inherited instance or type method to provide a tailored or alternative
implementation of the method within your subclass.
The following example defines a new subclass of Vehicle called Train, which overrides the
makeNoise() method that Train inherits from Vehicle:
1

class Train: Vehicle {

override func makeNoise() {

println("Choo Choo")

4
5

}
}

If you create a new instance of Train and call its makeNoise() method, you can see that the Train
subclass version of the method is called:
1

let train = Train()

train.makeNoise()

// prints "Choo Choo"

Overriding Properties
You can override an inherited instance or class property to provide your own custom getter and setter
for that property, or to add property observers to enable the overriding property to observe when the
underlying property value changes.

Overriding Property Getters and Setters

You can provide a custom getter (and setter, if appropriate) to override any inherited property,
regardless of whether the inherited property is implemented as a stored or computed property at
source. The stored or computed nature of an inherited property is not known by a subclassit only
knows that the inherited property has a certain name and type. You must always state both the name

and the type of the property you are overriding, to enable the compiler to check that your override
matches a superclass property with the same name and type.
You can present an inherited read-only property as a read-write property by providing both a getter
and a setter in your subclass property override. You cannot, however, present an inherited read-write
property as a read-only property.

NOTE
If you provide a setter as part of a property override, you must also provide a getter for that override. If you dont want to
modify the inherited propertys value within the overriding getter, you can simply pass through the inherited value by
returning super.someProperty from the getter, where someProperty is the name of the property you are
overriding.

The following example defines a new class called Car, which is a subclass of Vehicle. The Car class
introduces a new stored property called gear, with a default integer value of 1. The Car class also
overrides the description property it inherits from Vehicle, to provide a custom description that
includes the current gear:
1

class Car: Vehicle {

var gear = 1

override var description: String {

return super.description + " in gear \(gear)"

5
6

}
}

The override of the description property starts by calling super.description, which returns the
Vehicle classs description property. The Car classs version of description then adds some extra
text onto the end of this description to provide information about the current gear.
If you create an instance of the Car class and set its gear and currentSpeed properties, you can see
that its description property returns the tailored description defined within the Car class:
1

let car = Car()

car.currentSpeed = 25.0

car.gear = 3

println("Car: \(car.description)")

// Car: traveling at 25.0 miles per hour in gear 3

Overriding Property Observers

You can use property overriding to add property observers to an inherited property. This enables you
to be notified when the value of an inherited property changes, regardless of how that property was
originally implemented. For more information on property observers, see Property Observers.

NOTE
You cannot add property observers to inherited constant stored properties or inherited read-only computed properties. The
value of these properties cannot be set, and so it is not appropriate to provide a willSet or didSet implementation as
part of an override.
Note also that you cannot provide both an overriding setter and an overriding property observer for the same property. If
you want to observe changes to a propertys value, and you are already providing a custom setter for that property, you can
simply observe any value changes from within the custom setter.

The following example defines a new class called AutomaticCar, which is a subclass of Car. The
AutomaticCar class represents a car with an automatic gearbox, which automatically selects an
appropriate gear to use based on the current speed:
1

class AutomaticCar: Car {

override var currentSpeed: Double {

didSet {

gear = Int(currentSpeed / 10.0) + 1

6
7

}
}

Whenever you set the currentSpeed property of an AutomaticCar instance, the propertys didSet
observer sets the instances gear property to an appropriate choice of gear for the new speed.
Specifically, the property observer chooses a gear that is the new currentSpeed value divided by 10,
rounded down to the nearest integer, plus 1. A speed of 35.0 produces a gear of 4:
1

let automatic = AutomaticCar()

automatic.currentSpeed = 35.0

println("AutomaticCar: \(automatic.description)")

// AutomaticCar: traveling at 35.0 miles per hour in gear 4

Preventing Overrides
You can prevent a method, property, or subscript from being overridden by marking it as final. Do
this by writing the final modifier before the method, property, or subscripts introducer keyword
(such as final var, final func, final class func, and final subscript).
Any attempt to override a final method, property, or subscript in a subclass is reported as a compiletime error. Methods, properties, or subscripts that you add to a class in an extension can also be
marked as final within the extensions definition.
You can mark an entire class as final by writing the final modifier before the class keyword in its
class definition (final class). Any attempt to subclass a final class is reported as a compile-time
error.

Initialization
Initialization is the process of preparing an instance of a class, structure, or enumeration for use.
This process involves setting an initial value for each stored property on that instance and performing
any other setup or initialization that is required before the new instance is ready for use.
You implement this initialization process by defining initializers, which are like special methods that
can be called to create a new instance of a particular type. Unlike Objective-C initializers, Swift
initializers do not return a value. Their primary role is to ensure that new instances of a type are
correctly initialized before they are used for the first time.
Instances of class types can also implement a deinitializer, which performs any custom cleanup just
before an instance of that class is deallocated. For more information about deinitializers, see
Deinitialization.

Setting Initial Values for Stored Properties

Classes and structures must set all of their stored properties to an appropriate initial value by the
time an instance of that class or structure is created. Stored properties cannot be left in an
indeterminate state.
You can set an initial value for a stored property within an initializer, or by assigning a default
property value as part of the propertys definition. These actions are described in the following
sections.

NOTE
When you assign a default value to a stored property, or set its initial value within an initializer, the value of that property is
set directly, without calling any property observers.

Initializers
Initializers are called to create a new instance of a particular type. In its simplest form, an initializer
is like an instance method with no parameters, written using the init keyword:

init() {

2
3

// perform some initialization here

}

The example below defines a new structure called Fahrenheit to store temperatures expressed in the
Fahrenheit scale. The Fahrenheit structure has one stored property, temperature, which is of type
Double:
1

struct Fahrenheit {

var temperature: Double

init() {

temperature = 32.0

var f = Fahrenheit()

println("The default temperature is \(f.temperature) Fahrenheit")

// prints "The default temperature is 32.0 Fahrenheit"

The structure defines a single initializer, init, with no parameters, which initializes the stored
temperature with a value of 32.0 (the freezing point of water when expressed in the Fahrenheit scale).

Default Property Values

You can set the initial value of a stored property from within an initializer, as shown above.
Alternatively, specify a default property value as part of the propertys declaration. You specify a
default property value by assigning an initial value to the property when it is defined.

NOTE
If a property always takes the same initial value, provide a default value rather than setting a value within an initializer. The
end result is the same, but the default value ties the propertys initialization more closely to its declaration. It makes for
shorter, clearer initializers and enables you to infer the type of the property from its default value. The default value also
makes it easier for you to take advantage of default initializers and initializer inheritance, as described later in this chapter.

You can write the Fahrenheit structure from above in a simpler form by providing a default value for
its temperature property at the point that the property is declared:

struct Fahrenheit {

2
3

var temperature = 32.0

}

Customizing Initialization
You can customize the initialization process with input parameters and optional property types, or by
assigning constant properties during initialization, as described in the following sections.

Initialization Parameters
You can provide initialization parameters as part of an initializers definition, to define the types
and names of values that customize the initialization process. Initialization parameters have the same
capabilities and syntax as function and method parameters.
The following example defines a structure called Celsius, which stores temperatures expressed in the
Celsius scale. The Celsius structure implements two custom initializers called
init(fromFahrenheit:) and init(fromKelvin:), which initialize a new instance of the structure with
a value from a different temperature scale:
1

struct Celsius {

var temperatureInCelsius: Double

init(fromFahrenheit fahrenheit: Double) {

temperatureInCelsius = (fahrenheit - 32.0) / 1.8

init(fromKelvin kelvin: Double) {

temperatureInCelsius = kelvin - 273.15

8
9

}
}

10

let boilingPointOfWater = Celsius(fromFahrenheit: 212.0)

11

// boilingPointOfWater.temperatureInCelsius is 100.0

12

let freezingPointOfWater = Celsius(fromKelvin: 273.15)

13

// freezingPointOfWater.temperatureInCelsius is 0.0

The first initializer has a single initialization parameter with an external name of fromFahrenheit and
a local name of fahrenheit. The second initializer has a single initialization parameter with an
external name of fromKelvin and a local name of kelvin. Both initializers convert their single
argument into a value in the Celsius scale and store this value in a property called
temperatureInCelsius.

Local and External Parameter Names

As with function and method parameters, initialization parameters can have both a local name for use
within the initializers body and an external name for use when calling the initializer.
However, initializers do not have an identifying function name before their parentheses in the way that
functions and methods do. Therefore, the names and types of an initializers parameters play a
particularly important role in identifying which initializer should be called. Because of this, Swift
provides an automatic external name for every parameter in an initializer if you dont provide an
external name yourself. This automatic external name is the same as the local name, as if you had
written a hash symbol before every initialization parameter.
The following example defines a structure called Color, with three constant properties called red,
green, and blue. These properties store a value between 0.0 and 1.0 to indicate the amount of red,
green, and blue in the color.
provides an initializer with three appropriately named parameters of type Double for its red,
green, and blue components. Color also provides a second initializer with a single white parameter,
which is used to provide the same value for all three color components.
Color

struct Color {

let red, green, blue: Double

init(red: Double, green: Double, blue: Double) {

self.red

self.green = green

self.blue

= blue

init(white: Double) {

red

= white

10

green = white

11

blue

12

13

= red

= white

}
}

Both initializers can be used to create a new Color instance, by providing named values for each
initializer parameter:
1

let magenta = Color(red: 1.0, green: 0.0, blue: 1.0)

let halfGray = Color(white: 0.5)

Note that it is not possible to call these initializers without using external parameter names. External
names must always be used in an initializer if they are defined, and omitting them is a compile-time
error:
1

let veryGreen = Color(0.0, 1.0, 0.0)

// this reports a compile-time error - external names are required

Initializer Parameters Without External Names

If you do not want to use an external name for an initializer parameter, write an underscore (_) instead
of an explicit external name for that parameter to override the default behavior.
Heres an expanded version of the Celsius example from earlier, with an additional initializer to
create a new Celsius instance from a Double value that is already in the Celsius scale:

struct Celsius {

var temperatureInCelsius: Double

init(fromFahrenheit fahrenheit: Double) {

temperatureInCelsius = (fahrenheit - 32.0) / 1.8

init(fromKelvin kelvin: Double) {

temperatureInCelsius = kelvin - 273.15

init(_ celsius: Double) {

10

temperatureInCelsius = celsius

11

12

13

let bodyTemperature = Celsius(37.0)

14

// bodyTemperature.temperatureInCelsius is 37.0

The initializer call Celsius(37.0) is clear in its intent without the need for an external parameter
name. It is therefore appropriate to write this initializer as init(_ celsius: Double) so that it can be
called by providing an unnamed Double value.

Optional Property Types

If your custom type has a stored property that is logically allowed to have no valueperhaps
because its value cannot be set during initialization, or because it is allowed to have no value at
some later pointdeclare the property with an optional type. Properties of optional type are
automatically initialized with a value of nil, indicating that the property is deliberately intended to
have no value yet during initialization.
The following example defines a class called SurveyQuestion, with an optional String property
called response:

class SurveyQuestion {

var text: String

var response: String?

init(text: String) {

self.text = text

func ask() {

println(text)

10

11

let cheeseQuestion = SurveyQuestion(text: "Do you like cheese?")

12

cheeseQuestion.ask()

13

// prints "Do you like cheese?"

14

cheeseQuestion.response = "Yes, I do like cheese."

The response to a survey question cannot be known until it is asked, and so the response property is
declared with a type of String?, or optional String. It is automatically assigned a default value of
nil, meaning no string yet, when a new instance of SurveyQuestion is initialized.

Assigning Constant Properties During Initialization

You can assign a value to a constant property at any point during initialization, as long as it is set to a
definite value by the time initialization finishes. Once a constant property is assigned a value, it cant
be further modified.

NOTE
For class instances, a constant property can only be modified during initialization by the class that introduces it. It cannot be
modified by a subclass.

You can revise the SurveyQuestion example from above to use a constant property rather than a
variable property for the text property of the question, to indicate that the question does not change
once an instance of SurveyQuestion is created. Even though the text property is now a constant, it
can still be set within the classs initializer:

class SurveyQuestion {

let text: String

var response: String?

init(text: String) {

self.text = text

func ask() {

println(text)

10

11

let beetsQuestion = SurveyQuestion(text: "How about beets?")

12

beetsQuestion.ask()

13

// prints "How about beets?"

14

beetsQuestion.response = "I also like beets. (But not with cheese.)"

Default Initializers
Swift provides a default initializer for any structure or base class that provides default values for all
of its properties and does not provide at least one initializer itself. The default initializer simply
creates a new instance with all of its properties set to their default values.
This example defines a class called ShoppingListItem, which encapsulates the name, quantity, and
purchase state of an item in a shopping list:
1

class ShoppingListItem {

var name: String?

var quantity = 1

var purchased = false

var item = ShoppingListItem()

Because all properties of the ShoppingListItem class have default values, and because it is a base
class with no superclass, ShoppingListItem automatically gains a default initializer implementation
that creates a new instance with all of its properties set to their default values. (The name property is

an optional String property, and so it automatically receives a default value of nil, even though this
value is not written in the code.) The example above uses the default initializer for the
ShoppingListItem class to create a new instance of the class with initializer syntax, written as
ShoppingListItem(), and assigns this new instance to a variable called item.

Memberwise Initializers for Structure Types

Structure types automatically receive a memberwise initializer if they do not define any of their own
custom initializers. Unlike a default initializer, the structure receives a memberwise initializer even if
it has stored properties that do not have default values.
The memberwise initializer is a shorthand way to initialize the member properties of new structure
instances. Initial values for the properties of the new instance can be passed to the memberwise
initializer by name.
The example below defines a structure called Size with two properties called width and height.
Both properties are inferred to be of type Double by assigning a default value of 0.0.
The Size structure automatically receives an init(width:height:) memberwise initializer, which
you can use to initialize a new Size instance:
1

struct Size {

var width = 0.0, height = 0.0

let twoByTwo = Size(width: 2.0, height: 2.0)

Initializer Delegation for Value Types

Initializers can call other initializers to perform part of an instances initialization. This process,
known as initializer delegation, avoids duplicating code across multiple initializers.
The rules for how initializer delegation works, and for what forms of delegation are allowed, are
different for value types and class types. Value types (structures and enumerations) do not support
inheritance, and so their initializer delegation process is relatively simple, because they can only
delegate to another initializer that they provide themselves. Classes, however, can inherit from other
classes, as described in Inheritance. This means that classes have additional responsibilities for
ensuring that all stored properties they inherit are assigned a suitable value during initialization.
These responsibilities are described in Class Inheritance and Initialization below.
For value types, you use self.init to refer to other initializers from the same value type when

writing your own custom initializers. You can only call self.init from within an initializer.
Note that if you define a custom initializer for a value type, you will no longer have access to the
default initializer (or the memberwise initializer, if it is a structure) for that type. This constraint
prevents a situation in which additional essential setup provided in a more complex initializer is
circumvented by someone accidentally using one of the automatic initializers instead.

NOTE
If you want your custom value type to be initializable with the default initializer and memberwise initializer, and also with
your own custom initializers, write your custom initializers in an extension rather than as part of the value types original
implementation. For more information, see Extensions.

The following example defines a custom Rect structure to represent a geometric rectangle. The
example requires two supporting structures called Size and Point, both of which provide default
values of 0.0 for all of their properties:
1

struct Size {

var width = 0.0, height = 0.0

struct Point {

5
6

var x = 0.0, y = 0.0

}

You can initialize the Rect structure below in one of three waysby using its default zero-initialized
origin and size property values, by providing a specific origin point and size, or by providing a
specific center point and size. These initialization options are represented by three custom initializers
that are part of the Rect structures definition:

struct Rect {

var origin = Point()

var size = Size()

init() {}

init(origin: Point, size: Size) {

self.origin = origin

self.size = size

init(center: Point, size: Size) {

10

let originX = center.x - (size.width / 2)

11

let originY = center.y - (size.height / 2)

12

self.init(origin: Point(x: originX, y: originY), size: size)

13

14

}
}

The first Rect initializer, init(), is functionally the same as the default initializer that the structure
would have received if it did not have its own custom initializers. This initializer has an empty body,
represented by an empty pair of curly braces {}, and does not perform any initialization. Calling this
initializer returns a Rect instance whose origin and size properties are both initialized with the
default values of Point(x: 0.0, y: 0.0) and Size(width: 0.0, height: 0.0) from their property
definitions:
1

let basicRect = Rect()

// basicRect's origin is (0.0, 0.0) and its size is (0.0, 0.0)

The second Rect initializer, init(origin:size:), is functionally the same as the memberwise
initializer that the structure would have received if it did not have its own custom initializers. This
initializer simply assigns the origin and size argument values to the appropriate stored properties:
1
2
3

let originRect = Rect(origin: Point(x: 2.0, y: 2.0),

size: Size(width: 5.0, height: 5.0))
// originRect's origin is (2.0, 2.0) and its size is (5.0, 5.0)

The third Rect initializer, init(center:size:), is slightly more complex. It starts by calculating an
appropriate origin point based on a center point and a size value. It then calls (or delegates) to the
init(origin:size:) initializer, which stores the new origin and size values in the appropriate

properties:
1

let centerRect = Rect(center: Point(x: 4.0, y: 4.0),

2
3

size: Size(width: 3.0, height: 3.0))

// centerRect's origin is (2.5, 2.5) and its size is (3.0, 3.0)

The init(center:size:) initializer could have assigned the new values of origin and size to the
appropriate properties itself. However, it is more convenient (and clearer in intent) for the
init(center:size:) initializer to take advantage of an existing initializer that already provides
exactly that functionality.

NOTE
For an alternative way to write this example without defining the init() and init(origin:size:) initializers
yourself, see Extensions.

Class Inheritance and Initialization

All of a classs stored propertiesincluding any properties the class inherits from its superclass
must be assigned an initial value during initialization.
Swift defines two kinds of initializers for class types to help ensure all stored properties receive an
initial value. These are known as designated initializers and convenience initializers.

Designated Initializers and Convenience Initializers

Designated initializers are the primary initializers for a class. A designated initializer fully
initializes all properties introduced by that class and calls an appropriate superclass initializer to
continue the initialization process up the superclass chain.
Classes tend to have very few designated initializers, and it is quite common for a class to have only
one. Designated initializers are funnel points through which initialization takes place, and through
which the initialization process continues up the superclass chain.
Every class must have at least one designated initializer. In some cases, this requirement is satisfied
by inheriting one or more designated initializers from a superclass, as described in Automatic
Initializer Inheritance below.
Convenience initializers are secondary, supporting initializers for a class. You can define a

convenience initializer to call a designated initializer from the same class as the convenience
initializer with some of the designated initializers parameters set to default values. You can also
define a convenience initializer to create an instance of that class for a specific use case or input
value type.
You do not have to provide convenience initializers if your class does not require them. Create
convenience initializers whenever a shortcut to a common initialization pattern will save time or
make initialization of the class clearer in intent.

Syntax for Designated and Convenience Initializers

Designated initializers for classes are written in the same way as simple initializers for value types:
init( parameters ) {
statements
}

Convenience initializers are written in the same style, but with the convenience modifier placed
before the init keyword, separated by a space:
convenience init( parameters ) {
statements
}

Initializer Delegation for Class Types

To simplify the relationships between designated and convenience initializers, Swift applies the
following three rules for delegation calls between initializers:
Rule 1
A designated initializer must call a designated initializer from its immediate superclass.
Rule 2
A convenience initializer must call another initializer from the same class.
Rule 3
A convenience initializer must ultimately call a designated initializer.

A simple way to remember this is:

Designated initializers must always delegate up.
Convenience initializers must always delegate across.
These rules are illustrated in the figure below:

Here, the superclass has a single designated initializer and two convenience initializers. One
convenience initializer calls another convenience initializer, which in turn calls the single designated
initializer. This satisfies rules 2 and 3 from above. The superclass does not itself have a further
superclass, and so rule 1 does not apply.
The subclass in this figure has two designated initializers and one convenience initializer. The
convenience initializer must call one of the two designated initializers, because it can only call
another initializer from the same class. This satisfies rules 2 and 3 from above. Both designated
initializers must call the single designated initializer from the superclass, to satisfy rule 1 from above.

NOTE
These rules dont affect how users of your classes create instances of each class. Any initializer in the diagram above can
be used to create a fully-initialized instance of the class they belong to. The rules only affect how you write the classs
implementation.

The figure below shows a more complex class hierarchy for four classes. It illustrates how the
designated initializers in this hierarchy act as funnel points for class initialization, simplifying the
interrelationships among classes in the chain:

Two-Phase Initialization
Class initialization in Swift is a two-phase process. In the first phase, each stored property is
assigned an initial value by the class that introduced it. Once the initial state for every stored property
has been determined, the second phase begins, and each class is given the opportunity to customize its
stored properties further before the new instance is considered ready for use.
The use of a two-phase initialization process makes initialization safe, while still giving complete
flexibility to each class in a class hierarchy. Two-phase initialization prevents property values from
being accessed before they are initialized, and prevents property values from being set to a different
value by another initializer unexpectedly.

NOTE
Swifts two-phase initialization process is similar to initialization in Objective-C. The main difference is that during phase 1,
Objective-C assigns zero or null values (such as 0 or nil) to every property. Swifts initialization flow is more flexible in
that it lets you set custom initial values, and can cope with types for which 0 or nil is not a valid default value.

Swifts compiler performs four helpful safety-checks to make sure that two-phase initialization is
completed without error:

Safety check 1
A designated initializer must ensure that all of the properties introduced by its class are
initialized before it delegates up to a superclass initializer.
As mentioned above, the memory for an object is only considered fully initialized once the initial
state of all of its stored properties is known. In order for this rule to be satisfied, a designated
initializer must make sure that all its own properties are initialized before it hands off up the chain.
Safety check 2
A designated initializer must delegate up to a superclass initializer before assigning a value to an
inherited property. If it doesnt, the new value the designated initializer assigns will be
overwritten by the superclass as part of its own initialization.
Safety check 3
A convenience initializer must delegate to another initializer before assigning a value to any
property (including properties defined by the same class). If it doesnt, the new value the
convenience initializer assigns will be overwritten by its own classs designated initializer.
Safety check 4
An initializer cannot call any instance methods, read the values of any instance properties, or
refer to self as a value until after the first phase of initialization is complete.
The class instance is not fully valid until the first phase ends. Properties can only be accessed, and
methods can only be called, once the class instance is known to be valid at the end of the first phase.
Heres how two-phase initialization plays out, based on the four safety checks above:
Phase 1
A designated or convenience initializer is called on a class.
Memory for a new instance of that class is allocated. The memory is not yet initialized.
A designated initializer for that class confirms that all stored properties introduced by that
class have a value. The memory for these stored properties is now initialized.
The designated initializer hands off to a superclass initializer to perform the same task for its
own stored properties.
This continues up the class inheritance chain until the top of the chain is reached.
Once the top of the chain is reached, and the final class in the chain has ensured that all of its
stored properties have a value, the instances memory is considered to be fully initialized,
and phase 1 is complete.
Phase 2

 Working back down from the top of the chain, each designated initializer in the chain has the
option to customize the instance further. Initializers are now able to access self and can
modify its properties, call its instance methods, and so on.
Finally, any convenience initializers in the chain have the option to customize the instance
and to work with self.
Heres how phase 1 looks for an initialization call for a hypothetical subclass and superclass:

In this example, initialization begins with a call to a convenience initializer on the subclass. This
convenience initializer cannot yet modify any properties. It delegates across to a designated initializer
from the same class.
The designated initializer makes sure that all of the subclasss properties have a value, as per safety
check 1. It then calls a designated initializer on its superclass to continue the initialization up the
chain.
The superclasss designated initializer makes sure that all of the superclass properties have a value.
There are no further superclasses to initialize, and so no further delegation is needed.
As soon as all properties of the superclass have an initial value, its memory is considered fully
initialized, and Phase 1 is complete.
Heres how phase 2 looks for the same initialization call:

The superclasss designated initializer now has an opportunity to customize the instance further
(although it does not have to).
Once the superclasss designated initializer is finished, the subclasss designated initializer can
perform additional customization (although again, it does not have to).
Finally, once the subclasss designated initializer is finished, the convenience initializer that was
originally called can perform additional customization.

Initializer Inheritance and Overriding

Unlike subclasses in Objective-C, Swift subclasses do not inherit their superclass initializers by
default. Swifts approach prevents a situation in which a simple initializer from a superclass is
inherited by a more specialized subclass and is used to create a new instance of the subclass that is
not fully or correctly initialized.

NOTE
Superclass initializers are inherited in certain circumstances, but only when it is safe and appropriate to do so. For more
information, see Automatic Initializer Inheritance below.

If you want a custom subclass to present one or more of the same initializers as its superclass, you
can provide a custom implementation of those initializers within the subclass.
When you write a subclass initializer that matches a superclass designated initializer, you are
effectively providing an override of that designated initializer. Therefore, you must write the
override modifier before the subclasss initializer definition. This is true even if you are overriding
an automatically provided default initializer, as described in Default Initializers.
As with an overridden property, method or subscript, the presence of the override modifier prompts
Swift to check that the superclass has a matching designated initializer to be overridden, and
validates that the parameters for your overriding initializer have been specified as intended.

NOTE
You always write the override modifier when overriding a superclass designated initializer, even if your subclasss
implementation of the initializer is a convenience initializer.

Conversely, if you write a subclass initializer that matches a superclass convenience initializer, that
superclass convenience initializer can never be called directly by your subclass, as per the rules
described above in Initializer Delegation for Class Types. Therefore, your subclass is not (strictly

speaking) providing an override of the superclass initializer. As a result, you do not write the
override modifier when providing a matching implementation of a superclass convenience initializer.
The example below defines a base class called Vehicle. This base class declares a stored property
called numberOfWheels, with a default Int value of 0. The numberOfWheels property is used by a
computed property called description to create a String description of the vehicles characteristics:
1

class Vehicle {

var numberOfWheels = 0

var description: String {

return "\(numberOfWheels) wheel(s)"

5
6

}
}

The Vehicle class provides a default value for its only stored property, and does not provide any
custom initializers itself. As a result, it automatically receives a default initializer, as described in
Default Initializers. The default initializer (when available) is always a designated initializer for a
class, and can be used to create a new Vehicle instance with a numberOfWheels of 0:
1

let vehicle = Vehicle()

println("Vehicle: \(vehicle.description)")

// Vehicle: 0 wheel(s)

The next example defines a subclass of Vehicle called Bicycle:

1

class Bicycle: Vehicle {

override init() {

super.init()

numberOfWheels = 2

5
6

}
}

The Bicycle subclass defines a custom designated initializer, init(). This designated initializer
matches a designated initializer from the superclass of Bicycle, and so the Bicycle version of this
initializer is marked with the override modifier.
The init() initializer for Bicycle starts by calling super.init(), which calls the default initializer
for the Bicycle classs superclass, Vehicle. This ensures that the numberOfWheels inherited property
is initialized by Vehicle before Bicycle has the opportunity to modify the property. After calling

super.init(),

the original value of numberOfWheels is replaced with a new value of 2.

If you create an instance of Bicycle, you can call its inherited description computed property to see
how its numberOfWheels property has been updated:
1

let bicycle = Bicycle()

println("Bicycle: \(bicycle.description)")

// Bicycle: 2 wheel(s)

NOTE
Subclasses can modify inherited variable properties during initialization, but can not modify inherited constant properties.

Automatic Initializer Inheritance

As mentioned above, subclasses do not inherit their superclass initializers by default. However,
superclass initializers are automatically inherited if certain conditions are met. In practice, this means
that you do not need to write initializer overrides in many common scenarios, and can inherit your
superclass initializers with minimal effort whenever it is safe to do so.
Assuming that you provide default values for any new properties you introduce in a subclass, the
following two rules apply:
Rule 1
If your subclass doesnt define any designated initializers, it automatically inherits all of its
superclass designated initializers.
Rule 2
If your subclass provides an implementation of all of its superclass designated initializers
either by inheriting them as per rule 1, or by providing a custom implementation as part of its
definitionthen it automatically inherits all of the superclass convenience initializers.
These rules apply even if your subclass adds further convenience initializers.

NOTE
A subclass can implement a superclass designated initializer as a subclass convenience initializer as part of satisfying rule 2.

Designated and Convenience Initializers in Action

The following example shows designated initializers, convenience initializers, and automatic
initializer inheritance in action. This example defines a hierarchy of three classes called Food,
RecipeIngredient, and ShoppingListItem, and demonstrates how their initializers interact.
The base class in the hierarchy is called Food, which is a simple class to encapsulate the name of a
foodstuff. The Food class introduces a single String property called name and provides two
initializers for creating Food instances:
1

class Food {

var name: String

init(name: String) {

self.name = name

convenience init() {

self.init(name: "[Unnamed]")

8
9

}
}

The figure below shows the initializer chain for the Food class:

Classes do not have a default memberwise initializer, and so the Food class provides a designated
initializer that takes a single argument called name. This initializer can be used to create a new Food
instance with a specific name:
1

let namedMeat = Food(name: "Bacon")

// namedMeat's name is "Bacon"

The init(name: String) initializer from the Food class is provided as a designated initializer,
because it ensures that all stored properties of a new Food instance are fully initialized. The Food

class does not have a superclass, and so the init(name:

super.init() to complete its initialization.

String)

initializer does not need to call

The Food class also provides a convenience initializer, init(), with no arguments. The init()
initializer provides a default placeholder name for a new food by delegating across to the Food
classs init(name: String) with a name value of [Unnamed]:
1

let mysteryMeat = Food()

// mysteryMeat's name is "[Unnamed]"

The second class in the hierarchy is a subclass of Food called RecipeIngredient. The
RecipeIngredient class models an ingredient in a cooking recipe. It introduces an Int property called
quantity (in addition to the name property it inherits from Food) and defines two initializers for
creating RecipeIngredient instances:
1
2

var quantity: Int

init(name: String, quantity: Int) {

self.quantity = quantity

super.init(name: name)

override convenience init(name: String) {

self.init(name: name, quantity: 1)

10

class RecipeIngredient: Food {

The figure below shows the initializer chain for the RecipeIngredient class:

The RecipeIngredient class has a single designated initializer, init(name: String, quantity: Int),
which can be used to populate all of the properties of a new RecipeIngredient instance. This
initializer starts by assigning the passed quantity argument to the quantity property, which is the
only new property introduced by RecipeIngredient. After doing so, the initializer delegates up to the
init(name: String) initializer of the Food class. This process satisfies safety check 1 from TwoPhase Initialization above.
also defines a convenience initializer, init(name: String), which is used to
create a RecipeIngredient instance by name alone. This convenience initializer assumes a quantity of
1 for any RecipeIngredient instance that is created without an explicit quantity. The definition of this
convenience initializer makes RecipeIngredient instances quicker and more convenient to create, and
avoids code duplication when creating several single-quantity RecipeIngredient instances. This
convenience initializer simply delegates across to the classs designated initializer, passing in a
quantity value of 1.
RecipeIngredient

The init(name: String) convenience initializer provided by RecipeIngredient takes the same
parameters as the init(name: String) designated initializer from Food. Because this convenience
initializer overrides a designated initializer from its superclass, it must be marked with the override
modifier (as described in Initializer Inheritance and Overriding).
Even though RecipeIngredient provides the init(name: String) initializer as a convenience
initializer, RecipeIngredient has nonetheless provided an implementation of all of its superclasss
designated initializers. Therefore, RecipeIngredient automatically inherits all of its superclasss
convenience initializers too.
In this example, the superclass for RecipeIngredient is Food, which has a single convenience
initializer called init(). This initializer is therefore inherited by RecipeIngredient. The inherited
version of init() functions in exactly the same way as the Food version, except that it delegates to the
RecipeIngredient version of init(name: String) rather than the Food version.
All three of these initializers can be used to create new RecipeIngredient instances:

let oneMysteryItem = RecipeIngredient()

let oneBacon = RecipeIngredient(name: "Bacon")

let sixEggs = RecipeIngredient(name: "Eggs", quantity: 6)

The third and final class in the hierarchy is a subclass of RecipeIngredient called ShoppingListItem.
The ShoppingListItem class models a recipe ingredient as it appears in a shopping list.
Every item in the shopping list starts out as unpurchased. To represent this fact, ShoppingListItem
introduces a Boolean property called purchased, with a default value of false. ShoppingListItem
also adds a computed description property, which provides a textual description of a
ShoppingListItem instance:
1

class ShoppingListItem: RecipeIngredient {

var purchased = false

var description: String {

var output = "\(quantity) x \(name)"

output += purchased ? " " : " "

return output

7
8

}
}

NOTE
ShoppingListItem does not define an initializer to provide an initial value for purchased, because items in a
shopping list (as modeled here) always start out unpurchased.

Because it provides a default value for all of the properties it introduces and does not define any
initializers itself, ShoppingListItem automatically inherits all of the designated and convenience
initializers from its superclass.
The figure below shows the overall initializer chain for all three classes:

You can use all three of the inherited initializers to create a new ShoppingListItem instance:
1

var breakfastList = [

ShoppingListItem(),

ShoppingListItem(name: "Bacon"),

ShoppingListItem(name: "Eggs", quantity: 6),

breakfastList[0].name = "Orange juice"

breakfastList[0].purchased = true

for item in breakfastList {

println(item.description)

10

11

// 1 x Orange juice

12

// 1 x Bacon

13

// 6 x Eggs

Here, a new array called breakfastList is created from an array literal containing three new
ShoppingListItem instances. The type of the array is inferred to be [ShoppingListItem]. After the
array is created, the name of the ShoppingListItem at the start of the array is changed from "

to "Orange juice" and it is marked as having been purchased. Printing the description of
each item in the array shows that their default states have been set as expected.
[Unnamed]"

Failable Initializers
It is sometimes useful to define a class, structure, or enumeration for which initialization can fail.
This failure might be triggered by invalid initialization parameter values, the absence of a required
external resource, or some other condition that prevents initialization from succeeding.
To cope with initialization conditions that can fail, define one or more failable initializers as part of
a class, structure, or enumeration definition. You write a failable initializer by placing a question
mark after the init keyword (init?).

NOTE
You cannot define a failable and a nonfailable initializer with the same parameter types and names.

A failable initializer creates an optional value of the type it initializes. You write return
a failable initializer to indicate a point at which initialization failure can be triggered.

nil

within

NOTE
Strictly speaking, initializers do not return a value. Rather, their role is to ensure that self is fully and correctly initialized
by the time that initialization ends. Although you write return nil to trigger an initialization failure, you do not use the
return keyword to indicate initialization success.

The example below defines a structure called Animal, with a constant String property called
species. The Animal structure also defines a failable initializer with a single parameter called
species. This initializer checks if the species value passed to the initializer is an empty string. If an
empty string is found, an initialization failure is triggered. Otherwise, the species propertys value is
set, and initialization succeeds:

struct Animal {

let species: String

init?(species: String) {

if species.isEmpty { return nil }

self.species = species

6
7

}
}

You can use this failable initializer to try to initialize a new Animal instance and to check if
initialization succeeded:
1

let someCreature = Animal(species: "Giraffe")

// someCreature is of type Animal?, not Animal

3
4

if let giraffe = someCreature {

println("An animal was initialized with a species of \(giraffe.species)")

// prints "An animal was initialized with a species of Giraffe"

If you pass an empty string value to the failable initializers species parameter, the initializer triggers
an initialization failure:
1

let anonymousCreature = Animal(species: "")

// anonymousCreature is of type Animal?, not Animal

3
4

if anonymousCreature == nil {

println("The anonymous creature could not be initialized")

// prints "The anonymous creature could not be initialized"

NOTE
Checking for an empty string value (such as "" rather than "Giraffe") is not the same as checking for nil to indicate
the absence of an optional String value. In the example above, an empty string ("") is a valid, non-optional String.
However, it is not appropriate for an animal to have an empty string as the value of its species property. To model this
restriction, the failable initializer triggers an initialization failure if an empty string is found.

Failable Initializers for Enumerations

You can use a failable initializer to select an appropriate enumeration member based on one or more
parameters. The initializer can then fail if the provided parameters do not match an appropriate
enumeration member.
The example below defines an enumeration called TemperatureUnit, with three possible states
(Kelvin, Celsius, and Fahrenheit). A failable initializer is used to find an appropriate enumeration
member for a Character value representing a temperature symbol:
1

enum TemperatureUnit {

case Kelvin, Celsius, Fahrenheit

init?(symbol: Character) {

switch symbol {

case "K":

self = .Kelvin

case "C":

self = .Celsius

case "F":

10

self = .Fahrenheit

11

default:

12

return nil

13

14

15

}
}

You can use this failable initializer to choose an appropriate enumeration member for the three
possible states and to cause initialization to fail if the parameter does not match one of these states:

let fahrenheitUnit = TemperatureUnit(symbol: "F")

if fahrenheitUnit != nil {

println("This is a defined temperature unit, so initialization succeeded.")

// prints "This is a defined temperature unit, so initialization succeeded."

6
7

let unknownUnit = TemperatureUnit(symbol: "X")

if unknownUnit == nil {

println("This is not a defined temperature unit, so initialization failed.")

10

11

// prints "This is not a defined temperature unit, so initialization failed."

Failable Initializers for Enumerations with Raw Values

Enumerations with raw values automatically receive a failable initializer, init?(rawValue:), that
takes a parameter called rawValue of the appropriate raw-value type and selects a matching
enumeration member if one is found, or triggers an initialization failure if no matching value exists.
You can rewrite the TemperatureUnit example from above to use raw values of type Character and to
take advantage of the init?(rawValue:) initializer:

enum TemperatureUnit: Character {

2
3

case Kelvin = "K", Celsius = "C", Fahrenheit = "F"

}

4
5

let fahrenheitUnit = TemperatureUnit(rawValue: "F")

if fahrenheitUnit != nil {

println("This is a defined temperature unit, so initialization succeeded.")

// prints "This is a defined temperature unit, so initialization succeeded."

10

11

let unknownUnit = TemperatureUnit(rawValue: "X")

12

if unknownUnit == nil {

13

println("This is not a defined temperature unit, so initialization failed.")

14

15

// prints "This is not a defined temperature unit, so initialization failed."

Failable Initializers for Classes

A failable initializer for a value type (that is, a structure or enumeration) can trigger an initialization
failure at any point within its initializer implementation. In the Animal structure example above, the
initializer triggers an initialization failure at the very start of its implementation, before the species
property has been set.
For classes, however, a failable initializer can trigger an initialization failure only after all stored
properties introduced by that class have been set to an initial value and any initializer delegation has
taken place.
The example below shows how you can use an implicitly unwrapped optional property to satisfy this
requirement within a failable class initializer:

class Product {

let name: String!

init?(name: String) {

self.name = name

if name.isEmpty { return nil }

6
7

}
}

The Product class defined above is very similar to the Animal structure seen earlier. The Product
class has a constant name property that must not be allowed to take an empty string value. To enforce
this requirement, the Product class uses a failable initializer to ensure that the propertys value is
non-empty before allowing initialization to succeed.
However, Product is a class, not a structure. This means that unlike Animal, any failable initializer for
the Product class must provide an initial value for the name property before triggering an initialization
failure.
In the example above, the name property of the Product class is defined as having an implicitly
unwrapped optional string type (String!). Because it is of an optional type, this means that the name
property has a default value of nil before it is assigned a specific value during initialization. This
default value of nil in turn means that all of the properties introduced by the Product class have a
valid initial value. As a result, the failable initializer for Product can trigger an initialization failure
at the start of the initializer if it is passed an empty string, before assigning a specific value to the
name property within the initializer.
Because the name property is a constant, you can be confident that it will always contain a non-nil
value if initialization succeeds. Even though it is defined with an implicitly unwrapped optional type,
you can always access its implicitly unwrapped value with confidence, without needing to check for a
value of nil:
1

if let bowTie = Product(name: "bow tie") {

// no need to check if bowTie.name == nil

println("The product's name is \(bowTie.name)")

// prints "The product's name is bow tie"

Propagation of Initialization Failure

A failable initializer of a class, structure, or enumeration can delegate across to another failable
initializer from the same class, structure, or enumeration. Similarly, a subclass failable initializer can
delegate up to a superclass failable initializer.
In either case, if you delegate to another initializer that causes initialization to fail, the entire
initialization process fails immediately, and no further initialization code is executed.

NOTE
A failable initializer can also delegate to a nonfailable initializer. Use this approach if you need to add a potential failure
state to an existing initialization process that does not otherwise fail.

The example below defines a subclass of Product called CartItem. The CartItem class models an
item in an online shopping cart. CartItem introduces a stored constant property called quantity and
ensures that this property always has a value of at least 1:
1

class CartItem: Product {

let quantity: Int!

init?(name: String, quantity: Int) {

self.quantity = quantity

super.init(name: name)

if quantity < 1 { return nil }

7
8

}
}

The quantity property has an implicitly unwrapped integer type (Int!). As with the name property of
the Product class, this means that the quantity property has a default value of nil before it is
assigned a specific value during initialization.
The failable initializer for CartItem starts by delegating up to the init(name:) initializer from its
superclass, Product. This satisfies the requirement that a failable initializer must always perform
initializer delegation before triggering an initialization failure.
If the superclass initialization fails because of an empty name value, the entire initialization process
fails immediately and no further initialization code is executed. If the superclass initialization
succeeds, the CartItem initializer validates that it has received a quantity value of 1 or more.
If you create a CartItem instance with a non-empty name and a quantity of 1 or more, initialization
succeeds:

if let twoSocks = CartItem(name: "sock", quantity: 2) {

println("Item: \(twoSocks.name), quantity: \(twoSocks.quantity)")

// prints "Item: sock, quantity: 2"

If you try to create a CartItem instance with a quantity value of 0, the CartItem initializer causes
initialization to fail:
1

if let zeroShirts = CartItem(name: "shirt", quantity: 0) {

2
3

println("Item: \(zeroShirts.name), quantity: \(zeroShirts.quantity)")

} else {

println("Unable to initialize zero shirts")

// prints "Unable to initialize zero shirts"

Similarly, if you try to create a CartItem instance with an empty name value, the superclass Product
initializer causes initialization to fail:
1

if let oneUnnamed = CartItem(name: "", quantity: 1) {

2
3

println("Item: \(oneUnnamed.name), quantity: \(oneUnnamed.quantity)")

} else {

println("Unable to initialize one unnamed product")

// prints "Unable to initialize one unnamed product"

Overriding a Failable Initializer

You can override a superclass failable initializer in a subclass, just like any other initializer.
Alternatively, you can override a superclass failable initializer with a subclass non-failable
initializer. This enables you to define a subclass for which initialization cannot fail, even though
initialization of the superclass is allowed to fail.
Note that if you override a failable superclass initializer with a nonfailable subclass initializer, the
subclass initializer cannot delegate up to the superclass initializer. A nonfailable initializer can never
delegate to a failable initializer.

NOTE
You can override a failable initializer with a nonfailable initializer but not the other way around.

The example below defines a class called Document. This class models a document that can be
initialized with a name property that is either a non-empty string value or nil, but cannot be an empty
string:
1
2

var name: String?

// this initializer creates a document with a nil name value

init() {}

// this initializer creates a document with a non-empty name value

init?(name: String) {

self.name = name

if name.isEmpty { return nil }

10

class Document {

The next example defines a subclass of Document called AutomaticallyNamedDocument. The

AutomaticallyNamedDocument subclass overrides both of the designated initializers introduced by
Document. These overrides ensure that an AutomaticallyNamedDocument instance has an initial name
value of "[Untitled]" if the instance is initialized without a name, or if an empty string is passed to
the init(name:) initializer:

class AutomaticallyNamedDocument: Document {

override init() {

super.init()

self.name = "[Untitled]"

override init(name: String) {

super.init()

if name.isEmpty {

self.name = "[Untitled]"

10

} else {

11

self.name = name

12

13

14

}
}

The AutomaticallyNamedDocument overrides its superclasss failable init?(name:) initializer with a

nonfailable init(name:) initializer. Because AutomaticallyNamedDocument copes with the empty
string case in a different way than its superclass, its initializer does not need to fail, and so it
provides a nonfailable version of the initializer instead.

The init! Failable Initializer

You typically define a failable initializer that creates an optional instance of the appropriate type by
placing a question mark after the init keyword (init?). Alternatively, you can define a failable
initializer that creates an implicitly unwrapped optional instance of the appropriate type. Do this by
placing an exclamation mark after the init keyword (init!) instead of a question mark.
You can delegate from init? to init! and vice versa, and you can override init? with init! and
vice versa. You can also delegate from init to init!, although doing so will trigger an assertion if
the init! initializer causes initialization to fail.

Required Initializers
Write the required modifier before the definition of a class initializer to indicate that every subclass

of the class must implement that initializer:

1

class SomeClass {

required init() {

// initializer implementation goes here

4
5

}
}

You must also write the required modifier before every subclass implementation of a required
initializer, to indicate that the initializer requirement applies to further subclasses in the chain. You do
not write the override modifier when overriding a required designated initializer:
1

class SomeSubclass: SomeClass {

required init() {

// subclass implementation of the required initializer goes here

4
5

}
}

NOTE
You do not have to provide an explicit implementation of a required initializer if you can satisfy the requirement with an
inherited initializer.

Setting a Default Property Value with a Closure or Function

If a stored propertys default value requires some customization or setup, you can use a closure or
global function to provide a customized default value for that property. Whenever a new instance of
the type that the property belongs to is initialized, the closure or function is called, and its return
value is assigned as the propertys default value.
These kinds of closures or functions typically create a temporary value of the same type as the
property, tailor that value to represent the desired initial state, and then return that temporary value to
be used as the propertys default value.
Heres a skeleton outline of how a closure can be used to provide a default property value:

class SomeClass {

let someProperty: SomeType = {

// create a default value for someProperty inside this closure

// someValue must be of the same type as SomeType

return someValue

}()

Note that the closures end curly brace is followed by an empty pair of parentheses. This tells Swift
to execute the closure immediately. If you omit these parentheses, you are trying to assign the closure
itself to the property, and not the return value of the closure.

NOTE
If you use a closure to initialize a property, remember that the rest of the instance has not yet been initialized at the point
that the closure is executed. This means that you cannot access any other property values from within your closure, even if
those properties have default values. You also cannot use the implicit self property, or call any of the instances methods.

The example below defines a structure called Checkerboard, which models a board for the game of
Checkers (also known as Draughts):

The game of Checkers is played on a ten-by-ten board, with alternating black and white squares. To
represent this game board, the Checkerboard structure has a single property called boardColors,
which is an array of 100 Bool values. A value of true in the array represents a black square and a
value of false represents a white square. The first item in the array represents the top left square on
the board and the last item in the array represents the bottom right square on the board.

The boardColors array is initialized with a closure to set up its color values:
1

struct Checkerboard {

let boardColors: [Bool] = {

var temporaryBoard = [Bool]()

var isBlack = false

for i in 1...10 {

for j in 1...10 {

temporaryBoard.append(isBlack)

isBlack = !isBlack

10

isBlack = !isBlack

11

12

return temporaryBoard

13

}()

14

func squareIsBlackAtRow(row: Int, column: Int) -> Bool {

15

return boardColors[(row * 10) + column]

16

17

}
}

Whenever a new Checkerboard instance is created, the closure is executed, and the default value of
boardColors is calculated and returned. The closure in the example above calculates and sets the
appropriate color for each square on the board in a temporary array called temporaryBoard, and
returns this temporary array as the closures return value once its setup is complete. The returned
array value is stored in boardColors and can be queried with the squareIsBlackAtRow utility function:
1

let board = Checkerboard()

println(board.squareIsBlackAtRow(0, column: 1))

// prints "true"

println(board.squareIsBlackAtRow(9, column: 9))

// prints "false"

Deinitialization
A deinitializer is called immediately before a class instance is deallocated. You write deinitializers
with the deinit keyword, similar to how initializers are written with the init keyword. Deinitializers
are only available on class types.

How Deinitialization Works

Swift automatically deallocates your instances when they are no longer needed, to free up resources.
Swift handles the memory management of instances through automatic reference counting (ARC), as
described in Automatic Reference Counting. Typically you dont need to perform manual clean-up
when your instances are deallocated. However, when you are working with your own resources, you
might need to perform some additional clean-up yourself. For example, if you create a custom class to
open a file and write some data to it, you might need to close the file before the class instance is
deallocated.
Class definitions can have at most one deinitializer per class. The deinitializer does not take any
parameters and is written without parentheses:
1

deinit {

2
3

// perform the deinitialization

}

Deinitializers are called automatically, just before instance deallocation takes place. You are not
allowed to call a deinitializer yourself. Superclass deinitializers are inherited by their subclasses,
and the superclass deinitializer is called automatically at the end of a subclass deinitializer
implementation. Superclass deinitializers are always called, even if a subclass does not provide its
own deinitializer.
Because an instance is not deallocated until after its deinitializer is called, a deinitializer can access
all properties of the instance it is called on and can modify its behavior based on those properties
(such as looking up the name of a file that needs to be closed).

Deinitializers in Action
Heres an example of a deinitializer in action. This example defines two new types, Bank and Player,

for a simple game. The Bank structure manages a made-up currency, which can never have more than
10,000 coins in circulation. There can only ever be one Bank in the game, and so the Bank is
implemented as a structure with type properties and methods to store and manage its current state:
1

struct Bank {

static var coinsInBank = 10_000

static func vendCoins(var numberOfCoinsToVend: Int) -> Int {

numberOfCoinsToVend = min(numberOfCoinsToVend, coinsInBank)

coinsInBank -= numberOfCoinsToVend

return numberOfCoinsToVend

static func receiveCoins(coins: Int) {

10

11

coinsInBank += coins
}

keeps track of the current number of coins it holds with its coinsInBank property. It also offers
two methodsvendCoins(_:) and receiveCoins(_:)to handle the distribution and collection of
coins.
Bank

checks that there are enough coins in the bank before distributing them. If there are not
enough coins, Bank returns a smaller number than the number that was requested (and returns zero if
no coins are left in the bank). vendCoins(_:) declares numberOfCoinsToVend as a variable parameter,
so that the number can be modified within the methods body without the need to declare a new
variable. It returns an integer value to indicate the actual number of coins that were provided.
vendCoins(_:)

The receiveCoins(_:) method simply adds the received number of coins back into the banks coin
store.
The Player class describes a player in the game. Each player has a certain number of coins stored in
their purse at any time. This is represented by the players coinsInPurse property:

class Player {

var coinsInPurse: Int

init(coins: Int) {

coinsInPurse = Bank.vendCoins(coins)

func winCoins(coins: Int) {

coinsInPurse += Bank.vendCoins(coins)

deinit {

10

Bank.receiveCoins(coinsInPurse)

11

12

}
}

Each Player instance is initialized with a starting allowance of a specified number of coins from the
bank during initialization, although a Player instance may receive fewer than that number if not
enough coins are available.
The Player class defines a winCoins(_:) method, which retrieves a certain number of coins from the
bank and adds them to the players purse. The Player class also implements a deinitializer, which is
called just before a Player instance is deallocated. Here, the deinitializer simply returns all of the
players coins to the bank:
1

var playerOne: Player? = Player(coins: 100)

println("A new player has joined the game with \(playerOne!.coinsInPurse) coins")

// prints "A new player has joined the game with 100 coins"

println("There are now \(Bank.coinsInBank) coins left in the bank")

// prints "There are now 9900 coins left in the bank"

A new Player instance is created, with a request for 100 coins if they are available. This Player
instance is stored in an optional Player variable called playerOne. An optional variable is used here,
because players can leave the game at any point. The optional lets you track whether there is currently
a player in the game.
Because playerOne is an optional, it is qualified with an exclamation mark (!) when its coinsInPurse
property is accessed to print its default number of coins, and whenever its winCoins(_:) method is
called:

playerOne!.winCoins(2_000)

println("PlayerOne won 2000 coins & now has \(playerOne!.coinsInPurse) coins")

// prints "PlayerOne won 2000 coins & now has 2100 coins"

println("The bank now only has \(Bank.coinsInBank) coins left")

// prints "The bank now only has 7900 coins left"

Here, the player has won 2,000 coins. The players purse now contains 2,100 coins, and the bank has
only 7,900 coins left.
1

playerOne = nil

println("PlayerOne has left the game")

// prints "PlayerOne has left the game"

println("The bank now has \(Bank.coinsInBank) coins")

// prints "The bank now has 10000 coins"

The player has now left the game. This is indicated by setting the optional playerOne variable to nil,
meaning no Player instance. At the point that this happens, the playerOne variables reference to the
Player instance is broken. No other properties or variables are still referring to the Player instance,
and so it is deallocated in order to free up its memory. Just before this happens, its deinitializer is
called automatically, and its coins are returned to the bank.

Automatic Reference Counting

Swift uses Automatic Reference Counting (ARC) to track and manage your apps memory usage. In
most cases, this means that memory management just works in Swift, and you do not need to think
about memory management yourself. ARC automatically frees up the memory used by class instances
when those instances are no longer needed.
However, in a few cases ARC requires more information about the relationships between parts of
your code in order to manage memory for you. This chapter describes those situations and shows how
you enable ARC to manage all of your apps memory.

NOTE
Reference counting only applies to instances of classes. Structures and enumerations are value types, not reference types,
and are not stored and passed by reference.

How ARC Works

Every time you create a new instance of a class, ARC allocates a chunk of memory to store
information about that instance. This memory holds information about the type of the instance, together
with the values of any stored properties associated with that instance.
Additionally, when an instance is no longer needed, ARC frees up the memory used by that instance
so that the memory can be used for other purposes instead. This ensures that class instances do not
take up space in memory when they are no longer needed.
However, if ARC were to deallocate an instance that was still in use, it would no longer be possible
to access that instances properties, or call that instances methods. Indeed, if you tried to access the
instance, your app would most likely crash.
To make sure that instances dont disappear while they are still needed, ARC tracks how many
properties, constants, and variables are currently referring to each class instance. ARC will not
deallocate an instance as long as at least one active reference to that instance still exists.
To make this possible, whenever you assign a class instance to a property, constant, or variable, that
property, constant, or variable makes a strong reference to the instance. The reference is called a
strong reference because it keeps a firm hold on that instance, and does not allow it to be
deallocated for as long as that strong reference remains.

ARC in Action
Heres an example of how Automatic Reference Counting works. This example starts with a simple
class called Person, which defines a stored constant property called name:
1

class Person {

let name: String

init(name: String) {

self.name = name

println("\(name) is being initialized")

deinit {

8
9

10

println("\(name) is being deinitialized")

}

The Person class has an initializer that sets the instances name property and prints a message to
indicate that initialization is underway. The Person class also has a deinitializer that prints a message
when an instance of the class is deallocated.
The next code snippet defines three variables of type Person?, which are used to set up multiple
references to a new Person instance in subsequent code snippets. Because these variables are of an
optional type (Person?, not Person), they are automatically initialized with a value of nil, and do not
currently reference a Person instance.
1

var reference1: Person?

var reference2: Person?

var reference3: Person?

You can now create a new Person instance and assign it to one of these three variables:
1

reference1 = Person(name: "John Appleseed")

// prints "John Appleseed is being initialized"

Note that the message "John Appleseed is being initialized" is printed at the point that you call
the Person classs initializer. This confirms that initialization has taken place.

Because the new Person instance has been assigned to the reference1 variable, there is now a strong
reference from reference1 to the new Person instance. Because there is at least one strong reference,
ARC makes sure that this Person is kept in memory and is not deallocated.
If you assign the same Person instance to two more variables, two more strong references to that
instance are established:
1

reference2 = reference1

reference3 = reference1

There are now three strong references to this single Person instance.
If you break two of these strong references (including the original reference) by assigning nil to two
of the variables, a single strong reference remains, and the Person instance is not deallocated:
1

reference1 = nil

reference2 = nil

ARC does not deallocate the Person instance until the third and final strong reference is broken, at
which point it is clear that you are no longer using the Person instance:
1

reference3 = nil

// prints "John Appleseed is being deinitialized"

Strong Reference Cycles Between Class Instances

In the examples above, ARC is able to track the number of references to the new Person instance you
create and to deallocate that Person instance when it is no longer needed.
However, it is possible to write code in which an instance of a class never gets to a point where it
has zero strong references. This can happen if two class instances hold a strong reference to each
other, such that each instance keeps the other alive. This is known as a strong reference cycle.
You resolve strong reference cycles by defining some of the relationships between classes as weak or
unowned references instead of as strong references. This process is described in Resolving Strong
Reference Cycles Between Class Instances. However, before you learn how to resolve a strong
reference cycle, it is useful to understand how such a cycle is caused.
Heres an example of how a strong reference cycle can be created by accident. This example defines
two classes called Person and Apartment, which model a block of apartments and its residents:

class Person {

let name: String

init(name: String) { self.name = name }

var apartment: Apartment?

deinit { println("\(name) is being deinitialized") }

7
8
9

class Apartment {
let number: Int

10

init(number: Int) { self.number = number }

11

var tenant: Person?

12

deinit { println("Apartment #\(number) is being deinitialized") }

13

Every Person instance has a name property of type String and an optional apartment property that is
initially nil. The apartment property is optional, because a person may not always have an
apartment.
Similarly, every Apartment instance has a number property of type Int and has an optional tenant
property that is initially nil. The tenant property is optional because an apartment may not always
have a tenant.
Both of these classes also define a deinitializer, which prints the fact that an instance of that class is
being deinitialized. This enables you to see whether instances of Person and Apartment are being
deallocated as expected.
This next code snippet defines two variables of optional type called john and number73, which will
be set to a specific Apartment and Person instance below. Both of these variables have an initial
value of nil, by virtue of being optional:
1

var john: Person?

var number73: Apartment?

You can now create a specific Person instance and Apartment instance and assign these new instances
to the john and number73 variables:
1

john = Person(name: "John Appleseed")

number73 = Apartment(number: 73)

Heres how the strong references look after creating and assigning these two instances. The john
variable now has a strong reference to the new Person instance, and the number73 variable has a
strong reference to the new Apartment instance:

You can now link the two instances together so that the person has an apartment, and the apartment has
a tenant. Note that an exclamation mark (!) is used to unwrap and access the instances stored inside
the john and number73 optional variables, so that the properties of those instances can be set:
1

john!.apartment = number73

number73!.tenant = john

Heres how the strong references look after you link the two instances together:

Unfortunately, linking these two instances creates a strong reference cycle between them. The Person
instance now has a strong reference to the Apartment instance, and the Apartment instance has a strong
reference to the Person instance. Therefore, when you break the strong references held by the john
and number73 variables, the reference counts do not drop to zero, and the instances are not
deallocated by ARC:
1

john = nil

number73 = nil

Note that neither deinitializer was called when you set these two variables to nil. The strong
reference cycle prevents the Person and Apartment instances from ever being deallocated, causing a

memory leak in your app.

Heres how the strong references look after you set the john and number73 variables to nil:

The strong references between the Person instance and the Apartment instance remain and cannot be
broken.

Resolving Strong Reference Cycles Between Class Instances

Swift provides two ways to resolve strong reference cycles when you work with properties of class
type: weak references and unowned references.
Weak and unowned references enable one instance in a reference cycle to refer to the other instance
without keeping a strong hold on it. The instances can then refer to each other without creating a
strong reference cycle.
Use a weak reference whenever it is valid for that reference to become nil at some point during its
lifetime. Conversely, use an unowned reference when you know that the reference will never be nil
once it has been set during initialization.

Weak References
A weak reference is a reference that does not keep a strong hold on the instance it refers to, and so
does not stop ARC from disposing of the referenced instance. This behavior prevents the reference
from becoming part of a strong reference cycle. You indicate a weak reference by placing the weak
keyword before a property or variable declaration.
Use a weak reference to avoid reference cycles whenever it is possible for that reference to have no
value at some point in its life. If the reference will always have a value, use an unowned reference
instead, as described in Unowned References. In the Apartment example above, it is appropriate for
an apartment to be able to have no tenant at some point in its lifetime, and so a weak reference is an
appropriate way to break the reference cycle in this case.

NOTE
Weak references must be declared as variables, to indicate that their value can change at runtime. A weak reference
cannot be declared as a constant.

Because weak references are allowed to have no value, you must declare every weak reference as
having an optional type. Optional types are the preferred way to represent the possibility for no
value in Swift.
Because a weak reference does not keep a strong hold on the instance it refers to, it is possible for
that instance to be deallocated while the weak reference is still referring to it. Therefore, ARC
automatically sets a weak reference to nil when the instance that it refers to is deallocated. You can
check for the existence of a value in the weak reference, just like any other optional value, and you
will never end up with a reference to an invalid instance that no longer exists.
The example below is identical to the Person and Apartment example from above, with one important
difference. This time around, the Apartment types tenant property is declared as a weak reference:
1

class Person {

let name: String

init(name: String) { self.name = name }

var apartment: Apartment?

deinit { println("\(name) is being deinitialized") }

7
8
9

class Apartment {
let number: Int

10

init(number: Int) { self.number = number }

11

weak var tenant: Person?

12

deinit { println("Apartment #\(number) is being deinitialized") }

13

The strong references from the two variables (john and number73) and the links between the two
instances are created as before:

var john: Person?

var number73: Apartment?

3
4

john = Person(name: "John Appleseed")

number73 = Apartment(number: 73)

6
7

john!.apartment = number73

number73!.tenant = john

Heres how the references look now that youve linked the two instances together:

The Person instance still has a strong reference to the Apartment instance, but the Apartment instance
now has a weak reference to the Person instance. This means that when you break the strong reference
held by the john variables, there are no more strong references to the Person instance:

Because there are no more strong references to the Person instance, it is deallocated:
1

john = nil

// prints "John Appleseed is being deinitialized"

The only remaining strong reference to the Apartment instance is from the number73 variable. If you

break that strong reference, there are no more strong references to the Apartment instance:

Because there are no more strong references to the Apartment instance, it too is deallocated:
1

number73 = nil

// prints "Apartment #73 is being deinitialized"

The final two code snippets above show that the deinitializers for the Person instance and Apartment
instance print their deinitialized messages after the john and number73 variables are set to nil. This
proves that the reference cycle has been broken.

Unowned References
Like weak references, an unowned reference does not keep a strong hold on the instance it refers to.
Unlike a weak reference, however, an unowned reference is assumed to always have a value.
Because of this, an unowned reference is always defined as a non-optional type. You indicate an
unowned reference by placing the unowned keyword before a property or variable declaration.
Because an unowned reference is non-optional, you dont need to unwrap the unowned reference each
time it is used. An unowned reference can always be accessed directly. However, ARC cannot set the
reference to nil when the instance it refers to is deallocated, because variables of a non-optional type
cannot be set to nil.

NOTE
If you try to access an unowned reference after the instance that it references is deallocated, you will trigger a runtime
error. Use unowned references only when you are sure that the reference will always refer to an instance.
Note also that Swift guarantees your app will crash if you try to access an unowned reference after the instance it
references is deallocated. You will never encounter unexpected behavior in this situation. Your app will always crash
reliably, although you should, of course, prevent it from doing so.

The following example defines two classes, Customer and CreditCard, which model a bank customer
and a possible credit card for that customer. These two classes each store an instance of the other
class as a property. This relationship has the potential to create a strong reference cycle.
The relationship between Customer and CreditCard is slightly different from the relationship between
Apartment and Person seen in the weak reference example above. In this data model, a customer may
or may not have a credit card, but a credit card will always be associated with a customer. To
represent this, the Customer class has an optional card property, but the CreditCard class has a nonoptional customer property.
Furthermore, a new CreditCard instance can only be created by passing a number value and a
customer instance to a custom CreditCard initializer. This ensures that a CreditCard instance always
has a customer instance associated with it when the CreditCard instance is created.
Because a credit card will always have a customer, you define its customer property as an unowned
reference, to avoid a strong reference cycle:

10

class Customer {

let name: String

var card: CreditCard?

init(name: String) {

self.name = name

deinit { println("\(name) is being deinitialized") }

9
class CreditCard {

11

let number: UInt64

12

unowned let customer: Customer

13

init(number: UInt64, customer: Customer) {

14

self.number = number

15

self.customer = customer

16

17

deinit { println("Card #\(number) is being deinitialized") }

18

NOTE
The number property of the CreditCard class is defined with a type of UInt64 rather than Int, to ensure that the
number propertys capacity is large enough to store a 16-digit card number on both 32-bit and 64-bit systems.

This next code snippet defines an optional Customer variable called john, which will be used to store
a reference to a specific customer. This variable has an initial value of nil, by virtue of being
optional:
var john: Customer?

You can now create a Customer instance, and use it to initialize and assign a new CreditCard instance
as that customers card property:
1

john = Customer(name: "John Appleseed")

john!.card = CreditCard(number: 1234_5678_9012_3456, customer: john!)

Heres how the references look, now that youve linked the two instances:

The Customer instance now has a strong reference to the CreditCard instance, and the CreditCard
instance has an unowned reference to the Customer instance.
Because of the unowned customer reference, when you break the strong reference held by the john
variable, there are no more strong references to the Customer instance:

Because there are no more strong references to the Customer instance, it is deallocated. After this
happens, there are no more strong references to the CreditCard instance, and it too is deallocated:
1

john = nil

// prints "John Appleseed is being deinitialized"

// prints "Card #1234567890123456 is being deinitialized"

The final code snippet above shows that the deinitializers for the Customer instance and CreditCard
instance both print their deinitialized messages after the john variable is set to nil.

Unowned References and Implicitly Unwrapped Optional Properties

The examples for weak and unowned references above cover two of the more common scenarios in
which it is necessary to break a strong reference cycle.
The Person and Apartment example shows a situation where two properties, both of which are
allowed to be nil, have the potential to cause a strong reference cycle. This scenario is best resolved
with a weak reference.
The Customer and CreditCard example shows a situation where one property that is allowed to be
nil and another property that cannot be nil have the potential to cause a strong reference cycle. This
scenario is best resolved with an unowned reference.
However, there is a third scenario, in which both properties should always have a value, and neither
property should ever be nil once initialization is complete. In this scenario, it is useful to combine an
unowned property on one class with an implicitly unwrapped optional property on the other class.
This enables both properties to be accessed directly (without optional unwrapping) once
initialization is complete, while still avoiding a reference cycle. This section shows you how to set
up such a relationship.
The example below defines two classes, Country and City, each of which stores an instance of the
other class as a property. In this data model, every country must always have a capital city, and every

city must always belong to a country. To represent this, the Country class has a capitalCity property,
and the City class has a country property:
1

class Country {

let name: String

let capitalCity: City!

init(name: String, capitalName: String) {

self.name = name

self.capitalCity = City(name: capitalName, country: self)

7
8

}
}

10

class City {

11

let name: String

12

unowned let country: Country

13

init(name: String, country: Country) {

14

self.name = name

15

self.country = country

16

17

}
}

To set up the interdependency between the two classes, the initializer for City takes a Country
instance, and stores this instance in its country property.
The initializer for City is called from within the initializer for Country. However, the initializer for
Country cannot pass self to the City initializer until a new Country instance is fully initialized, as
described in Two-Phase Initialization.
To cope with this requirement, you declare the capitalCity property of Country as an implicitly
unwrapped optional property, indicated by the exclamation mark at the end of its type annotation
(City!). This means that the capitalCity property has a default value of nil, like any other optional,
but can be accessed without the need to unwrap its value as described in Implicitly Unwrapped
Optionals.
Because capitalCity has a default nil value, a new Country instance is considered fully initialized
as soon as the Country instance sets its name property within its initializer. This means that the
Country initializer can start to reference and pass around the implicit self property as soon as the

property is set. The Country initializer can therefore pass self as one of the parameters for the
City initializer when the Country initializer is setting its own capitalCity property.
name

All of this means that you can create the Country and City instances in a single statement, without
creating a strong reference cycle, and the capitalCity property can be accessed directly, without
needing to use an exclamation mark to unwrap its optional value:
1

var country = Country(name: "Canada", capitalName: "Ottawa")

println("\(country.name)'s capital city is called \(country.capitalCity.name)")

// prints "Canada's capital city is called Ottawa"

In the example above, the use of an implicitly unwrapped optional means that all of the two-phase
class initializer requirements are satisfied. The capitalCity property can be used and accessed like a
non-optional value once initialization is complete, while still avoiding a strong reference cycle.

Strong Reference Cycles for Closures

You saw above how a strong reference cycle can be created when two class instance properties hold
a strong reference to each other. You also saw how to use weak and unowned references to break
these strong reference cycles.
A strong reference cycle can also occur if you assign a closure to a property of a class instance, and
the body of that closure captures the instance. This capture might occur because the closures body
accesses a property of the instance, such as self.someProperty, or because the closure calls a method
on the instance, such as self.someMethod(). In either case, these accesses cause the closure to
capture self, creating a strong reference cycle.
This strong reference cycle occurs because closures, like classes, are reference types. When you
assign a closure to a property, you are assigning a reference to that closure. In essence, its the same
problem as abovetwo strong references are keeping each other alive. However, rather than two
class instances, this time its a class instance and a closure that are keeping each other alive.
Swift provides an elegant solution to this problem, known as a closure capture list. However, before
you learn how to break a strong reference cycle with a closure capture list, it is useful to understand
how such a cycle can be caused.
The example below shows how you can create a strong reference cycle when using a closure that
references self. This example defines a class called HTMLElement, which provides a simple model
for an individual element within an HTML document:

class HTMLElement {

2
3

let name: String

let text: String?

5
6

lazy var asHTML: () -> String = {

if let text = self.text {

return "<\(self.name)>\(text)</\(self.name)>"

} else {

10

return "<\(self.name) />"

11

12

13

14

init(name: String, text: String? = nil) {

15

self.name = name

16

self.text = text

17

18

19

deinit {

20

println("\(name) is being deinitialized")

21

22

23

The HTMLElement class defines a name property, which indicates the name of the element, such as "p"
for a paragraph element, or "br" for a line break element. HTMLElement also defines an optional text
property, which you can set to a string that represents the text to be rendered within that HTML
element.
In addition to these two simple properties, the HTMLElement class defines a lazy property called
asHTML. This property references a closure that combines name and text into an HTML string
fragment. The asHTML property is of type () -> String, or a function that takes no parameters, and
returns a String value.

By default, the asHTML property is assigned a closure that returns a string representation of an HTML
tag. This tag contains the optional text value if it exists, or no text content if text does not exist. For
a paragraph element, the closure would return "<p>some text</p>" or "<p />", depending on whether
the text property equals "some text" or nil.
The asHTML property is named and used somewhat like an instance method. However, because asHTML
is a closure property rather than an instance method, you can replace the default value of the asHTML
property with a custom closure, if you want to change the HTML rendering for a particular HTML
element.

NOTE
The asHTML property is declared as a lazy property, because it is only needed if and when the element actually needs to
be rendered as a string value for some HTML output target. The fact that asHTML is a lazy property means that you can
refer to self within the default closure, because the lazy property will not be accessed until after initialization has been
completed and self is known to exist.

The HTMLElement class provides a single initializer, which takes a name argument and (if desired) a
text argument to initialize a new element. The class also defines a deinitializer, which prints a
message to show when an HTMLElement instance is deallocated.
Heres how you use the HTMLElement class to create and print a new instance:
1

var paragraph: HTMLElement? = HTMLElement(name: "p", text: "hello, world")

println(paragraph!.asHTML())

// prints "<p>hello, world</p>"

NOTE
The paragraph variable above is defined as an optional HTMLElement, so that it can be set to nil below to
demonstrate the presence of a strong reference cycle.

Unfortunately, the HTMLElement class, as written above, creates a strong reference cycle between an
HTMLElement instance and the closure used for its default asHTML value. Heres how the cycle looks:

The instances asHTML property holds a strong reference to its closure. However, because the closure
refers to self within its body (as a way to reference self.name and self.text), the closure captures
self, which means that it holds a strong reference back to the HTMLElement instance. A strong reference
cycle is created between the two. (For more information about capturing values in a closure, see
Capturing Values.)

NOTE
Even though the closure refers to self multiple times, it only captures one strong reference to the HTMLElement
instance.

If you set the paragraph variable to nil and break its strong reference to the HTMLElement instance,
neither the HTMLElement instance nor its closure are deallocated, because of the strong reference
cycle:
paragraph = nil

Note that the message in the HTMLElement deinitializer is not printed, which shows that the
HTMLElement instance is not deallocated.

Resolving Strong Reference Cycles for Closures

You resolve a strong reference cycle between a closure and a class instance by defining a capture list
as part of the closures definition. A capture list defines the rules to use when capturing one or more
reference types within the closures body. As with strong reference cycles between two class
instances, you declare each captured reference to be a weak or unowned reference rather than a
strong reference. The appropriate choice of weak or unowned depends on the relationships between
the different parts of your code.

NOTE
Swift requires you to write self.someProperty or self.someMethod() (rather than just someProperty or
someMethod()) whenever you refer to a member of self within a closure. This helps you remember that its possible
to capture self by accident.

Defining a Capture List

Each item in a capture list is a pairing of the weak or unowned keyword with a reference to a class
instance (such as self) or a variable initialized with some value (such as delegate =
self.delegate!). These pairings are written within a pair of square braces, separated by commas.
Place the capture list before a closures parameter list and return type if they are provided:
1

lazy var someClosure: (Int, String) -> String = {

[unowned self, weak delegate = self.delegate!] (index: Int, stringToProcess:

String) -> String in

3
4

// closure body goes here

}

If a closure does not specify a parameter list or return type because they can be inferred from context,
place the capture list at the very start of the closure, followed by the in keyword:
1

lazy var someClosure: () -> String = {

[unowned self, weak delegate = self.delegate!] in

// closure body goes here

Weak and Unowned References

Define a capture in a closure as an unowned reference when the closure and the instance it captures
will always refer to each other, and will always be deallocated at the same time.
Conversely, define a capture as a weak reference when the captured reference may become nil at
some point in the future. Weak references are always of an optional type, and automatically become
nil when the instance they reference is deallocated. This enables you to check for their existence

within the closures body.

NOTE
If the captured reference will never become nil, it should always be captured as an unowned reference, rather than a
weak reference.

An unowned reference is the appropriate capture method to use to resolve the strong reference cycle
in the HTMLElement example from earlier. Heres how you write the HTMLElement class to avoid the
cycle:

class HTMLElement {

2
3

let name: String

let text: String?

5
6

lazy var asHTML: () -> String = {

[unowned self] in

if let text = self.text {

return "<\(self.name)>\(text)</\(self.name)>"

10

} else {

11

return "<\(self.name) />"

12

13

14

15

init(name: String, text: String? = nil) {

16

self.name = name

17

self.text = text

18

19

20

deinit {

21

println("\(name) is being deinitialized")

22

23

24

This implementation of HTMLElement is identical to the previous implementation, apart from the
addition of a capture list within the asHTML closure. In this case, the capture list is [unowned self],
which means capture self as an unowned reference rather than a strong reference.
You can create and print an HTMLElement instance as before:

var paragraph: HTMLElement? = HTMLElement(name: "p", text: "hello, world")

println(paragraph!.asHTML())

// prints "<p>hello, world</p>"

Heres how the references look with the capture list in place:

This time, the capture of self by the closure is an unowned reference, and does not keep a strong hold
on the HTMLElement instance it has captured. If you set the strong reference from the paragraph
variable to nil, the HTMLElement instance is deallocated, as can be seen from the printing of its
deinitializer message in the example below:
1

paragraph = nil

// prints "p is being deinitialized"

Optional Chaining
Optional chaining is a process for querying and calling properties, methods, and subscripts on an
optional that might currently be nil. If the optional contains a value, the property, method, or
subscript call succeeds; if the optional is nil, the property, method, or subscript call returns nil.
Multiple queries can be chained together, and the entire chain fails gracefully if any link in the chain
is nil.

NOTE
Optional chaining in Swift is similar to messaging nil in Objective-C, but in a way that works for any type, and that can be
checked for success or failure.

Optional Chaining as an Alternative to Forced Unwrapping

You specify optional chaining by placing a question mark (?) after the optional value on which you
wish to call a property, method or subscript if the optional is non-nil. This is very similar to placing
an exclamation mark (!) after an optional value to force the unwrapping of its value. The main
difference is that optional chaining fails gracefully when the optional is nil, whereas forced
unwrapping triggers a runtime error when the optional is nil.
To reflect the fact that optional chaining can be called on a nil value, the result of an optional
chaining call is always an optional value, even if the property, method, or subscript you are querying
returns a non-optional value. You can use this optional return value to check whether the optional
chaining call was successful (the returned optional contains a value), or did not succeed due to a nil
value in the chain (the returned optional value is nil).
Specifically, the result of an optional chaining call is of the same type as the expected return value,
but wrapped in an optional. A property that normally returns an Int will return an Int? when
accessed through optional chaining.
The next several code snippets demonstrate how optional chaining differs from forced unwrapping
and enables you to check for success.
First, two classes called Person and Residence are defined:

class Person {

2
3

var residence: Residence?

}

4
5

class Residence {

6
7

var numberOfRooms = 1
}

instances have a single Int property called numberOfRooms, with a default value of 1.
Person instances have an optional residence property of type Residence?.
Residence

If you create a new Person instance, its residence property is default initialized to nil, by virtue of
being optional. In the code below, john has a residence property value of nil:
let john = Person()

If you try to access the numberOfRooms property of this persons residence, by placing an exclamation
mark after residence to force the unwrapping of its value, you trigger a runtime error, because there
is no residence value to unwrap:
1

let roomCount = john.residence!.numberOfRooms

// this triggers a runtime error

The code above succeeds when john.residence has a non-nil value and will set roomCount to an Int
value containing the appropriate number of rooms. However, this code always triggers a runtime
error when residence is nil, as illustrated above.
Optional chaining provides an alternative way to access the value of numberOfRooms. To use optional
chaining, use a question mark in place of the exclamation mark:
1

if let roomCount = john.residence?.numberOfRooms {

2
3

println("John's residence has \(roomCount) room(s).")

} else {

println("Unable to retrieve the number of rooms.")

// prints "Unable to retrieve the number of rooms."

This tells Swift to chain on the optional residence property and to retrieve the value of

numberOfRooms

if residence exists.

Because the attempt to access numberOfRooms has the potential to fail, the optional chaining attempt
returns a value of type Int?, or optional Int. When residence is nil, as in the example above, this
optional Int will also be nil, to reflect the fact that it was not possible to access numberOfRooms.
Note that this is true even though numberOfRooms is a non-optional Int. The fact that it is queried
through an optional chain means that the call to numberOfRooms will always return an Int? instead of
an Int.
You can assign a Residence instance to john.residence, so that it no longer has a nil value:
john.residence = Residence()

now contains an actual Residence instance, rather than nil. If you try to access
numberOfRooms with the same optional chaining as before, it will now return an Int? that contains the
default numberOfRooms value of 1:
john.residence

if let roomCount = john.residence?.numberOfRooms {

2
3

println("John's residence has \(roomCount) room(s).")

} else {

println("Unable to retrieve the number of rooms.")

// prints "John's residence has 1 room(s)."

Defining Model Classes for Optional Chaining

You can use optional chaining with calls to properties, methods, and subscripts that are more than one
level deep. This enables you to drill down into subproperties within complex models of interrelated
types, and to check whether it is possible to access properties, methods, and subscripts on those
subproperties.
The code snippets below define four model classes for use in several subsequent examples, including
examples of multilevel optional chaining. These classes expand upon the Person and Residence
model from above by adding a Room and Address class, with associated properties, methods, and
subscripts.
The Person class is defined in the same way as before:

class Person {

2
3

var residence: Residence?

}

The Residence class is more complex than before. This time, the Residence class defines a variable
property called rooms, which is initialized with an empty array of type [Room]:
1

class Residence {

var rooms = [Room]()

var numberOfRooms: Int {

return rooms.count

subscript(i: Int) -> Room {

get {

return rooms[i]

10

set {

11

rooms[i] = newValue

12

13

14

func printNumberOfRooms() {

15

println("The number of rooms is \(numberOfRooms)")

16

17

var address: Address?

18

Because this version of Residence stores an array of Room instances, its numberOfRooms property is
implemented as a computed property, not a stored property. The computed numberOfRooms property
simply returns the value of the count property from the rooms array.
As a shortcut to accessing its rooms array, this version of Residence provides a read-write subscript
that provides access to the room at the requested index in the rooms array.
This version of Residence also provides a method called printNumberOfRooms, which simply prints
the number of rooms in the residence.

Finally, Residence defines an optional property called address, with a type of Address?. The Address
class type for this property is defined below.
The Room class used for the rooms array is a simple class with one property called name, and an
initializer to set that property to a suitable room name:
1

class Room {

let name: String

init(name: String) { self.name = name }

The final class in this model is called Address. This class has three optional properties of type
String?. The first two properties, buildingName and buildingNumber, are alternative ways to identify
a particular building as part of an address. The third property, street, is used to name the street for
that address:
1

class Address {

var buildingName: String?

var buildingNumber: String?

var street: String?

func buildingIdentifier() -> String? {

if buildingName != nil {

return buildingName

} else if buildingNumber != nil {

return buildingNumber

10

} else {

11

return nil

12

13

14

}
}

The Address class also provides a method called buildingIdentifier, which has a return type of
String?. This method checks the buildingName and buildingNumber properties and returns
buildingName if it has a value, or buildingNumber if it has a value, or nil if neither property has a
value.

Accessing Properties Through Optional Chaining

As demonstrated in Optional Chaining as an Alternative to Forced Unwrapping, you can use optional
chaining to access a property on an optional value, and to check if that property access is successful.
Use the classes defined above to create a new Person instance, and try to access its numberOfRooms
property as before:
1

let john = Person()

if let roomCount = john.residence?.numberOfRooms {

3
4

println("John's residence has \(roomCount) room(s).")

} else {

println("Unable to retrieve the number of rooms.")

// prints "Unable to retrieve the number of rooms."

Because john.residence is nil, this optional chaining call fails in the same way as before.
You can also attempt to set a propertys value through optional chaining:
1

let someAddress = Address()

someAddress.buildingNumber = "29"

someAddress.street = "Acacia Road"

john.residence?.address = someAddress

In this example, the attempt to set the address property of john.residence will fail, because
john.residence is currently nil.

Calling Methods Through Optional Chaining

You can use optional chaining to call a method on an optional value, and to check whether that method
call is successful. You can do this even if that method does not define a return value.
The printNumberOfRooms() method on the Residence class prints the current value of numberOfRooms.
Heres how the method looks:

func printNumberOfRooms() {

2
3

println("The number of rooms is \(numberOfRooms)")

}

This method does not specify a return type. However, functions and methods with no return type have
an implicit return type of Void, as described in Functions Without Return Values. This means that they
return a value of (), or an empty tuple.
If you call this method on an optional value with optional chaining, the methods return type will be
Void?, not Void, because return values are always of an optional type when called through optional
chaining. This enables you to use an if statement to check whether it was possible to call the
printNumberOfRooms() method, even though the method does not itself define a return value. Compare
the return value from the printNumberOfRooms call against nil to see if the method call was
successful:
1

if john.residence?.printNumberOfRooms() != nil {

2
3

println("It was possible to print the number of rooms.")

} else {

println("It was not possible to print the number of rooms.")

// prints "It was not possible to print the number of rooms."

The same is true if you attempt to set a property through optional chaining. The example above in
Accessing Properties Through Optional Chaining attempts to set an address value for
john.residence, even though the residence property is nil. Any attempt to set a property through
optional chaining returns a value of type Void?, which enables you to compare against nil to see if the
property was set successfully:
1

if (john.residence?.address = someAddress) != nil {

2
3

println("It was possible to set the address.")

} else {

println("It was not possible to set the address.")

// prints "It was not possible to set the address."

Accessing Subscripts Through Optional Chaining

You can use optional chaining to try to retrieve and set a value from a subscript on an optional value,
and to check whether that subscript call is successful.

NOTE
When you access a subscript on an optional value through optional chaining, you place the question mark before the
subscripts braces, not after. The optional chaining question mark always follows immediately after the part of the
expression that is optional.

The example below tries to retrieve the name of the first room in the rooms array of the
john.residence property using the subscript defined on the Residence class. Because john.residence
is currently nil, the subscript call fails:
1

if let firstRoomName = john.residence?[0].name {

2
3

println("The first room name is \(firstRoomName).")

} else {

println("Unable to retrieve the first room name.")

// prints "Unable to retrieve the first room name."

The optional chaining question mark in this subscript call is placed immediately after
john.residence, before the subscript brackets, because john.residence is the optional value on
which optional chaining is being attempted.
Similarly, you can try to set a new value through a subscript with optional chaining:
john.residence?[0] = Room(name: "Bathroom")

This subscript setting attempt also fails, because residence is currently nil.
If you create and assign an actual Residence instance to john.residence, with one or more Room
instances in its rooms array, you can use the Residence subscript to access the actual items in the
rooms array through optional chaining:

let johnsHouse = Residence()

johnsHouse.rooms.append(Room(name: "Living Room"))

johnsHouse.rooms.append(Room(name: "Kitchen"))

john.residence = johnsHouse

5
6
7
8
9

if let firstRoomName = john.residence?[0].name {

println("The first room name is \(firstRoomName).")
} else {
println("Unable to retrieve the first room name.")

10

11

// prints "The first room name is Living Room."

Accessing Subscripts of Optional Type

If a subscript returns a value of optional typesuch as the key subscript of Swifts Dictionary type
place a question mark after the subscripts closing bracket to chain on its optional return value:
1

var testScores = ["Dave": [86, 82, 84], "Bev": [79, 94, 81]]

testScores["Dave"]?[0] = 91

testScores["Bev"]?[0]++

testScores["Brian"]?[0] = 72

// the "Dave" array is now [91, 82, 84] and the "Bev" array is now [80, 94, 81]

The example above defines a dictionary called testScores, which contains two key-value pairs that
map a String key to an array of Int values. The example uses optional chaining to set the first item in
the "Dave" array to 91; to increment the first item in the "Bev" array by 1; and to try to set the first item
in an array for a key of "Brian". The first two calls succeed, because the testScores dictionary
contains keys for "Dave" and "Bev". The third call fails, because the testScores dictionary does not
contain a key for "Brian".

Linking Multiple Levels of Chaining

You can link together multiple levels of optional chaining to drill down to properties, methods, and

subscripts deeper within a model. However, multiple levels of optional chaining do not add more
levels of optionality to the returned value.
To put it another way:
If the type you are trying to retrieve is not optional, it will become optional because of the
optional chaining.
If the type you are trying to retrieve is already optional, it will not become more optional
because of the chaining.
Therefore:
If you try to retrieve an Int value through optional chaining, an Int? is always returned, no
matter how many levels of chaining are used.
Similarly, if you try to retrieve an Int? value through optional chaining, an Int? is always
returned, no matter how many levels of chaining are used.
The example below tries to access the street property of the address property of the residence
property of john. There are two levels of optional chaining in use here, to chain through the residence
and address properties, both of which are of optional type:
1

if let johnsStreet = john.residence?.address?.street {

2
3

println("John's street name is \(johnsStreet).")

} else {

println("Unable to retrieve the address.")

// prints "Unable to retrieve the address."

The value of john.residence currently contains a valid Residence instance. However, the value of
john.residence.address is currently nil. Because of this, the call to
john.residence?.address?.street fails.
Note that in the example above, you are trying to retrieve the value of the street property. The type of
this property is String?. The return value of john.residence?.address?.street is therefore also
String?, even though two levels of optional chaining are applied in addition to the underlying
optional type of the property.
If you set an actual Address instance as the value for john.residence.address, and set an actual value
for the addresss street property, you can access the value of the street property through multilevel
optional chaining:

let johnsAddress = Address()

johnsAddress.buildingName = "The Larches"

johnsAddress.street = "Laurel Street"

john.residence!.address = johnsAddress

5
6

if let johnsStreet = john.residence?.address?.street {

7
8

println("John's street name is \(johnsStreet).")

} else {

println("Unable to retrieve the address.")

10

11

// prints "John's street name is Laurel Street."

Note the use of an exclamation mark during the assignment of an address instance to
john.residence.address. The john.residence property has an optional type, and so you need to
unwrap its actual value with an exclamation mark before accessing the residences address property.

Chaining on Methods with Optional Return Values

The previous example shows how to retrieve the value of a property of optional type through optional
chaining. You can also use optional chaining to call a method that returns a value of optional type, and
to chain on that methods return value if needed.
The example below calls the Address classs buildingIdentifier() method through optional
chaining. This method returns a value of type String?. As described above, the ultimate return type of
this method call after optional chaining is also String?:
1

if let buildingIdentifier = john.residence?.address?.buildingIdentifier() {

println("John's building identifier is \(buildingIdentifier).")

// prints "John's building identifier is The Larches."

If you want to perform further optional chaining on this methods return value, place the optional
chaining question mark after the methods parentheses:

if let beginsWithThe =

john.residence?.address?.buildingIdentifier()?.hasPrefix("The") {

if beginsWithThe {

println("John's building identifier begins with \"The\".")

} else {

println("John's building identifier does not begin with \"The\".")

// prints "John's building identifier begins with "The"."

NOTE
In the example above, you place the optional chaining question mark after the parentheses, because the optional value you
are chaining on is the buildingIdentifier() methods return value, and not the buildingIdentifier()
method itself.

Type Casting
Type casting is a way to check the type of an instance, and/or to treat that instance as if it is a
different superclass or subclass from somewhere else in its own class hierarchy.
Type casting in Swift is implemented with the is and as operators. These two operators provide a
simple and expressive way to check the type of a value or cast a value to a different type.
You can also use type casting to check whether a type conforms to a protocol, as described in
Checking for Protocol Conformance.

Defining a Class Hierarchy for Type Casting

You can use type casting with a hierarchy of classes and subclasses to check the type of a particular
class instance and to cast that instance to another class within the same hierarchy. The three code
snippets below define a hierarchy of classes and an array containing instances of those classes, for
use in an example of type casting.
The first snippet defines a new base class called MediaItem. This class provides basic functionality
for any kind of item that appears in a digital media library. Specifically, it declares a name property of
type String, and an init name initializer. (It is assumed that all media items, including all movies and
songs, will have a name.)
1

class MediaItem {

var name: String

init(name: String) {

self.name = name

5
6

}
}

The next snippet defines two subclasses of MediaItem. The first subclass, Movie, encapsulates
additional information about a movie or film. It adds a director property on top of the base
MediaItem class, with a corresponding initializer. The second subclass, Song, adds an artist property
and initializer on top of the base class:

class Movie: MediaItem {

var director: String

init(name: String, director: String) {

self.director = director

super.init(name: name)

6
7

}
}

8
9

class Song: MediaItem {

10

var artist: String

11

init(name: String, artist: String) {

12

self.artist = artist

13

super.init(name: name)

14

15

}
}

The final snippet creates a constant array called library, which contains two Movie instances and
three Song instances. The type of the library array is inferred by initializing it with the contents of an
array literal. Swifts type checker is able to deduce that Movie and Song have a common superclass of
MediaItem, and so it infers a type of [MediaItem] for the library array:
1

let library = [

Movie(name: "Casablanca", director: "Michael Curtiz"),

Song(name: "Blue Suede Shoes", artist: "Elvis Presley"),

Movie(name: "Citizen Kane", director: "Orson Welles"),

Song(name: "The One And Only", artist: "Chesney Hawkes"),

Song(name: "Never Gonna Give You Up", artist: "Rick Astley")

// the type of "library" is inferred to be [MediaItem]

The items stored in library are still Movie and Song instances behind the scenes. However, if you
iterate over the contents of this array, the items you receive back are typed as MediaItem, and not as
Movie or Song. In order to work with them as their native type, you need to check their type, or
downcast them to a different type, as described below.

Checking Type
Use the type check operator (is) to check whether an instance is of a certain subclass type. The type
check operator returns true if the instance is of that subclass type and false if it is not.
The example below defines two variables, movieCount and songCount, which count the number of
Movie and Song instances in the library array:
1

var movieCount = 0

var songCount = 0

3
4
5

for item in library {

if item is Movie {

6
7

++movieCount
} else if item is Song {

8
9

10

++songCount
}

11

12

println("Media library contains \(movieCount) movies and \(songCount) songs")

13

// prints "Media library contains 2 movies and 3 songs"

This example iterates through all items in the library array. On each pass, the for-in loop sets the
item constant to the next MediaItem in the array.
returns true if the current MediaItem is a Movie instance and false if it is not.
Similarly, item is Song checks whether the item is a Song instance. At the end of the for-in loop, the
values of movieCount and songCount contain a count of how many MediaItem instances were found of
each type.
item is Movie

Downcasting
A constant or variable of a certain class type may actually refer to an instance of a subclass behind
the scenes. Where you believe this is the case, you can try to downcast to the subclass type with a
type cast operator (as? or as!).

Because downcasting can fail, the type cast operator comes in two different forms. The conditional
form, as?, returns an optional value of the type you are trying to downcast to. The forced form, as!,
attempts the downcast and force-unwraps the result as a single compound action.
Use the conditional form of the type cast operator (as?) when you are not sure if the downcast will
succeed. This form of the operator will always return an optional value, and the value will be nil if
the downcast was not possible. This enables you to check for a successful downcast.
Use the forced form of the type cast operator (as!) only when you are sure that the downcast will
always succeed. This form of the operator will trigger a runtime error if you try to downcast to an
incorrect class type.
The example below iterates over each MediaItem in library, and prints an appropriate description
for each item. To do this, it needs to access each item as a true Movie or Song, and not just as a
MediaItem. This is necessary in order for it to be able to access the director or artist property of a
Movie or Song for use in the description.
In this example, each item in the array might be a Movie, or it might be a Song. You dont know in
advance which actual class to use for each item, and so it is appropriate to use the conditional form of
the type cast operator (as?) to check the downcast each time through the loop:
1

for item in library {

if let movie = item as? Movie {

println("Movie: '\(movie.name)', dir. \(movie.director)")

} else if let song = item as? Song {

println("Song: '\(song.name)', by \(song.artist)")

6
7

}
}

8
9

// Movie: 'Casablanca', dir. Michael Curtiz

10

// Song: 'Blue Suede Shoes', by Elvis Presley

11

// Movie: 'Citizen Kane', dir. Orson Welles

12

// Song: 'The One And Only', by Chesney Hawkes

13

// Song: 'Never Gonna Give You Up', by Rick Astley

The example starts by trying to downcast the current item as a Movie. Because item is a MediaItem
instance, its possible that it might be a Movie; equally, its also possible that it might be a Song, or
even just a base MediaItem. Because of this uncertainty, the as? form of the type cast operator returns
an optional value when attempting to downcast to a subclass type. The result of item as? Movie is of

type Movie?, or optional Movie.

Downcasting to Movie fails when applied to the Song instances in the library array. To cope with this,
the example above uses optional binding to check whether the optional Movie actually contains a
value (that is, to find out whether the downcast succeeded.) This optional binding is written if let
movie = item as? Movie, which can be read as:
Try to access item as a Movie. If this is successful, set a new temporary constant called movie to the
value stored in the returned optional Movie.
If the downcasting succeeds, the properties of movie are then used to print a description for that Movie
instance, including the name of its director. A similar principle is used to check for Song instances,
and to print an appropriate description (including artist name) whenever a Song is found in the
library.

NOTE
Casting does not actually modify the instance or change its values. The underlying instance remains the same; it is simply
treated and accessed as an instance of the type to which it has been cast.

Type Casting for Any and AnyObject

Swift provides two special type aliases for working with non-specific types:

can represent an instance of any class type.

Any can represent an instance of any type at all, including function types.
AnyObject

NOTE
Use Any and AnyObject only when you explicitly need the behavior and capabilities they provide. It is always better to
be specific about the types you expect to work with in your code.

AnyObject
When working with Cocoa APIs, it is common to receive an array with a type of [AnyObject], or an
array of values of any object type. This is because Objective-C does not have explicitly typed
arrays. However, you can often be confident about the type of objects contained in such an array just

from the information you know about the API that provided the array.
In these situations, you can use the forced version of the type cast operator (as) to downcast each item
in the array to a more specific class type than AnyObject, without the need for optional unwrapping.
The example below defines an array of type [AnyObject] and populates this array with three
instances of the Movie class:
1

let someObjects: [AnyObject] = [

Movie(name: "2001: A Space Odyssey", director: "Stanley Kubrick"),

Movie(name: "Moon", director: "Duncan Jones"),

Movie(name: "Alien", director: "Ridley Scott")

Because this array is known to contain only Movie instances, you can downcast and unwrap directly to
a non-optional Movie with the forced version of the type cast operator (as!):
1

for object in someObjects {

let movie = object as! Movie

println("Movie: '\(movie.name)', dir. \(movie.director)")

// Movie: '2001: A Space Odyssey', dir. Stanley Kubrick

// Movie: 'Moon', dir. Duncan Jones

// Movie: 'Alien', dir. Ridley Scott

For an even shorter form of this loop, downcast the someObjects array to a type of [Movie] instead of
downcasting each item:
1

for movie in someObjects as! [Movie] {

println("Movie: '\(movie.name)', dir. \(movie.director)")

// Movie: '2001: A Space Odyssey', dir. Stanley Kubrick

// Movie: 'Moon', dir. Duncan Jones

// Movie: 'Alien', dir. Ridley Scott

Any
Heres an example of using Any to work with a mix of different types, including function types and
non-class types. The example creates an array called things, which can store values of type Any:
1

var things = [Any]()

10

things.append(0)

things.append(0.0)

things.append(42)

things.append(3.14159)

things.append("hello")

things.append((3.0, 5.0))

things.append(Movie(name: "Ghostbusters", director: "Ivan Reitman"))

things.append({ (name: String) -> String in "Hello, \(name)" })

The things array contains two Int values, two Double values, a String value, a tuple of type
(Double, Double), the movie Ghostbusters, and a closure expression that takes a String value and
returns another String value.
You can use the is and as operators in a switch statements cases to discover the specific type of a
constant or variable that is known only to be of type Any or AnyObject. The example below iterates
over the items in the things array and queries the type of each item with a switch statement. Several
of the switch statements cases bind their matched value to a constant of the specified type to enable
its value to be printed:
1

for thing in things {

switch thing {

case 0 as Int:

4
5
6
7
8
9

println("zero as an Int")
case 0 as Double:
println("zero as a Double")
case let someInt as Int:
println("an integer value of \(someInt)")
case let someDouble as Double where someDouble > 0:

10

println("a positive double value of \(someDouble)")

11

case is Double:

12

println("some other double value that I don't want to print")

13

case let someString as String:

14

println("a string value of \"\(someString)\"")

15

case let (x, y) as (Double, Double):

16

println("an (x, y) point at \(x), \(y)")

17

case let movie as Movie:

18

println("a movie called '\(movie.name)', dir. \(movie.director)")

19

case let stringConverter as String -> String:

20

println(stringConverter("Michael"))

21

default:

22

println("something else")

23

24

}
}

25

26

// zero as an Int

27

// zero as a Double

28

// an integer value of 42

29

// a positive double value of 3.14159

30

// a string value of "hello"

31

// an (x, y) point at 3.0, 5.0

32

// a movie called 'Ghostbusters', dir. Ivan Reitman

33

// Hello, Michael

NOTE
The cases of a switch statement use the forced version of the type cast operator (as, not as?) to check and cast to a
specific type. This check is always safe within the context of a switch case statement.

Nested Types
Enumerations are often created to support a specific class or structures functionality. Similarly, it can
be convenient to define utility classes and structures purely for use within the context of a more
complex type. To accomplish this, Swift enables you to define nested types, whereby you nest
supporting enumerations, classes, and structures within the definition of the type they support.
To nest a type within another type, write its definition within the outer braces of the type it supports.
Types can be nested to as many levels as are required.

Nested Types in Action

The example below defines a structure called BlackjackCard, which models a playing card as used in
the game of Blackjack. The BlackJack structure contains two nested enumeration types called Suit
and Rank.
In Blackjack, the Ace cards have a value of either one or eleven. This feature is represented by a
structure called Values, which is nested within the Rank enumeration:
1

struct BlackjackCard {

2
3

// nested Suit enumeration

enum Suit: Character {

5
6

case Spades = "", Hearts = "", Diamonds = "", Clubs = ""

}

7
8

// nested Rank enumeration

enum Rank: Int {

10

case Two = 2, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten

11

case Jack, Queen, King, Ace

12

struct Values {

13

14

let first: Int, second: Int?

}

15

var values: Values {

16

switch self {

17

case .Ace:

18

return Values(first: 1, second: 11)

19

case .Jack, .Queen, .King:

20

return Values(first: 10, second: nil)

21

default:

22

return Values(first: self.rawValue, second: nil)

23

24

25

26

27

// BlackjackCard properties and methods

28

let rank: Rank, suit: Suit

29

var description: String {

30

var output = "suit is \(suit.rawValue),"

31

output += " value is \(rank.values.first)"

32

if let second = rank.values.second {

33

output += " or \(second)"

34

35

return output

36

37

}
}

The Suit enumeration describes the four common playing card suits, together with a raw Character
value to represent their symbol.
The Rank enumeration describes the thirteen possible playing card ranks, together with a raw Int
value to represent their face value. (This raw Int value is not used for the Jack, Queen, King, and
Ace cards.)
As mentioned above, the Rank enumeration defines a further nested structure of its own, called
Values. This structure encapsulates the fact that most cards have one value, but the Ace card has two
values. The Values structure defines two properties to represent this:

first,

of type Int
second, of type Int?, or optional Int

also defines a computed property, values, which returns an instance of the Values structure. This
computed property considers the rank of the card and initializes a new Values instance with
appropriate values based on its rank. It uses special values for Jack, Queen, King, and Ace. For the
numeric cards, it uses the ranks raw Int value.
Rank

The BlackjackCard structure itself has two propertiesrank and suit. It also defines a computed
property called description, which uses the values stored in rank and suit to build a description of
the name and value of the card. The description property uses optional binding to check whether
there is a second value to display, and if so, inserts additional description detail for that second
value.
Because BlackjackCard is a structure with no custom initializers, it has an implicit memberwise
initializer, as described in Memberwise Initializers for Structure Types. You can use this initializer to
initialize a new constant called theAceOfSpades:
1

let theAceOfSpades = BlackjackCard(rank: .Ace, suit: .Spades)

println("theAceOfSpades: \(theAceOfSpades.description)")

// prints "theAceOfSpades: suit is , value is 1 or 11"

Even though Rank and Suit are nested within BlackjackCard, their type can be inferred from context,
and so the initialization of this instance is able to refer to the enumeration members by their member
names (.Ace and .Spades) alone. In the example above, the description property correctly reports
that the Ace of Spades has a value of 1 or 11.

Referring to Nested Types

To use a nested type outside of its definition context, prefix its name with the name of the type it is
nested within:
1

let heartsSymbol = BlackjackCard.Suit.Hearts.rawValue

// heartsSymbol is ""

For the example above, this enables the names of Suit, Rank, and Values to be kept deliberately short,
because their names are naturally qualified by the context in which they are defined.

Extensions
Extensions add new functionality to an existing class, structure, or enumeration type. This includes
the ability to extend types for which you do not have access to the original source code (known as
retroactive modeling). Extensions are similar to categories in Objective-C. (Unlike Objective-C
categories, Swift extensions do not have names.)
Extensions in Swift can:

Add computed properties and computed type properties

Define instance methods and type methods
Provide new initializers
Define subscripts
Define and use new nested types
Make an existing type conform to a protocol

NOTE
Extensions can add new functionality to a type, but they cannot override existing functionality.

Extension Syntax
Declare extensions with the extension keyword:
1

extension SomeType {

2
3

// new functionality to add to SomeType goes here

}

An extension can extend an existing type to make it adopt one or more protocols. Where this is the
case, the protocol names are written in exactly the same way as for a class or structure:

extension SomeType: SomeProtocol, AnotherProtocol {

2
3

// implementation of protocol requirements goes here

}

Adding protocol conformance in this way is described in Adding Protocol Conformance with an
Extension.

NOTE
If you define an extension to add new functionality to an existing type, the new functionality will be available on all existing
instances of that type, even if they were created before the extension was defined.

Computed Properties
Extensions can add computed instance properties and computed type properties to existing types. This
example adds five computed instance properties to Swifts built-in Double type, to provide basic
support for working with distance units:
1

extension Double {

var km: Double { return self * 1_000.0 }

var m: Double { return self }

var cm: Double { return self / 100.0 }

var mm: Double { return self / 1_000.0 }

var ft: Double { return self / 3.28084 }

let oneInch = 25.4.mm

println("One inch is \(oneInch) meters")

10

// prints "One inch is 0.0254 meters"

11

let threeFeet = 3.ft

12

println("Three feet is \(threeFeet) meters")

13

// prints "Three feet is 0.914399970739201 meters"

These computed properties express that a Double value should be considered as a certain unit of
length. Although they are implemented as computed properties, the names of these properties can be

appended to a floating-point literal value with dot syntax, as a way to use that literal value to perform
distance conversions.
In this example, a Double value of 1.0 is considered to represent one meter. This is why the m
computed property returns selfthe expression 1.m is considered to calculate a Double value of 1.0.
Other units require some conversion to be expressed as a value measured in meters. One kilometer is
the same as 1,000 meters, so the km computed property multiplies the value by 1_000.00 to convert
into a number expressed in meters. Similarly, there are 3.28024 feet in a meter, and so the ft
computed property divides the underlying Double value by 3.28024, to convert it from feet to meters.
These properties are read-only computed properties, and so they are expressed without the get
keyword, for brevity. Their return value is of type Double, and can be used within mathematical
calculations wherever a Double is accepted:
1

let aMarathon = 42.km + 195.m

println("A marathon is \(aMarathon) meters long")

// prints "A marathon is 42195.0 meters long"

NOTE
Extensions can add new computed properties, but they cannot add stored properties, or add property observers to existing
properties.

Initializers
Extensions can add new initializers to existing types. This enables you to extend other types to accept
your own custom types as initializer parameters, or to provide additional initialization options that
were not included as part of the types original implementation.
Extensions can add new convenience initializers to a class, but they cannot add new designated
initializers or deinitializers to a class. Designated initializers and deinitializers must always be
provided by the original class implementation.

NOTE
If you use an extension to add an initializer to a value type that provides default values for all of its stored properties and
does not define any custom initializers, you can call the default initializer and memberwise initializer for that value type from
within your extensions initializer.
This would not be the case if you had written the initializer as part of the value types original implementation, as described
in Initializer Delegation for Value Types.

The example below defines a custom Rect structure to represent a geometric rectangle. The example
also defines two supporting structures called Size and Point, both of which provide default values of
0.0 for all of their properties:
1

struct Size {

var width = 0.0, height = 0.0

struct Point {

10

var x = 0.0, y = 0.0

struct Rect {

var origin = Point()

var size = Size()

Because the Rect structure provides default values for all of its properties, it receives a default
initializer and a memberwise initializer automatically, as described in Default Initializers. These
initializers can be used to create new Rect instances:
1

let defaultRect = Rect()

let memberwiseRect = Rect(origin: Point(x: 2.0, y: 2.0),

size: Size(width: 5.0, height: 5.0))

You can extend the Rect structure to provide an additional initializer that takes a specific center point
and size:

extension Rect {

init(center: Point, size: Size) {

let originX = center.x - (size.width / 2)

let originY = center.y - (size.height / 2)

self.init(origin: Point(x: originX, y: originY), size: size)

6
7

}
}

This new initializer starts by calculating an appropriate origin point based on the provided center
point and size value. The initializer then calls the structures automatic memberwise initializer
init(origin:size:), which stores the new origin and size values in the appropriate properties:
1

let centerRect = Rect(center: Point(x: 4.0, y: 4.0),

2
3

size: Size(width: 3.0, height: 3.0))

// centerRect's origin is (2.5, 2.5) and its size is (3.0, 3.0)

NOTE
If you provide a new initializer with an extension, you are still responsible for making sure that each instance is fully
initialized once the initializer completes.

Methods
Extensions can add new instance methods and type methods to existing types. The following example
adds a new instance method called repetitions to the Int type:
1

extension Int {

func repetitions(task: () -> ()) {

for _ in 0..<self {

task()

6
7

}
}

The repetitions(_:) method takes a single argument of type ()

that has no parameters and does not return a value.

-> (),

which indicates a function

After defining this extension, you can call the repetitions(_:) method on any integer number to
perform a task that many number of times:
1

3.repetitions({

println("Hello!")

})

// Hello!

// Hello!

// Hello!

Use trailing closure syntax to make the call more succinct:

1

3.repetitions {

println("Goodbye!")

// Goodbye!

// Goodbye!

// Goodbye!

Mutating Instance Methods

Instance methods added with an extension can also modify (or mutate) the instance itself. Structure
and enumeration methods that modify self or its properties must mark the instance method as
mutating, just like mutating methods from an original implementation.
The example below adds a new mutating method called square to Swifts Int type, which squares the
original value:

extension Int {

mutating func square() {

self = self * self

var someInt = 3

someInt.square()

// someInt is now 9

Subscripts
Extensions can add new subscripts to an existing type. This example adds an integer subscript to
Swifts built-in Int type. This subscript [n] returns the decimal digit n places in from the right of the
number:

returns 9
123456789[1] returns 8
123456789[0]

and so on:

1
2

extension Int {
subscript(var digitIndex: Int) -> Int {

var decimalBase = 1

while digitIndex > 0 {

decimalBase *= 10

--digitIndex

return (self / decimalBase) % 10

10

11

746381295[0]

12

// returns 5

13

746381295[1]

14

// returns 9

15

746381295[2]

16

// returns 2

17

746381295[8]

18

// returns 7

If the Int value does not have enough digits for the requested index, the subscript implementation
returns 0, as if the number had been padded with zeroes to the left:
1

746381295[9]

// returns 0, as if you had requested:

0746381295[9]

Nested Types
Extensions can add new nested types to existing classes, structures and enumerations:

extension Int {

enum Kind {

case Negative, Zero, Positive

var kind: Kind {

switch self {

case 0:

return .Zero

case let x where x > 0:

10

return .Positive

11

default:

12

return .Negative

13

14

15

}
}

This example adds a new nested enumeration to Int. This enumeration, called Kind, expresses the
kind of number that a particular integer represents. Specifically, it expresses whether the number is
negative, zero, or positive.
This example also adds a new computed instance property to Int, called kind, which returns the
appropriate Kind enumeration member for that integer.
The nested enumeration can now be used with any Int value:

func printIntegerKinds(numbers: [Int]) {

for number in numbers {

switch number.kind {

case .Negative:

print("- ")

case .Zero:

print("0 ")

case .Positive:

print("+ ")

10

11

12

print("\n")

13

14

printIntegerKinds([3, 19, -27, 0, -6, 0, 7])

15

// prints "+ + - 0 - 0 +"

This function, printIntegerKinds, takes an input array of Int values and iterates over those values in
turn. For each integer in the array, the function considers the kind computed property for that integer,
and prints an appropriate description.

NOTE
number.kind is already known to be of type Int.Kind. Because of this, all of the Int.Kind member values can
be written in shorthand form inside the switch statement, such as .Negative rather than Int.Kind.Negative.

Protocols
A protocol defines a blueprint of methods, properties, and other requirements that suit a particular
task or piece of functionality. The protocol doesnt actually provide an implementation for any of
these requirementsit only describes what an implementation will look like. The protocol can then
be adopted by a class, structure, or enumeration to provide an actual implementation of those
requirements. Any type that satisfies the requirements of a protocol is said to conform to that
protocol.
Protocols can require that conforming types have specific instance properties, instance methods, type
methods, operators, and subscripts.

Protocol Syntax
You define protocols in a very similar way to classes, structures, and enumerations:
1

protocol SomeProtocol {

2
3

// protocol definition goes here

}

Custom types state that they adopt a particular protocol by placing the protocols name after the types
name, separated by a colon, as part of their definition. Multiple protocols can be listed, and are
separated by commas:
1

struct SomeStructure: FirstProtocol, AnotherProtocol {

2
3

// structure definition goes here

}

If a class has a superclass, list the superclass name before any protocols it adopts, followed by a
comma:
1

class SomeClass: SomeSuperclass, FirstProtocol, AnotherProtocol {

2
3

// class definition goes here

}

Property Requirements
A protocol can require any conforming type to provide an instance property or type property with a
particular name and type. The protocol doesnt specify whether the property should be a stored
property or a computed propertyit only specifies the required property name and type. The protocol
also specifies whether each property must be gettable or gettable and settable.
If a protocol requires a property to be gettable and settable, that property requirement cannot be
fulfilled by a constant stored property or a read-only computed property. If the protocol only requires
a property to be gettable, the requirement can be satisfied by any kind of property, and it is valid for
the property to be also settable if this is useful for your own code.
Property requirements are always declared as variable properties, prefixed with the var keyword.
Gettable and settable properties are indicated by writing { get set } after their type declaration, and
gettable properties are indicated by writing { get }.
1

protocol SomeProtocol {

var mustBeSettable: Int { get set }

var doesNotNeedToBeSettable: Int { get }

Always prefix type property requirements with the static keyword when you define them in a
protocol. This rule pertains even though type property requirements can be prefixed with the class or
static keyword when implemented by a class:
1

protocol AnotherProtocol {

2
3

static var someTypeProperty: Int { get set }

}

Heres an example of a protocol with a single instance property requirement:

1

protocol FullyNamed {

2
3

var fullName: String { get }

}

The FullyNamed protocol requires a conforming type to provide a fully-qualified name. The protocol
doesnt specify anything else about the nature of the conforming typeit only specifies that the type
must be able to provide a full name for itself. The protocol states that any FullyNamed type must have
a gettable instance property called fullName, which is of type String.
Heres an example of a simple structure that adopts and conforms to the FullyNamed protocol:

struct Person: FullyNamed {

var fullName: String

let john = Person(fullName: "John Appleseed")

// john.fullName is "John Appleseed"

This example defines a structure called Person, which represents a specific named person. It states
that it adopts the FullyNamed protocol as part of the first line of its definition.
Each instance of Person has a single stored property called fullName, which is of type String. This
matches the single requirement of the FullyNamed protocol, and means that Person has correctly
conformed to the protocol. (Swift reports an error at compile-time if a protocol requirement is not
fulfilled.)
Heres a more complex class, which also adopts and conforms to the FullyNamed protocol:
1

class Starship: FullyNamed {

var prefix: String?

var name: String

init(name: String, prefix: String? = nil) {

self.name = name

self.prefix = prefix

var fullName: String {

10

return (prefix != nil ? prefix! + " " : "") + name

}

11

12

var ncc1701 = Starship(name: "Enterprise", prefix: "USS")

13

// ncc1701.fullName is "USS Enterprise"

This class implements the fullName property requirement as a computed read-only property for a
starship. Each Starship class instance stores a mandatory name and an optional prefix. The fullName
property uses the prefix value if it exists, and prepends it to the beginning of name to create a full
name for the starship.

Method Requirements
Protocols can require specific instance methods and type methods to be implemented by conforming
types. These methods are written as part of the protocols definition in exactly the same way as for
normal instance and type methods, but without curly braces or a method body. Variadic parameters
are allowed, subject to the same rules as for normal methods. Default values, however, cannot be
specified for method parameters within a protocols definition.
As with type property requirements, you always prefix type method requirements with the static
keyword when they are defined in a protocol. This is true even though type method requirements are
prefixed with the class or static keyword when implemented by a class:
1

protocol SomeProtocol {

2
3

static func someTypeMethod()

}

The following example defines a protocol with a single instance method requirement:
1

protocol RandomNumberGenerator {

func random() -> Double

This protocol, RandomNumberGenerator, requires any conforming type to have an instance method
called random, which returns a Double value whenever it is called. Although it is not specified as part
of the protocol, it is assumed that this value will be a number from 0.0 up to (but not including) 1.0.
The RandomNumberGenerator protocol does not make any assumptions about how each random number
will be generatedit simply requires the generator to provide a standard way to generate a new
random number.
Heres an implementation of a class that adopts and conforms to the RandomNumberGenerator protocol.
This class implements a pseudorandom number generator algorithm known as a linear congruential
generator:

class LinearCongruentialGenerator: RandomNumberGenerator {

var lastRandom = 42.0

let m = 139968.0

let a = 3877.0

let c = 29573.0

func random() -> Double {

lastRandom = ((lastRandom * a + c) % m)

return lastRandom / m

10

11

let generator = LinearCongruentialGenerator()

12

println("Here's a random number: \(generator.random())")

13

// prints "Here's a random number: 0.37464991998171"

14

println("And another one: \(generator.random())")

15

// prints "And another one: 0.729023776863283"

Mutating Method Requirements

It is sometimes necessary for a method to modify (or mutate) the instance it belongs to. For instance
methods on value types (that is, structures and enumerations) you place the mutating keyword before
a methods func keyword to indicate that the method is allowed to modify the instance it belongs to
and/or any properties of that instance. This process is described in Modifying Value Types from
Within Instance Methods.
If you define a protocol instance method requirement that is intended to mutate instances of any type
that adopts the protocol, mark the method with the mutating keyword as part of the protocols
definition. This enables structures and enumerations to adopt the protocol and satisfy that method
requirement.

NOTE
If you mark a protocol instance method requirement as mutating, you do not need to write the mutating keyword
when writing an implementation of that method for a class. The mutating keyword is only used by structures and
enumerations.

The example below defines a protocol called Togglable, which defines a single instance method
requirement called toggle. As its name suggests, the toggle() method is intended to toggle or invert
the state of any conforming type, typically by modifying a property of that type.
The toggle() method is marked with the mutating keyword as part of the Togglable protocol
definition, to indicate that the method is expected to mutate the state of a conforming instance when it
is called:
1

protocol Togglable {

2
3

mutating func toggle()

}

If you implement the Togglable protocol for a structure or enumeration, that structure or enumeration
can conform to the protocol by providing an implementation of the toggle() method that is also
marked as mutating.
The example below defines an enumeration called OnOffSwitch. This enumeration toggles between
two states, indicated by the enumeration cases On and Off. The enumerations toggle implementation
is marked as mutating, to match the Togglable protocols requirements:
1

enum OnOffSwitch: Togglable {

case Off, On

mutating func toggle() {

switch self {

case Off:

self = On

case On:

self = Off

10

}
}

11

12

var lightSwitch = OnOffSwitch.Off

13

lightSwitch.toggle()

14

// lightSwitch is now equal to .On

Initializer Requirements
Protocols can require specific initializers to be implemented by conforming types. You write these
initializers as part of the protocols definition in exactly the same way as for normal initializers, but
without curly braces or an initializer body:
1

protocol SomeProtocol {

2
3

init(someParameter: Int)
}

Class Implementations of Protocol Initializer Requirements

You can implement a protocol initializer requirement on a conforming class as either a designated
initializer or a convenience initializer. In both cases, you must mark the initializer implementation
with the required modifier:
1

class SomeClass: SomeProtocol {

required init(someParameter: Int) {

// initializer implementation goes here

4
5

}
}

The use of the required modifier ensures that you provide an explicit or inherited implementation of
the initializer requirement on all subclasses of the conforming class, such that they also conform to the
protocol.
For more information on required initializers, see Required Initializers.

NOTE
You do not need to mark protocol initializer implementations with the required modifier on classes that are marked with
the final modifier, because final classes cannot be subclassed. For more on the final modifier, see Preventing
Overrides.

If a subclass overrides a designated initializer from a superclass, and also implements a matching
initializer requirement from a protocol, mark the initializer implementation with both the required
and override modifiers:

protocol SomeProtocol {

2
3

init()
}

4
5

class SomeSuperClass {

init() {

// initializer implementation goes here

8
9

}
}

10

11

class SomeSubClass: SomeSuperClass, SomeProtocol {

12

// "required" from SomeProtocol conformance; "override" from SomeSuperClass

13

required override init() {

14

// initializer implementation goes here

15

16

}
}

Failable Initializer Requirements

Protocols can define failable initializer requirements for conforming types, as defined in Failable
Initializers.
A failable initializer requirement can be satisfied by a failable or nonfailable initializer on a
conforming type. A nonfailable initializer requirement can be satisfied by a nonfailable initializer or
an implicitly unwrapped failable initializer.

Protocols as Types
Protocols do not actually implement any functionality themselves. Nonetheless, any protocol you
create will become a fully-fledged type for use in your code.
Because it is a type, you can use a protocol in many places where other types are allowed, including:

 As a parameter type or return type in a function, method, or initializer

As the type of a constant, variable, or property
As the type of items in an array, dictionary, or other container

NOTE
Because protocols are types, begin their names with a capital letter (such as FullyNamed and
RandomNumberGenerator) to match the names of other types in Swift (such as Int, String, and Double).

Heres an example of a protocol used as a type:

1

class Dice {

let sides: Int

let generator: RandomNumberGenerator

init(sides: Int, generator: RandomNumberGenerator) {

self.sides = sides

self.generator = generator

func roll() -> Int {

10

11

return Int(generator.random() * Double(sides)) + 1

}

This example defines a new class called Dice, which represents an n-sided dice for use in a board
game. Dice instances have an integer property called sides, which represents how many sides they
have, and a property called generator, which provides a random number generator from which to
create dice roll values.
The generator property is of type RandomNumberGenerator. Therefore, you can set it to an instance of
any type that adopts the RandomNumberGenerator protocol. Nothing else is required of the instance you
assign to this property, except that the instance must adopt the RandomNumberGenerator protocol.
also has an initializer, to set up its initial state. This initializer has a parameter called generator,
which is also of type RandomNumberGenerator. You can pass a value of any conforming type in to this
parameter when initializing a new Dice instance.
Dice

provides one instance method, roll, which returns an integer value between 1 and the number of
sides on the dice. This method calls the generators random() method to create a new random number
Dice

between 0.0 and 1.0, and uses this random number to create a dice roll value within the correct
range. Because generator is known to adopt RandomNumberGenerator, it is guaranteed to have a
random() method to call.
Heres how the Dice class can be used to create a six-sided dice with a
LinearCongruentialGenerator instance as its random number generator:
1

var d6 = Dice(sides: 6, generator: LinearCongruentialGenerator())

for _ in 1...5 {

println("Random dice roll is \(d6.roll())")

// Random dice roll is 3

// Random dice roll is 5

// Random dice roll is 4

// Random dice roll is 5

// Random dice roll is 4

Delegation
Delegation is a design pattern that enables a class or structure to hand off (or delegate) some of its
responsibilities to an instance of another type. This design pattern is implemented by defining a
protocol that encapsulates the delegated responsibilities, such that a conforming type (known as a
delegate) is guaranteed to provide the functionality that has been delegated. Delegation can be used to
respond to a particular action, or to retrieve data from an external source without needing to know the
underlying type of that source.
The example below defines two protocols for use with dice-based board games:

protocol DiceGame {

var dice: Dice { get }

func play()

protocol DiceGameDelegate {

func gameDidStart(game: DiceGame)

func game(game: DiceGame, didStartNewTurnWithDiceRoll diceRoll: Int)

func gameDidEnd(game: DiceGame)

The DiceGame protocol is a protocol that can be adopted by any game that involves dice. The
DiceGameDelegate protocol can be adopted by any type to track the progress of a DiceGame.
Heres a version of the Snakes and Ladders game originally introduced in Control Flow. This
version is adapted to use a Dice instance for its dice-rolls; to adopt the DiceGame protocol; and to
notify a DiceGameDelegate about its progress:

class SnakesAndLadders: DiceGame {

let finalSquare = 25

let dice = Dice(sides: 6, generator: LinearCongruentialGenerator())

var square = 0

var board: [Int]

init() {

board = [Int](count: finalSquare + 1, repeatedValue: 0)

board[03] = +08; board[06] = +11; board[09] = +09; board[10] = +02

board[14] = -10; board[19] = -11; board[22] = -02; board[24] = -08

10

11

var delegate: DiceGameDelegate?

12

func play() {

13

square = 0

14

delegate?.gameDidStart(self)

15

gameLoop: while square != finalSquare {

16

let diceRoll = dice.roll()

17

delegate?.game(self, didStartNewTurnWithDiceRoll: diceRoll)

18

switch square + diceRoll {

19

case finalSquare:

20

break gameLoop

21

case let newSquare where newSquare > finalSquare:

22

continue gameLoop

23

default:

24

square += diceRoll

25

square += board[square]

26

27

28

delegate?.gameDidEnd(self)

29

30

}
}

For a description of the Snakes and Ladders gameplay, see the Break section of the Control Flow
chapter.
This version of the game is wrapped up as a class called SnakesAndLadders, which adopts the
DiceGame protocol. It provides a gettable dice property and a play() method in order to conform to
the protocol. (The dice property is declared as a constant property because it does not need to change
after initialization, and the protocol only requires that it is gettable.)
The Snakes and Ladders game board setup takes place within the classs init() initializer. All game
logic is moved into the protocols play method, which uses the protocols required dice property to
provide its dice roll values.
Note that the delegate property is defined as an optional DiceGameDelegate, because a delegate isnt
required in order to play the game. Because it is of an optional type, the delegate property is
automatically set to an initial value of nil. Thereafter, the game instantiator has the option to set the
property to a suitable delegate.
provides three methods for tracking the progress of a game. These three methods
have been incorporated into the game logic within the play() method above, and are called when a
new game starts, a new turn begins, or the game ends.
DiceGameDelegate

Because the delegate property is an optional DiceGameDelegate, the play() method uses optional
chaining each time it calls a method on the delegate. If the delegate property is nil, these delegate
calls fail gracefully and without error. If the delegate property is non-nil, the delegate methods are
called, and are passed the SnakesAndLadders instance as a parameter.
This next example shows a class called DiceGameTracker, which adopts the DiceGameDelegate
protocol:

class DiceGameTracker: DiceGameDelegate {

var numberOfTurns = 0

func gameDidStart(game: DiceGame) {

numberOfTurns = 0

if game is SnakesAndLadders {

println("Started a new game of Snakes and Ladders")

println("The game is using a \(game.dice.sides)-sided dice")

10

}
func game(game: DiceGame, didStartNewTurnWithDiceRoll diceRoll: Int) {

11

++numberOfTurns

12

println("Rolled a \(diceRoll)")

13

14

func gameDidEnd(game: DiceGame) {

15

println("The game lasted for \(numberOfTurns) turns")

16

17

}
}

implements all three methods required by DiceGameDelegate. It uses these methods

to keep track of the number of turns a game has taken. It resets a numberOfTurns property to zero when
the game starts, increments it each time a new turn begins, and prints out the total number of turns
once the game has ended.
DiceGameTracker

The implementation of gameDidStart shown above uses the game parameter to print some introductory
information about the game that is about to be played. The game parameter has a type of DiceGame, not
SnakesAndLadders, and so gameDidStart can access and use only methods and properties that are
implemented as part of the DiceGame protocol. However, the method is still able to use type casting to
query the type of the underlying instance. In this example, it checks whether game is actually an
instance of SnakesAndLadders behind the scenes, and prints an appropriate message if so.
also accesses the dice property of the passed game parameter. Because game is known
to conform to the DiceGame protocol, it is guaranteed to have a dice property, and so the
gameDidStart(_:) method is able to access and print the dices sides property, regardless of what
kind of game is being played.
gameDidStart

Heres how DiceGameTracker looks in action:

let tracker = DiceGameTracker()

let game = SnakesAndLadders()

game.delegate = tracker

game.play()

// Started a new game of Snakes and Ladders

// The game is using a 6-sided dice

// Rolled a 3

// Rolled a 5

// Rolled a 4

10

// Rolled a 5

11

// The game lasted for 4 turns

Adding Protocol Conformance with an Extension

You can extend an existing type to adopt and conform to a new protocol, even if you do not have
access to the source code for the existing type. Extensions can add new properties, methods, and
subscripts to an existing type, and are therefore able to add any requirements that a protocol may
demand. For more about extensions, see Extensions.

NOTE
Existing instances of a type automatically adopt and conform to a protocol when that conformance is added to the
instances type in an extension.

For example, this protocol, called TextRepresentable, can be implemented by any type that has a way
to be represented as text. This might be a description of itself, or a text version of its current state:
1

protocol TextRepresentable {

2
3

func asText() -> String

}

The Dice class from earlier can be extended to adopt and conform to TextRepresentable:

extension Dice: TextRepresentable {

func asText() -> String {

return "A \(sides)-sided dice"

4
5

}
}

This extension adopts the new protocol in exactly the same way as if Dice had provided it in its
original implementation. The protocol name is provided after the type name, separated by a colon,
and an implementation of all requirements of the protocol is provided within the extensions curly
braces.
Any Dice instance can now be treated as TextRepresentable:
1

let d12 = Dice(sides: 12, generator: LinearCongruentialGenerator())

println(d12.asText())

// prints "A 12-sided dice"

Similarly, the SnakesAndLadders game class can be extended to adopt and conform to the
TextRepresentable protocol:
1

extension SnakesAndLadders: TextRepresentable {

func asText() -> String {

return "A game of Snakes and Ladders with \(finalSquare) squares"

println(game.asText())

// prints "A game of Snakes and Ladders with 25 squares"

Declaring Protocol Adoption with an Extension

If a type already conforms to all of the requirements of a protocol, but has not yet stated that it adopts
that protocol, you can make it adopt the protocol with an empty extension:

struct Hamster {

var name: String

func asText() -> String {

return "A hamster named \(name)"

extension Hamster: TextRepresentable {}

Instances of Hamster can now be used wherever TextRepresentable is the required type:
1

let simonTheHamster = Hamster(name: "Simon")

let somethingTextRepresentable: TextRepresentable = simonTheHamster

println(somethingTextRepresentable.asText())

// prints "A hamster named Simon"

NOTE
Types do not automatically adopt a protocol just by satisfying its requirements. They must always explicitly declare their
adoption of the protocol.

Collections of Protocol Types

A protocol can be used as the type to be stored in a collection such as an array or a dictionary, as
mentioned in Protocols as Types. This example creates an array of TextRepresentable things:
let things: [TextRepresentable] = [game, d12, simonTheHamster]

It is now possible to iterate over the items in the array, and print each items textual representation:

for thing in things {

println(thing.asText())

// A game of Snakes and Ladders with 25 squares

// A 12-sided dice

// A hamster named Simon

Note that the thing constant is of type TextRepresentable. It is not of type Dice, or DiceGame, or
Hamster, even if the actual instance behind the scenes is of one of those types. Nonetheless, because it
is of type TextRepresentable, and anything that is TextRepresentable is known to have an asText()
method, it is safe to call thing.asText each time through the loop.

Protocol Inheritance
A protocol can inherit one or more other protocols and can add further requirements on top of the
requirements it inherits. The syntax for protocol inheritance is similar to the syntax for class
inheritance, but with the option to list multiple inherited protocols, separated by commas:
1

protocol InheritingProtocol: SomeProtocol, AnotherProtocol {

2
3

// protocol definition goes here

}

Heres an example of a protocol that inherits the TextRepresentable protocol from above:
1

protocol PrettyTextRepresentable: TextRepresentable {

2
3

func asPrettyText() -> String

}

This example defines a new protocol, PrettyTextRepresentable, which inherits from

TextRepresentable. Anything that adopts PrettyTextRepresentable must satisfy all of the
requirements enforced by TextRepresentable, plus the additional requirements enforced by
PrettyTextRepresentable. In this example, PrettyTextRepresentable adds a single requirement to
provide an instance method called asPrettyText that returns a String.
The SnakesAndLadders class can be extended to adopt and conform to PrettyTextRepresentable:

extension SnakesAndLadders: PrettyTextRepresentable {

func asPrettyText() -> String {

var output = asText() + ":\n"

for index in 1...finalSquare {

switch board[index] {

case let ladder where ladder > 0:

output += " "

case let snake where snake < 0:

output += " "

10

default:

11

output += " "

12

13

14

return output

15

16

}
}

This extension states that it adopts the PrettyTextRepresentable protocol and provides an
implementation of the asPrettyText() method for the SnakesAndLadders type. Anything that is
PrettyTextRepresentable must also be TextRepresentable, and so the asPrettyText implementation
starts by calling the asText() method from the TextRepresentable protocol to begin an output string.
It appends a colon and a line break, and uses this as the start of its pretty text representation. It then
iterates through the array of board squares, and appends a geometric shape to represent the contents of
each square:
If the squares value is greater than 0, it is the base of a ladder, and is represented by .
If the squares value is less than 0, it is the head of a snake, and is represented by .
Otherwise, the squares value is 0, and it is a free square, represented by .
The method implementation can now be used to print a pretty text description of any
SnakesAndLadders instance:

println(game.asPrettyText())

// A game of Snakes and Ladders with 25 squares:

//

Class-Only Protocols
You can limit protocol adoption to class types (and not structures or enumerations) by adding the
class keyword to a protocols inheritance list. The class keyword must always appear first in a
protocols inheritance list, before any inherited protocols:
1

protocol SomeClassOnlyProtocol: class, SomeInheritedProtocol {

2
3

// class-only protocol definition goes here

}

In the example above, SomeClassOnlyProtocol can only be adopted by class types. It is a compiletime error to write a structure or enumeration definition that tries to adopt SomeClassOnlyProtocol.

NOTE
Use a class-only protocol when the behavior defined by that protocols requirements assumes or requires that a conforming
type has reference semantics rather than value semantics. For more on reference and value semantics, see Structures and
Enumerations Are Value Types and Classes Are Reference Types.

Protocol Composition
It can be useful to require a type to conform to multiple protocols at once. You can combine multiple
protocols into a single requirement with a protocol composition. Protocol compositions have the
form protocol<SomeProtocol, AnotherProtocol>. You can list as many protocols within the pair of
angle brackets (<>) as you need, separated by commas.
Heres an example that combines two protocols called Named and Aged into a single protocol
composition requirement on a function parameter:

protocol Named {

var name: String { get }

protocol Aged {

var age: Int { get }

struct Person: Named, Aged {

var name: String

var age: Int

10

11

func wishHappyBirthday(celebrator: protocol<Named, Aged>) {

12

println("Happy birthday \(celebrator.name) - you're \(celebrator.age)!")

13

14

let birthdayPerson = Person(name: "Malcolm", age: 21)

15

wishHappyBirthday(birthdayPerson)

16

// prints "Happy birthday Malcolm - you're 21!"

This example defines a protocol called Named, with a single requirement for a gettable String
property called name. It also defines a protocol called Aged, with a single requirement for a gettable
Int property called age. Both of these protocols are adopted by a structure called Person.
The example also defines a function called wishHappyBirthday, which takes a single parameter called
celebrator. The type of this parameter is protocol<Named, Aged>, which means any type that
conforms to both the Named and Aged protocols. It doesnt matter what specific type is passed to the
function, as long as it conforms to both of the required protocols.
The example then creates a new Person instance called birthdayPerson and passes this new instance
to the wishHappyBirthday function. Because Person conforms to both protocols, this is a valid call,
and the wishHappyBirthday function is able to print its birthday greeting.

NOTE
Protocol compositions do not define a new, permanent protocol type. Rather, they define a temporary local protocol that has
the combined requirements of all protocols in the composition.

Checking for Protocol Conformance

You can use the is and as operators described in Type Casting to check for protocol conformance,
and to cast to a specific protocol. Checking for and casting to a protocol follows exactly the same
syntax as checking for and casting to a type:
The is operator returns true if an instance conforms to a protocol and returns false if it does
not.
The as? version of the downcast operator returns an optional value of the protocols type,
and this value is nil if the instance does not conform to that protocol.
The as! version of the downcast operator forces the downcast to the protocol type and
triggers a runtime error if the downcast does not succeed.
This example defines a protocol called HasArea, with a single property requirement of a gettable
Double property called area:
1

protocol HasArea {

2
3

var area: Double { get }

}

Here are two classes, Circle and Country, both of which conform to the HasArea protocol:
1

10

class Circle: HasArea {

let pi = 3.1415927

var radius: Double

var area: Double { return pi * radius * radius }

init(radius: Double) { self.radius = radius }

class Country: HasArea {

var area: Double

init(area: Double) { self.area = area }

The Circle class implements the area property requirement as a computed property, based on a
stored radius property. The Country class implements the area requirement directly as a stored
property. Both classes correctly conform to the HasArea protocol.

Heres a class called Animal, which does not conform to the HasArea protocol:
1

class Animal {

var legs: Int

init(legs: Int) { self.legs = legs }

The Circle, Country and Animal classes do not have a shared base class. Nonetheless, they are all
classes, and so instances of all three types can be used to initialize an array that stores values of type
AnyObject:
1

let objects: [AnyObject] = [

Circle(radius: 2.0),

Country(area: 243_610),

Animal(legs: 4)

The objects array is initialized with an array literal containing a Circle instance with a radius of 2
units; a Country instance initialized with the surface area of the United Kingdom in square kilometers;
and an Animal instance with four legs.
The objects array can now be iterated, and each object in the array can be checked to see if it
conforms to the HasArea protocol:
1

for object in objects {

if let objectWithArea = object as? HasArea {

println("Area is \(objectWithArea.area)")

} else {

println("Something that doesn't have an area")

10

// Area is 12.5663708

// Area is 243610.0

// Something that doesn't have an area

Whenever an object in the array conforms to the HasArea protocol, the optional value returned by the

operator is unwrapped with optional binding into a constant called objectWithArea. The
objectWithArea constant is known to be of type HasArea, and so its area property can be accessed
and printed in a type-safe way.
as?

Note that the underlying objects are not changed by the casting process. They continue to be a Circle,
a Country and an Animal. However, at the point that they are stored in the objectWithArea constant,
they are only known to be of type HasArea, and so only their area property can be accessed.

Optional Protocol Requirements

You can define optional requirements for protocols, These requirements do not have to be
implemented by types that conform to the protocol. Optional requirements are prefixed by the
optional modifier as part of the protocols definition.
An optional protocol requirement can be called with optional chaining, to account for the possibility
that the requirement was not implemented by a type that conforms to the protocol. For information on
optional chaining, see Optional Chaining.
You check for an implementation of an optional requirement by writing a question mark after the name
of the requirement when it is called, such as someOptionalMethod?(someArgument). Optional property
requirements, and optional method requirements that return a value, will always return an optional
value of the appropriate type when they are accessed or called, to reflect the fact that the optional
requirement may not have been implemented.

NOTE
Optional protocol requirements can only be specified if your protocol is marked with the @objc attribute.
This attribute indicates that the protocol should be exposed to Objective-C code and is described in Using Swift with
Cocoa and Objective-C. Even if you are not interoperating with Objective-C, you need to mark your protocols with the
@objc attribute if you want to specify optional requirements.
Note also that @objc protocols can be adopted only by classes, and not by structures or enumerations. If you mark your
protocol as @objc in order to specify optional requirements, you will only be able to apply that protocol to class types.

The following example defines an integer-counting class called Counter, which uses an external data
source to provide its increment amount. This data source is defined by the CounterDataSource
protocol, which has two optional requirements:

@objc protocol CounterDataSource {

optional func incrementForCount(count: Int) -> Int

optional var fixedIncrement: Int { get }

The CounterDataSource protocol defines an optional method requirement called incrementForCount

and an optional property requirement called fixedIncrement. These requirements define two different
ways for data sources to provide an appropriate increment amount for a Counter instance.

NOTE
Strictly speaking, you can write a custom class that conforms to CounterDataSource without implementing either
protocol requirement. They are both optional, after all. Although technically allowed, this wouldnt make for a very good
data source.

The Counter class, defined below, has an optional dataSource property of type CounterDataSource?:
1

@objc class Counter {

var count = 0

var dataSource: CounterDataSource?

func increment() {

if let amount = dataSource?.incrementForCount?(count) {

count += amount

} else if let amount = dataSource?.fixedIncrement {

count += amount

10

11

}
}

The Counter class stores its current value in a variable property called count. The Counter class also
defines a method called increment, which increments the count property every time the method is
called.
The increment() method first tries to retrieve an increment amount by looking for an implementation
of the incrementForCount(_:) method on its data source. The increment() method uses optional
chaining to try to call incrementForCount(_:), and passes the current count value as the methods
single argument.

Note two levels of optional chaining at play here. Firstly, it is possible that dataSource may be nil,
and so dataSource has a question mark after its name to indicate that incrementForCount should only
be called if dataSource is non-nil. Secondly, even if dataSource does exist, there is no guarantee that
it implements incrementForCount, because it is an optional requirement. This is why
incrementForCount is also written with a question mark after its name.
Because the call to incrementForCount can fail for either of these two reasons, the call returns an
optional Int value. This is true even though incrementForCount is defined as returning a non-optional
Int value in the definition of CounterDataSource.
After calling incrementForCount, the optional Int that it returns is unwrapped into a constant called
amount, using optional binding. If the optional Int does contain a valuethat is, if the delegate and
method both exist, and the method returned a valuethe unwrapped amount is added onto the stored
count property, and incrementation is complete.
If it is not possible to retrieve a value from the incrementForCount(_:) methodeither because
dataSource is nil, or because the data source does not implement incrementForCountthen the
increment() method tries to retrieve a value from the data sources fixedIncrement property instead.
The fixedIncrement property is also an optional requirement, and so its name is also written using
optional chaining with a question mark on the end, to indicate that the attempt to access the propertys
value can fail. As before, the returned value is an optional Int value, even though fixedIncrement is
defined as a non-optional Int property as part of the CounterDataSource protocol definition.
Heres a simple CounterDataSource implementation where the data source returns a constant value of
3 every time it is queried. It does this by implementing the optional fixedIncrement property
requirement:
1

class ThreeSource: CounterDataSource {

2
3

let fixedIncrement = 3
}

You can use an instance of ThreeSource as the data source for a new Counter instance:

10

var counter = Counter()

counter.dataSource = ThreeSource()

for _ in 1...4 {

counter.increment()

println(counter.count)

// 3

// 6

// 9

// 12

The code above creates a new Counter instance; sets its data source to be a new ThreeSource
instance; and calls the counters increment() method four times. As expected, the counters count
property increases by three each time increment() is called.
Heres a more complex data source called TowardsZeroSource, which makes a Counter instance count
up or down towards zero from its current count value:
1

class TowardsZeroSource: CounterDataSource {

func incrementForCount(count: Int) -> Int {

if count == 0 {

return 0

} else if count < 0 {

return 1

} else {

return -1

10

11

}
}

The TowardsZeroSource class implements the optional incrementForCount(_:) method from the
CounterDataSource protocol and uses the count argument value to work out which direction to count
in. If count is already zero, the method returns 0 to indicate that no further counting should take place.
You can use an instance of TowardsZeroSource with the existing Counter instance to count from -4 to
zero. Once the counter reaches zero, no more counting takes place:

counter.count = -4

counter.dataSource = TowardsZeroSource()

for _ in 1...5 {

counter.increment()

println(counter.count)

// -3

// -2

// -1

10

// 0

11

// 0

Generics
Generic code enables you to write flexible, reusable functions and types that can work with any type,
subject to requirements that you define. You can write code that avoids duplication and expresses its
intent in a clear, abstracted manner.
Generics are one of the most powerful features of Swift, and much of the Swift standard library is
built with generic code. In fact, youve been using generics throughout the Language Guide, even if
you didnt realize it. For example, Swifts Array and Dictionary types are both generic collections.
You can create an array that holds Int values, or an array that holds String values, or indeed an array
for any other type that can be created in Swift. Similarly, you can create a dictionary to store values
of any specified type, and there are no limitations on what that type can be.

The Problem That Generics Solve

Heres a standard, non-generic function called swapTwoInts, which swaps two Int values:
1

func swapTwoInts(inout a: Int, inout b: Int) {

let temporaryA = a

a = b

b = temporaryA

This function makes use of in-out parameters to swap the values of a and b, as described in In-Out
Parameters.
The swapTwoInts function swaps the original value of b into a, and the original value of a into b. You
can call this function to swap the values in two Int variables:
1

var someInt = 3

var anotherInt = 107

swapTwoInts(&someInt, &anotherInt)

println("someInt is now \(someInt), and anotherInt is now \(anotherInt)")

// prints "someInt is now 107, and anotherInt is now 3"

The swapTwoInts function is useful, but it can only be used with Int values. If you want to swap two

values, or two Double values, you have to write more functions, such as the swapTwoStrings
and swapTwoDoubles functions shown below:
String

func swapTwoStrings(inout a: String, inout b: String) {

let temporaryA = a

a = b

b = temporaryA

6
7

func swapTwoDoubles(inout a: Double, inout b: Double) {

let temporaryA = a

a = b

10

11

b = temporaryA
}

You may have noticed that the bodies of the swapTwoInts, swapTwoStrings, and swapTwoDoubles
functions are identical. The only difference is the type of the values that they accept (Int, String, and
Double).
It would be much more useful, and considerably more flexible, to write a single function that could
swap two values of any type. Generic code enables you to write such a function. (A generic version
of these functions is defined below.)

NOTE
In all three functions, it is important that the types of a and b are defined to be the same as each other. If a and b were
not of the same type, it would not be possible to swap their values. Swift is a type-safe language, and does not allow (for
example) a variable of type String and a variable of type Double to swap values with each other. Attempting to do so
would be reported as a compile-time error.

Generic Functions
Generic functions can work with any type. Heres a generic version of the swapTwoInts function from
above, called swapTwoValues:

func swapTwoValues<T>(inout a: T, inout b: T) {

let temporaryA = a

a = b

b = temporaryA

The body of the swapTwoValues function is identical to the body of the swapTwoInts function.
However, the first line of swapTwoValues is slightly different from swapTwoInts. Heres how the first
lines compare:
1

func swapTwoInts(inout a: Int, inout b: Int)

func swapTwoValues<T>(inout a: T, inout b: T)

The generic version of the function uses a placeholder type name (called T, in this case) instead of an
actual type name (such as Int, String, or Double). The placeholder type name doesnt say anything
about what T must be, but it does say that both a and b must be of the same type T, whatever T
represents. The actual type to use in place of T will be determined each time the swapTwoValues
function is called.
The other difference is that the generic functions name (swapTwoValues) is followed by the
placeholder type name (T) inside angle brackets (<T>). The brackets tell Swift that T is a placeholder
type name within the swapTwoValues function definition. Because T is a placeholder, Swift does not
look for an actual type called T.
The swapTwoValues function can now be called in the same way as swapTwoInts, except that it can be
passed two values of any type, as long as both of those values are of the same type as each other.
Each time swapTwoValues is called, the type to use for T is inferred from the types of values passed to
the function.
In the two examples below, T is inferred to be Int and String respectively:

var someInt = 3

var anotherInt = 107

swapTwoValues(&someInt, &anotherInt)

// someInt is now 107, and anotherInt is now 3

5
6

var someString = "hello"

var anotherString = "world"

swapTwoValues(&someString, &anotherString)

// someString is now "world", and anotherString is now "hello"

NOTE
The swapTwoValues function defined above is inspired by a generic function called swap, which is part of the Swift
standard library, and is automatically made available for you to use in your apps. If you need the behavior of the
swapTwoValues function in your own code, you can use Swifts existing swap function rather than providing your own
implementation.

Type Parameters
In the swapTwoValues example above, the placeholder type T is an example of a type parameter. Type
parameters specify and name a placeholder type, and are written immediately after the functions
name, between a pair of matching angle brackets (such as <T>).
Once you specify a type parameter, you can use it to define the type of a functions parameters (such
as the a and b parameters of the swapTwoValues function), or as the functions return type, or as a type
annotation within the body of the function. In each case, the placeholder type represented by the type
parameter is replaced with an actual type whenever the function is called. (In the swapTwoValues
example above, T was replaced with Int the first time the function was called, and was replaced with
String the second time it was called.)
You can provide more than one type parameter by writing multiple type parameter names within the
angle brackets, separated by commas.

Naming Type Parameters

In simple cases where a generic function or generic type refers to a single placeholder type (such as

the swapTwoValues generic function above, or a generic collection that stores a single type, such as
Array), it is traditional to use the single-character name T for the type parameter. However, you can
use any valid identifier as the type parameter name.
If you are defining more complex generic functions, or generic types with multiple parameters, it is
useful to provide more descriptive type parameter names. For example, Swifts Dictionary type has
two type parametersone for its keys and one for its values. If you were writing Dictionary
yourself, you might name these two type parameters Key and Value to remind you of their purpose as
you use them within your generic code.

NOTE
Always give type parameters UpperCamelCase names (such as T and Key) to indicate that they are a placeholder for
a type, not a value.

Generic Types
In addition to generic functions, Swift enables you to define your own generic types. These are
custom classes, structures, and enumerations that can work with any type, in a similar way to Array
and Dictionary.
This section shows you how to write a generic collection type called Stack. A stack is an ordered set
of values, similar to an array, but with a more restricted set of operations than Swifts Array type. An
array allows new items to be inserted and removed at any location in the array. A stack, however,
allows new items to be appended only to the end of the collection (known as pushing a new value on
to the stack). Similarly, a stack allows items to be removed only from the end of the collection
(known as popping a value off the stack).

NOTE
The concept of a stack is used by the UINavigationController class to model the view controllers in its navigation
hierarchy. You call the UINavigationController class pushViewController(_:animated:) method to
add (or push) a view controller on to the navigation stack, and its popViewControllerAnimated(_:) method to
remove (or pop) a view controller from the navigation stack. A stack is a useful collection model whenever you need a
strict last in, first out approach to managing a collection.

The illustration below shows the push / pop behavior for a stack:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

There are currently three values on the stack.

A fourth value is pushed on to the top of the stack.
The stack now holds four values, with the most recent one at the top.
The top item in the stack is removed, or popped.
After popping a value, the stack once again holds three values.

Heres how to write a non-generic version of a stack, in this case for a stack of Int values:
1

struct IntStack {

var items = [Int]()

mutating func push(item: Int) {

items.append(item)

mutating func pop() -> Int {

return items.removeLast()

8
9

}
}

This structure uses an Array property called items to store the values in the stack. Stack provides two
methods, push and pop, to push and pop values on and off the stack. These methods are marked as
mutating, because they need to modify (or mutate) the structures items array.
The IntStack type shown above can only be used with Int values, however. It would be much more
useful to define a generic Stack class, that can manage a stack of any type of value.
Heres a generic version of the same code:

struct Stack<T> {

var items = [T]()

mutating func push(item: T) {

items.append(item)

mutating func pop() -> T {

return items.removeLast()

8
9

}
}

Note how the generic version of Stack is essentially the same as the non-generic version, but with a
placeholder type parameter called T instead of an actual type of Int. This type parameter is written
within a pair of angle brackets (<T>) immediately after the structures name.
defines a placeholder name for some type T to be provided later on. This future type can be
referred to as T anywhere within the structures definition. In this case, T is used as a placeholder in
three places:
T

To create a property called items, which is initialized with an empty array of values of type T
To specify that the push(_:) method has a single parameter called item, which must be of
type T
To specify that the value returned by the pop() method will be a value of type T
Because it is a generic type, Stack can be used to create a stack of any valid type in Swift, in a
similar manner to Array and Dictionary.
You create a new Stack instance by writing the type to be stored in the stack within angle brackets.
For example, to create a new stack of strings, you write Stack<String>():
1

var stackOfStrings = Stack<String>()

stackOfStrings.push("uno")

stackOfStrings.push("dos")

stackOfStrings.push("tres")

stackOfStrings.push("cuatro")

// the stack now contains 4 strings

Heres how stackOfStrings looks after pushing these four values on to the stack:

Popping a value from the stack returns and removes the top value, "cuatro":
1

let fromTheTop = stackOfStrings.pop()

// fromTheTop is equal to "cuatro", and the stack now contains 3 strings

Heres how the stack looks after popping its top value:

Extending a Generic Type

When you extend a generic type, you do not provide a type parameter list as part of the extensions
definition. Instead, the type parameter list from the original type definition is available within the
body of the extension, and the original type parameter names are used to refer to the type parameters
from the original definition.
The following example extends the generic Stack type to add a read-only computed property called
topItem, which returns the top item on the stack without popping it from the stack:

extension Stack {

var topItem: T? {

return items.isEmpty ? nil : items[items.count - 1]

4
5

}
}

The topItem property returns an optional value of type T. If the stack is empty, topItem returns nil; if
the stack is not empty, topItem returns the final item in the items array.
Note that this extension does not define a type parameter list. Instead, the Stack types existing type
parameter name, T, is used within the extension to indicate the optional type of the topItem computed
property.
The topItem computed property can now be used with any Stack instance to access and query its top
item without removing it:
1

if let topItem = stackOfStrings.topItem {

println("The top item on the stack is \(topItem).")

// prints "The top item on the stack is tres."

Type Constraints
The swapTwoValues function and the Stack type can work with any type. However, it is sometimes
useful to enforce certain type constraints on the types that can be used with generic functions and
generic types. Type constraints specify that a type parameter must inherit from a specific class, or
conform to a particular protocol or protocol composition.
For example, Swifts Dictionary type places a limitation on the types that can be used as keys for a
dictionary. As described in Dictionaries, the type of a dictionarys keys must be hashable. That is, it
must provide a way to make itself uniquely representable. Dictionary needs its keys to be hashable
so that it can check whether it already contains a value for a particular key. Without this requirement,
Dictionary could not tell whether it should insert or replace a value for a particular key, nor would it
be able to find a value for a given key that is already in the dictionary.
This requirement is enforced by a type constraint on the key type for Dictionary, which specifies that
the key type must conform to the Hashable protocol, a special protocol defined in the Swift standard
library. All of Swifts basic types (such as String, Int, Double, and Bool) are hashable by default.
You can define your own type constraints when creating custom generic types, and these constraints

provide much of the power of generic programming. Abstract concepts like Hashable characterize
types in terms of their conceptual characteristics, rather than their explicit type.

Type Constraint Syntax

You write type constraints by placing a single class or protocol constraint after a type parameters
name, separated by a colon, as part of the type parameter list. The basic syntax for type constraints on
a generic function is shown below (although the syntax is the same for generic types):
1

func someFunction<T: SomeClass, U: SomeProtocol>(someT: T, someU: U) {

2
3

// function body goes here

}

The hypothetical function above has two type parameters. The first type parameter, T, has a type
constraint that requires T to be a subclass of SomeClass. The second type parameter, U, has a type
constraint that requires U to conform to the protocol SomeProtocol.

Type Constraints in Action

Heres a non-generic function called findStringIndex, which is given a String value to find and an
array of String values within which to find it. The findStringIndex function returns an optional Int
value, which will be the index of the first matching string in the array if it is found, or nil if the string
cannot be found:
1

func findStringIndex(array: [String], valueToFind: String) -> Int? {

for (index, value) in enumerate(array) {

if value == valueToFind {

return index

return nil

The findStringIndex function can be used to find a string value in an array of strings:

let strings = ["cat", "dog", "llama", "parakeet", "terrapin"]

if let foundIndex = findStringIndex(strings, "llama") {

println("The index of llama is \(foundIndex)")

// prints "The index of llama is 2"

The principle of finding the index of a value in an array isnt useful only for strings, however. You can
write the same functionality as a generic function called findIndex, by replacing any mention of
strings with values of some type T instead.
Heres how you might expect a generic version of findStringIndex, called findIndex, to be written.
Note that the return type of this function is still Int?, because the function returns an optional index
number, not an optional value from the array. Be warned, thoughthis function does not compile, for
reasons explained after the example:
1

func findIndex<T>(array: [T], valueToFind: T) -> Int? {

for (index, value) in enumerate(array) {

if value == valueToFind {

return index

return nil

This function does not compile as written above. The problem lies with the equality check, if value
== valueToFind. Not every type in Swift can be compared with the equal to operator (==). If you
create your own class or structure to represent a complex data model, for example, then the meaning
of equal to for that class or structure is not something that Swift can guess for you. Because of this,
it is not possible to guarantee that this code will work for every possible type T, and an appropriate
error is reported when you try to compile the code.
All is not lost, however. The Swift standard library defines a protocol called Equatable, which
requires any conforming type to implement the equal to operator (==) and the not equal to operator
(!=) to compare any two values of that type. All of Swifts standard types automatically support the
Equatable protocol.
Any type that is Equatable can be used safely with the findIndex function, because it is guaranteed to
support the equal to operator. To express this fact, you write a type constraint of Equatable as part of
the type parameters definition when you define the function:

func findIndex<T: Equatable>(array: [T], valueToFind: T) -> Int? {

for (index, value) in enumerate(array) {

if value == valueToFind {

return index

return nil

The single type parameter for findIndex is written as T:

conforms to the Equatable protocol.

Equatable,

which means any type T that

The findIndex function now compiles successfully and can be used with any type that is Equatable,
such as Double or String:
1

let doubleIndex = findIndex([3.14159, 0.1, 0.25], 9.3)

// doubleIndex is an optional Int with no value, because 9.3 is not in the array

let stringIndex = findIndex(["Mike", "Malcolm", "Andrea"], "Andrea")

// stringIndex is an optional Int containing a value of 2

Associated Types
When defining a protocol, it is sometimes useful to declare one or more associated types as part of
the protocols definition. An associated type gives a placeholder name (or alias) to a type that is used
as part of the protocol. The actual type to use for that associated type is not specified until the
protocol is adopted. Associated types are specified with the typealias keyword.

Associated Types in Action

Heres an example of a protocol called Container, which declares an associated type called
ItemType:

protocol Container {

typealias ItemType

mutating func append(item: ItemType)

var count: Int { get }

subscript(i: Int) -> ItemType { get }

The Container protocol defines three required capabilities that any container must provide:
It must be possible to add a new item to the container with an append(_:) method.
It must be possible to access a count of the items in the container through a count property
that returns an Int value.
It must be possible to retrieve each item in the container with a subscript that takes an Int
index value.
This protocol doesnt specify how the items in the container should be stored or what type they are
allowed to be. The protocol only specifies the three bits of functionality that any type must provide in
order to be considered a Container. A conforming type can provide additional functionality, as long
as it satisfies these three requirements.
Any type that conforms to the Container protocol must be able to specify the type of values it stores.
Specifically, it must ensure that only items of the right type are added to the container, and it must be
clear about the type of the items returned by its subscript.
To define these requirements, the Container protocol needs a way to refer to the type of the elements
that a container will hold, without knowing what that type is for a specific container. The Container
protocol needs to specify that any value passed to the append(_:) method must have the same type as
the containers element type, and that the value returned by the containers subscript will be of the
same type as the containers element type.
To achieve this, the Container protocol declares an associated type called ItemType, written as
typealias ItemType. The protocol does not define what ItemType is an alias forthat information is
left for any conforming type to provide. Nonetheless, the ItemType alias provides a way to refer to the
type of the items in a Container, and to define a type for use with the append(_:) method and
subscript, to ensure that the expected behavior of any Container is enforced.
Heres a version of the non-generic IntStack type from earlier, adapted to conform to the Container
protocol:

struct IntStack: Container {

// original IntStack implementation

var items = [Int]()

mutating func push(item: Int) {

items.append(item)

mutating func pop() -> Int {

return items.removeLast()

10

// conformance to the Container protocol

11

typealias ItemType = Int

12

mutating func append(item: Int) {

13

self.push(item)

14

15

var count: Int {

16

return items.count

17

18

subscript(i: Int) -> Int {

19

return items[i]

20

21

}
}

The IntStack type implements all three of the Container protocols requirements, and in each case
wraps part of the IntStack types existing functionality to satisfy these requirements.
Moreover, IntStack specifies that for this implementation of Container, the appropriate ItemType to
use is a type of Int. The definition of typealias ItemType = Int turns the abstract type of ItemType
into a concrete type of Int for this implementation of the Container protocol.
Thanks to Swifts type inference, you dont actually need to declare a concrete ItemType of Int as
part of the definition of IntStack. Because IntStack conforms to all of the requirements of the
Container protocol, Swift can infer the appropriate ItemType to use, simply by looking at the type of
the append(_:) methods item parameter and the return type of the subscript. Indeed, if you delete the
typealias ItemType = Int line from the code above, everything still works, because it is clear what
type should be used for ItemType.

You can also make the generic Stack type conform to the Container protocol:
1

struct Stack<T>: Container {

// original Stack<T> implementation

var items = [T]()

mutating func push(item: T) {

items.append(item)

mutating func pop() -> T {

return items.removeLast()

10

// conformance to the Container protocol

11

mutating func append(item: T) {

12

self.push(item)

13

14

var count: Int {

15

return items.count

16

17

subscript(i: Int) -> T {

18

return items[i]

19

20

}
}

This time, the placeholder type parameter T is used as the type of the append(_:) methods item
parameter and the return type of the subscript. Swift can therefore infer that T is the appropriate type
to use as the ItemType for this particular container.

Extending an Existing Type to Specify an Associated Type

You can extend an existing type to add conformance to a protocol, as described in Adding Protocol
Conformance with an Extension. This includes a protocol with an associated type.
Swifts Array type already provides an append(_:) method, a count property, and a subscript with an
Int index to retrieve its elements. These three capabilities match the requirements of the Container

protocol. This means that you can extend Array to conform to the Container protocol simply by
declaring that Array adopts the protocol. You do this with an empty extension, as described in
Declaring Protocol Adoption with an Extension:
extension Array: Container {}

Arrays existing append(_:) method and subscript enable Swift to infer the appropriate type to use for
ItemType, just as for the generic Stack type above. After defining this extension, you can use any
Array as a Container.

Where Clauses
Type constraints, as described in Type Constraints, enable you to define requirements on the type
parameters associated with a generic function or type.
It can also be useful to define requirements for associated types. You do this by defining where
clauses as part of a type parameter list. A where clause enables you to require that an associated type
conforms to a certain protocol, and/or that certain type parameters and associated types be the same.
You write a where clause by placing the where keyword immediately after the list of type parameters,
followed by one or more constraints for associated types, and/or one or more equality relationships
between types and associated types.
The example below defines a generic function called allItemsMatch, which checks to see if two
Container instances contain the same items in the same order. The function returns a Boolean value of
true if all items match and a value of false if they do not.
The two containers to be checked do not have to be the same type of container (although they can be),
but they do have to hold the same type of items. This requirement is expressed through a combination
of type constraints and where clauses:

func allItemsMatch<

C1: Container, C2: Container

where C1.ItemType == C2.ItemType, C1.ItemType: Equatable>

(someContainer: C1, anotherContainer: C2) -> Bool {

5
6

// check that both containers contain the same number of items

if someContainer.count != anotherContainer.count {

return false

10

11

// check each pair of items to see if they are equivalent

12

for i in 0..<someContainer.count {

13

if someContainer[i] != anotherContainer[i] {

14

return false

15

16

17

18

// all items match, so return true

19

return true

20

21

This function takes two arguments called someContainer and anotherContainer. The someContainer
argument is of type C1, and the anotherContainer argument is of type C2. Both C1 and C2 are
placeholder type parameters for two container types to be determined when the function is called.
The functions type parameter list places the following requirements on the two type parameters:
C1 must conform to the Container protocol (written as C1: Container).
C2 must also conform to the Container protocol (written as C2: Container).
The ItemType for C1 must be the same as the ItemType for C2 (written as C1.ItemType ==
C2.ItemType).
The ItemType for C1 must conform to the Equatable protocol (written as C1.ItemType:
Equatable).

The third and fourth requirements are defined as part of a where clause, and are written after the
where keyword as part of the functions type parameter list.
These requirements mean:
someContainer is a container of type C1.
anotherContainer is a container of type C2.
someContainer and anotherContainer contain the same type of items.
The items in someContainer can be checked with the not equal operator (!=) to see if they are
different from each other.
The third and fourth requirements combine to mean that the items in anotherContainer can also be
checked with the != operator, because they are exactly the same type as the items in someContainer.
These requirements enable the allItemsMatch function to compare the two containers, even if they are
of a different container type.
The allItemsMatch function starts by checking that both containers contain the same number of items.
If they contain a different number of items, there is no way that they can match, and the function
returns false.
After making this check, the function iterates over all of the items in someContainer with a for-in
loop and the half-open range operator (..<). For each item, the function checks whether the item from
someContainer is not equal to the corresponding item in anotherContainer. If the two items are not
equal, then the two containers do not match, and the function returns false.
If the loop finishes without finding a mismatch, the two containers match, and the function returns
true.
Heres how the allItemsMatch function looks in action:

var stackOfStrings = Stack<String>()

stackOfStrings.push("uno")

stackOfStrings.push("dos")

stackOfStrings.push("tres")

5
6

var arrayOfStrings = ["uno", "dos", "tres"]

7
8

if allItemsMatch(stackOfStrings, arrayOfStrings) {

10

println("All items match.")

} else {

11

println("Not all items match.")

12

13

// prints "All items match."

The example above creates a Stack instance to store String values, and pushes three strings onto the
stack. The example also creates an Array instance initialized with an array literal containing the same
three strings as the stack. Even though the stack and the array are of a different type, they both conform
to the Container protocol, and both contain the same type of values. You can therefore call the
allItemsMatch function with these two containers as its arguments. In the example above, the
allItemsMatch function correctly reports that all of the items in the two containers match.

Access Control
Access control restricts access to parts of your code from code in other source files and modules.
This feature enables you to hide the implementation details of your code, and to specify a preferred
interface through which that code can be accessed and used.
You can assign specific access levels to individual types (classes, structures, and enumerations), as
well as to properties, methods, initializers, and subscripts belonging to those types. Protocols can be
restricted to a certain context, as can global constants, variables, and functions.
In addition to offering various levels of access control, Swift reduces the need to specify explicit
access control levels by providing default access levels for typical scenarios. Indeed, if you are
writing a single-target app, you may not need to specify explicit access control levels at all.

NOTE
The various aspects of your code that can have access control applied to them (properties, types, functions, and so on) are
referred to as entities in the sections below, for brevity.

Modules and Source Files

Swifts access control model is based on the concept of modules and source files.
A module is a single unit of code distributiona framework or application that is built and shipped
as a single unit and that can be imported by another module with Swifts import keyword.
Each build target (such as an app bundle or framework) in Xcode is treated as a separate module in
Swift. If you group together aspects of your apps code as a stand-alone frameworkperhaps to
encapsulate and reuse that code across multiple applicationsthen everything you define within that
framework will be part of a separate module when it is imported and used within an app, or when it
is used within another framework.
A source file is a single Swift source code file within a module (in effect, a single file within an app
or framework). Although it is common to define individual types in separate source files, a single
source file can contain definitions for multiple types, functions, and so on.

Access Levels

Swift provides three different access levels for entities within your code. These access levels are
relative to the source file in which an entity is defined, and also relative to the module that source file
belongs to.
Public access enables entities to be used within any source file from their defining module,
and also in a source file from another module that imports the defining module. You typically
use public access when specifying the public interface to a framework.
Internal access enables entities to be used within any source file from their defining module,
but not in any source file outside of that module. You typically use internal access when
defining an apps or a frameworks internal structure.
Private access restricts the use of an entity to its own defining source file. Use private access
to hide the implementation details of a specific piece of functionality.
Public access is the highest (least restrictive) access level and private access is the lowest (or most
restrictive) access level.

Guiding Principle of Access Levels

Access levels in Swift follow an overall guiding principle: No entity can be defined in terms of
another entity that has a lower (more restrictive) access level.
For example:
A public variable cannot be defined as having an internal or private type, because the type
might not be available everywhere that the public variable is used.
A function cannot have a higher access level than its parameter types and return type, because
the function could be used in situations where its constituent types are not available to the
surrounding code.
The specific implications of this guiding principle for different aspects of the language are covered in
detail below.

Default Access Levels

All entities in your code (with a few specific exceptions, as described later in this chapter) have a
default access level of internal if you do not specify an explicit access level yourself. As a result, in
many cases you do not need to specify an explicit access level in your code.

Access Levels for Single-Target Apps

When you write a simple single-target app, the code in your app is typically self-contained within the
app and does not need to be made available outside of the apps module. The default access level of
internal already matches this requirement. Therefore, you do not need to specify a custom access
level. You may, however, want to mark some parts of your code as private in order to hide their
implementation details from other code within the apps module.

Access Levels for Frameworks

When you develop a framework, mark the public-facing interface to that framework as public so that
it can be viewed and accessed by other modules, such as an app that imports the framework. This
public-facing interface is the application programming interface (or API) for the framework.

NOTE
Any internal implementation details of your framework can still use the default access level of internal, or can be marked
as private if you want to hide them from other parts of the frameworks internal code. You need to mark an entity as public
only if you want it to become part of your frameworks API.

Access Control Syntax

Define the access level for an entity by placing one of the public, internal, or private modifiers
before the entitys introducer:
1

public class SomePublicClass {}

internal class SomeInternalClass {}

private class SomePrivateClass {}

4
5

public var somePublicVariable = 0

internal let someInternalConstant = 0

private func somePrivateFunction() {}

Unless otherwise specified, the default access level is internal, as described in Default Access

Levels. This means that SomeInternalClass and someInternalConstant can be written without an
explicit access level modifier, and will still have an access level of internal:
1

class SomeInternalClass {}

// implicitly internal

var someInternalConstant = 0

// implicitly internal

Custom Types
If you want to specify an explicit access level for a custom type, do so at the point that you define the
type. The new type can then be used wherever its access level permits. For example, if you define a
private class, that class can only be used as the type of a property, or as a function parameter or return
type, in the source file in which the private class is defined.
The access control level of a type also affects the default access level of that types members (its
properties, methods, initializers, and subscripts). If you define a types access level as private, the
default access level of its members will also be private. If you define a types access level as internal
or public (or use the default access level of internal without specifying an access level explicitly), the
default access level of the types members will be internal.

NOTE
As mentioned above, a public type defaults to having internal members, not public members. If you want a type member to
be public, you must explicitly mark it as such. This requirement ensures that the public-facing API for a type is something
you opt in to publishing, and avoids presenting the internal workings of a type as public API by mistake.

public class SomePublicClass {

// explicitly public class

public var somePublicProperty = 0

// explicitly public class member

var someInternalProperty = 0

// implicitly internal class member

private func somePrivateMethod() {}

// explicitly private class member

6
7

10

class SomeInternalClass {

// implicitly internal class

var someInternalProperty = 0

// implicitly internal class member

private func somePrivateMethod() {}

// explicitly private class member

11

12

private class SomePrivateClass {

// explicitly private class

13

var somePrivateProperty = 0

// implicitly private class member

14

func somePrivateMethod() {}

// implicitly private class member

15

Tuple Types
The access level for a tuple type is the most restrictive access level of all types used in that tuple. For
example, if you compose a tuple from two different types, one with internal access and one with
private access, the access level for that compound tuple type will be private.

NOTE
Tuple types do not have a standalone definition in the way that classes, structures, enumerations, and functions do. A tuple
types access level is deduced automatically when the tuple type is used, and cannot be specified explicitly.

Function Types
The access level for a function type is calculated as the most restrictive access level of the functions
parameter types and return type. You must specify the access level explicitly as part of the functions
definition if the functions calculated access level does not match the contextual default.

The example below defines a global function called someFunction, without providing a specific
access level modifier for the function itself. You might expect this function to have the default access
level of internal, but this is not the case. In fact, someFunction will not compile as written below:
1

func someFunction() -> (SomeInternalClass, SomePrivateClass) {

2
3

// function implementation goes here

}

The functions return type is a tuple type composed from two of the custom classes defined above in
Custom Types. One of these classes was defined as internal, and the other was defined as
private. Therefore, the overall access level of the compound tuple type is private (the minimum
access level of the tuples constituent types).
Because the functions return type is private, you must mark the functions overall access level with
the private modifier for the function declaration to be valid:
1

private func someFunction() -> (SomeInternalClass, SomePrivateClass) {

2
3

// function implementation goes here

}

It is not valid to mark the definition of someFunction with the public or internal modifiers, or to use
the default setting of internal, because public or internal users of the function might not have
appropriate access to the private class used in the functions return type.

Enumeration Types
The individual cases of an enumeration automatically receive the same access level as the
enumeration they belong to. You cannot specify a different access level for individual enumeration
cases.
In the example below, the CompassPoint enumeration has an explicit access level of public. The
enumeration cases North, South, East, and West therefore also have an access level of public:

public enum CompassPoint {

case North

case South

case East

case West

Raw Values and Associated Values

The types used for any raw values or associated values in an enumeration definition must have an
access level at least as high as the enumerations access level. You cannot use a private type as the
raw-value type of an enumeration with an internal access level, for example.

Nested Types
Nested types defined within a private type have an automatic access level of private. Nested types
defined within a public type or an internal type have an automatic access level of internal. If you want
a nested type within a public type to be publicly available, you must explicitly declare the nested type
as public.

Subclassing
You can subclass any class that can be accessed in the current access context. A subclass cannot have
a higher access level than its superclassfor example, you cannot write a public subclass of an
internal superclass.
In addition, you can override any class member (method, property, initializer, or subscript) that is
visible in a certain access context.
An override can make an inherited class member more accessible than its superclass version. In the
example below, class A is a public class with a private method called someMethod(). Class B is a
subclass of A, with a reduced access level of internal. Nonetheless, class B provides an override of
someMethod() with an access level of internal, which is higher than the original implementation of
someMethod():

public class A {

2
3

private func someMethod() {}

}

4
5

internal class B: A {

6
7

override internal func someMethod() {}

}

It is even valid for a subclass member to call a superclass member that has lower access permissions
than the subclass member, as long as the call to the superclasss member takes place within an
allowed access level context (that is, within the same source file as the superclass for a private
member call, or within the same module as the superclass for an internal member call):
1

public class A {

2
3

private func someMethod() {}

}

4
5

internal class B: A {

override internal func someMethod() {

super.someMethod()

8
9

}
}

Because superclass A and subclass B are defined in the same source file, it is valid for the B
implementation of someMethod() to call super.someMethod().

Constants, Variables, Properties, and Subscripts

A constant, variable, or property cannot be more public than its type. It is not valid to write a public
property with a private type, for example. Similarly, a subscript cannot be more public than either its
index type or return type.
If a constant, variable, property, or subscript makes use of a private type, the constant, variable,
property, or subscript must also be marked as private:

private var privateInstance = SomePrivateClass()

Getters and Setters

Getters and setters for constants, variables, properties, and subscripts automatically receive the same
access level as the constant, variable, property, or subscript they belong to.
You can give a setter a lower access level than its corresponding getter, to restrict the read-write
scope of that variable, property, or subscript. You assign a lower access level by writing
private(set) or internal(set) before the var or subscript introducer.

NOTE
This rule applies to stored properties as well as computed properties. Even though you do not write an explicit getter and
setter for a stored property, Swift still synthesizes an implicit getter and setter for you to provide access to the stored
propertys backing storage. Use private(set) and internal(set) to change the access level of this synthesized
setter in exactly the same way as for an explicit setter in a computed property.

The example below defines a structure called TrackedString, which keeps track of the number of
times a string property is modified:
1

struct TrackedString {

private(set) var numberOfEdits = 0

var value: String = "" {

didSet {

numberOfEdits++

7
8

}
}

The TrackedString structure defines a stored string property called value, with an initial value of ""
(an empty string). The structure also defines a stored integer property called numberOfEdits, which is
used to track the number of times that value is modified. This modification tracking is implemented
with a didSet property observer on the value property, which increments numberOfEdits every time
the value property is set to a new value.
The TrackedString structure and the value property do not provide an explicit access level modifier,
and so they both receive the default access level of internal. However, the access level for the

property is marked with a private(set) modifier to indicate that the property should
be settable only from within the same source file as the TrackedString structures definition. The
propertys getter still has the default access level of internal, but its setter is now private to the source
file in which TrackedString is defined. This enables TrackedString to modify the numberOfEdits
property internally, but to present the property as a read-only property when it is used by other source
files within the same module.
numberOfEdits

If you create a TrackedString instance and modify its string value a few times, you can see the
numberOfEdits property value update to match the number of modifications:
1

var stringToEdit = TrackedString()

stringToEdit.value = "This string will be tracked."

stringToEdit.value += " This edit will increment numberOfEdits."

stringToEdit.value += " So will this one."

println("The number of edits is \(stringToEdit.numberOfEdits)")

// prints "The number of edits is 3"

Although you can query the current value of the numberOfEdits property from within another source
file, you cannot modify the property from another source file. This restriction protects the
implementation details of the TrackedString edit-tracking functionality, while still providing
convenient access to an aspect of that functionality.
Note that you can assign an explicit access level for both a getter and a setter if required. The
example below shows a version of the TrackedString structure in which the structure is defined with
an explicit access level of public. The structures members (including the numberOfEdits property)
therefore have an internal access level by default. You can make the structures numberOfEdits
property getter public, and its property setter private, by combining the public and private(set)
access level modifiers:
1

public struct TrackedString {

public private(set) var numberOfEdits = 0

public var value: String = "" {

didSet {

numberOfEdits++

public init() {}

Initializers
Custom initializers can be assigned an access level less than or equal to the type that they initialize.
The only exception is for required initializers (as defined in Required Initializers). A required
initializer must have the same access level as the class it belongs to.
As with function and method parameters, the types of an initializers parameters cannot be more
private than the initializers own access level.

Default Initializers
As described in Default Initializers, Swift automatically provides a default initializer without any
arguments for any structure or base class that provides default values for all of its properties and does
not provide at least one initializer itself.
A default initializer has the same access level as the type it initializes, unless that type is defined as
public. For a type that is defined as public, the default initializer is considered internal. If you want a
public type to be initializable with a no-argument initializer when used in another module, you must
explicitly provide a public no-argument initializer yourself as part of the types definition.

Default Memberwise Initializers for Structure Types

The default memberwise initializer for a structure type is considered private if any of the structures
stored properties are private. Otherwise, the initializer has an access level of internal.
As with the default initializer above, if you want a public structure type to be initializable with a
memberwise initializer when used in another module, you must provide a public memberwise
initializer yourself as part of the types definition.

Protocols
If you want to assign an explicit access level to a protocol type, do so at the point that you define the
protocol. This enables you to create protocols that can only be adopted within a certain access
context.
The access level of each requirement within a protocol definition is automatically set to the same
access level as the protocol. You cannot set a protocol requirement to a different access level than the
protocol it supports. This ensures that all of the protocols requirements will be visible on any type

that adopts the protocol.

NOTE
If you define a public protocol, the protocols requirements require a public access level for those requirements when they
are implemented. This behavior is different from other types, where a public type definition implies an access level of
internal for the types members.

Protocol Inheritance
If you define a new protocol that inherits from an existing protocol, the new protocol can have at most
the same access level as the protocol it inherits from. You cannot write a public protocol that inherits
from an internal protocol, for example.

Protocol Conformance
A type can conform to a protocol with a lower access level than the type itself. For example, you can
define a public type that can be used in other modules, but whose conformance to an internal protocol
can only be used within the internal protocols defining module.
The context in which a type conforms to a particular protocol is the minimum of the types access
level and the protocols access level. If a type is public, but a protocol it conforms to is internal, the
types conformance to that protocol is also internal.
When you write or extend a type to conform to a protocol, you must ensure that the types
implementation of each protocol requirement has at least the same access level as the types
conformance to that protocol. For example, if a public type conforms to an internal protocol, the
types implementation of each protocol requirement must be at least internal.

NOTE
In Swift, as in Objective-C, protocol conformance is globalit is not possible for a type to conform to a protocol in two
different ways within the same program.

Extensions

You can extend a class, structure, or enumeration in any access context in which the class, structure,
or enumeration is available. Any type members added in an extension have the same default access
level as type members declared in the original type being extended. If you extend a public or internal
type, any new type members you add will have a default access level of internal. If you extend a
private type, any new type members you add will have a default access level of private.
Alternatively, you can mark an extension with an explicit access level modifier (for example, private
extension) to set a new default access level for all members defined within the extension. This new
default can still be overridden within the extension for individual type members.

Adding Protocol Conformance with an Extension

You cannot provide an explicit access level modifier for an extension if you are using that extension
to add protocol conformance. Instead, the protocols own access level is used to provide the default
access level for each protocol requirement implementation within the extension.

Generics
The access level for a generic type or generic function is the minimum of the access level of the
generic type or function itself and the access level of any type constraints on its type parameters.

Type Aliases
Any type aliases you define are treated as distinct types for the purposes of access control. A type
alias can have an access level less than or equal to the access level of the type it aliases. For
example, a private type alias can alias a private, internal, or public type, but a public type alias
cannot alias an internal or private type.

NOTE
This rule also applies to type aliases for associated types used to satisfy protocol conformances.

Advanced Operators
In addition to the operators described in Basic Operators, Swift provides several advanced operators
that perform more complex value manipulation. These include all of the bitwise and bit shifting
operators you will be familiar with from C and Objective-C.
Unlike arithmetic operators in C, arithmetic operators in Swift do not overflow by default. Overflow
behavior is trapped and reported as an error. To opt in to overflow behavior, use Swifts second set
of arithmetic operators that overflow by default, such as the overflow addition operator (&+). All of
these overflow operators begin with an ampersand (&).
When you define your own structures, classes, and enumerations, it can be useful to provide your own
implementations of the standard Swift operators for these custom types. Swift makes it easy to
provide tailored implementations of these operators and to determine exactly what their behavior
should be for each type you create.
Youre not limited to the predefined operators. Swift gives you the freedom to define your own
custom infix, prefix, postfix, and assignment operators, with custom precedence and associativity
values. These operators can be used and adopted in your code like any of the predefined operators,
and you can even extend existing types to support the custom operators you define.

Bitwise Operators
Bitwise operators enable you to manipulate the individual raw data bits within a data structure. They
are often used in low-level programming, such as graphics programming and device driver creation.
Bitwise operators can also be useful when you work with raw data from external sources, such as
encoding and decoding data for communication over a custom protocol.
Swift supports all of the bitwise operators found in C, as described below.

Bitwise NOT Operator

The bitwise NOT operator (~) inverts all bits in a number:

The bitwise NOT operator is a prefix operator, and appears immediately before the value it operates
on, without any white space:
1

let initialBits: UInt8 = 0b00001111

let invertedBits = ~initialBits

// equals 11110000

integers have eight bits and can store any value between 0 and 255. This example initializes a
UInt8 integer with the binary value 00001111, which has its first four bits set to 0, and its second four
bits set to 1. This is equivalent to a decimal value of 15.
UInt8

The bitwise NOT operator is then used to create a new constant called invertedBits, which is equal
to initialBits, but with all of the bits inverted. Zeroes become ones, and ones become zeroes. The
value of invertedBits is 11110000, which is equal to an unsigned decimal value of 240.

Bitwise AND Operator

The bitwise AND operator (&) combines the bits of two numbers. It returns a new number whose bits
are set to 1 only if the bits were equal to 1 in both input numbers:

In the example below, the values of firstSixBits and lastSixBits both have four middle bits equal
to 1. The bitwise AND operator combines them to make the number 00111100, which is equal to an
unsigned decimal value of 60:

let firstSixBits: UInt8 = 0b11111100

let lastSixBits: UInt8

let middleFourBits = firstSixBits & lastSixBits

= 0b00111111
// equals 00111100

Bitwise OR Operator
The bitwise OR operator (|) compares the bits of two numbers. The operator returns a new number
whose bits are set to 1 if the bits are equal to 1 in either input number:

In the example below, the values of someBits and moreBits have different bits set to 1. The bitwise
OR operator combines them to make the number 11111110, which equals an unsigned decimal of 254:
1

let someBits: UInt8 = 0b10110010

let moreBits: UInt8 = 0b01011110

let combinedbits = someBits | moreBits

// equals 11111110

Bitwise XOR Operator

The bitwise XOR operator, or exclusive OR operator (^), compares the bits of two numbers. The
operator returns a new number whose bits are set to 1 where the input bits are different and are set to
0 where the input bits are the same:

In the example below, the values of firstBits and otherBits each have a bit set to 1 in a location that
the other does not. The bitwise XOR operator sets both of these bits to 1 in its output value. All of the
other bits in firstBits and otherBits match and are set to 0 in the output value:
1

let firstBits: UInt8 = 0b00010100

let otherBits: UInt8 = 0b00000101

let outputBits = firstBits ^ otherBits

// equals 00010001

Bitwise Left and Right Shift Operators

The bitwise left shift operator (<<) and bitwise right shift operator (>>) move all bits in a number to
the left or the right by a certain number of places, according to the rules defined below.
Bitwise left and right shifts have the effect of multiplying or dividing an integer number by a factor of
two. Shifting an integers bits to the left by one position doubles its value, whereas shifting it to the
right by one position halves its value.

Shifting Behavior for Unsigned Integers

The bit-shifting behavior for unsigned integers is as follows:
1. Existing bits are moved to the left or right by the requested number of places.
2. Any bits that are moved beyond the bounds of the integers storage are discarded.
3. Zeroes are inserted in the spaces left behind after the original bits are moved to the left or right.
This approach is known as a logical shift.
The illustration below shows the results of 11111111 << 1 (which is 11111111 shifted to the left by 1
place), and 11111111 >> 1 (which is 11111111 shifted to the right by 1 place). Blue numbers are

shifted, gray numbers are discarded, and orange zeroes are inserted:

Heres how bit shifting looks in Swift code:

1

let shiftBits: UInt8 = 4

// 00000100 in binary

shiftBits << 1

// 00001000

shiftBits << 2

// 00010000

shiftBits << 5

// 10000000

shiftBits << 6

// 00000000

shiftBits >> 2

// 00000001

You can use bit shifting to encode and decode values within other data types:
1

let pink: UInt32 = 0xCC6699

let redComponent = (pink & 0xFF0000) >> 16

// redComponent is 0xCC, or 204

let greenComponent = (pink & 0x00FF00) >> 8

// greenComponent is 0x66, or 102

let blueComponent = pink & 0x0000FF

// blueComponent is 0x99, or 153

This example uses a UInt32 constant called pink to store a Cascading Style Sheets color value for the
color pink. The CSS color value #CC6699 is written as 0xCC6699 in Swifts hexadecimal number
representation. This color is then decomposed into its red (CC), green (66), and blue (99) components
by the bitwise AND operator (&) and the bitwise right shift operator (>>).
The red component is obtained by performing a bitwise AND between the numbers 0xCC6699 and
0xFF0000. The zeroes in 0xFF0000 effectively mask the second and third bytes of 0xCC6699, causing
the 6699 to be ignored and leaving 0xCC0000 as the result.
This number is then shifted 16 places to the right (>> 16). Each pair of characters in a hexadecimal
number uses 8 bits, so a move 16 places to the right will convert 0xCC0000 into 0x0000CC. This is the
same as 0xCC, which has a decimal value of 204.
Similarly, the green component is obtained by performing a bitwise AND between the numbers
0xCC6699 and 0x00FF00, which gives an output value of 0x006600. This output value is then shifted
eight places to the right, giving a value of 0x66, which has a decimal value of 102.

Finally, the blue component is obtained by performing a bitwise AND between the numbers 0xCC6699
and 0x0000FF, which gives an output value of 0x000099. Theres no need to shift this to the right, as
0x000099 already equals 0x99, which has a decimal value of 153.

Shifting Behavior for Signed Integers

The shifting behavior is more complex for signed integers than for unsigned integers, because of the
way signed integers are represented in binary. (The examples below are based on 8-bit signed
integers for simplicity, but the same principles apply for signed integers of any size.)
Signed integers use their first bit (known as the sign bit) to indicate whether the integer is positive or
negative. A sign bit of 0 means positive, and a sign bit of 1 means negative.
The remaining bits (known as the value bits) store the actual value. Positive numbers are stored in
exactly the same way as for unsigned integers, counting upwards from 0. Heres how the bits inside an
Int8 look for the number 4:

The sign bit is 0 (meaning positive), and the seven value bits are just the number 4, written in
binary notation.
Negative numbers, however, are stored differently. They are stored by subtracting their absolute value
from 2 to the power of n, where n is the number of value bits. An eight-bit number has seven value
bits, so this means 2 to the power of 7, or 128.
Heres how the bits inside an Int8 look for the number -4:

This time, the sign bit is 1 (meaning negative), and the seven value bits have a binary value of 124
(which is 128 - 4):

The encoding for negative numbers is known as a twos complement representation. It may seem an
unusual way to represent negative numbers, but it has several advantages.
First, you can add -1 to -4, simply by performing a standard binary addition of all eight bits
(including the sign bit), and discarding anything that doesnt fit in the eight bits once youre done:

Second, the twos complement representation also lets you shift the bits of negative numbers to the
left and right like positive numbers, and still end up doubling them for every shift you make to the left,
or halving them for every shift you make to the right. To achieve this, an extra rule is used when
signed integers are shifted to the right:
When you shift signed integers to the right, apply the same rules as for unsigned integers, but
fill any empty bits on the left with the sign bit, rather than with a zero.

This action ensures that signed integers have the same sign after they are shifted to the right, and is
known as an arithmetic shift.
Because of the special way that positive and negative numbers are stored, shifting either of them to
the right moves them closer to zero. Keeping the sign bit the same during this shift means that negative
integers remain negative as their value moves closer to zero.

Overflow Operators
If you try to insert a number into an integer constant or variable that cannot hold that value, by default
Swift reports an error rather than allowing an invalid value to be created. This behavior gives extra
safety when you work with numbers that are too large or too small.

For example, the Int16 integer type can hold any signed integer number between -32768 and 32767.
Trying to set an Int16 constant or variable to a number outside of this range causes an error:
1

var potentialOverflow = Int16.max

// potentialOverflow equals 32767, which is the maximum value an Int16 can hold

potentialOverflow += 1

// this causes an error

Providing error handling when values get too large or too small gives you much more flexibility when
coding for boundary value conditions.
However, when you specifically want an overflow condition to truncate the number of available bits,
you can opt in to this behavior rather than triggering an error. Swift provides three arithmetic
overflow operators that opt in to the overflow behavior for integer calculations. These operators all
begin with an ampersand (&):
Overflow addition (&+)
Overflow subtraction (&-)
Overflow multiplication (&*)

Value Overflow
Numbers can overflow in both the positive and negative direction.
Heres an example of what happens when an unsigned integer is allowed to overflow in the positive
direction, using the overflow addition operator (&+):
1

var unsignedOverflow = UInt8.max

// unsignedOverflow equals 255, which is the maximum value a UInt8 can hold

unsignedOverflow = unsignedOverflow &+ 1

// unsignedOverflow is now equal to 0

The variable unsignedOverflow is initialized with the maximum value a UInt8 can hold (255, or
11111111 in binary). It is then incremented by 1 using the overflow addition operator (&+). This
pushes its binary representation just over the size that a UInt8 can hold, causing it to overflow beyond
its bounds, as shown in the diagram below. The value that remains within the bounds of the UInt8
after the overflow addition is 00000000, or zero.

Something similar happens when an unsigned integer is allowed to overflow in the negative direction.
Heres an example using the overflow subtraction operator (&-):
1

var unsignedOverflow = UInt8.min

// unsignedOverflow equals 0, which is the minimum value a UInt8 can hold

unsignedOverflow = unsignedOverflow &- 1

// unsignedOverflow is now equal to 255

The minimum value that a UInt8 can hold is zero, or 00000000 in binary. If you subtract 1 from
00000000 using the overflow subtraction operator (&-), the number will overflow and wrap around to
11111111, or 255 in decimal.

Overflow also occurs for signed integers. All addition and subtraction for signed integers is
performed in bitwise fashion, with the sign bit included as part of the numbers being added or
subtracted, as described in Bitwise Left and Right Shift Operators.
1

var signedOverflow = Int8.min

// signedOverflow equals -128, which is the minimum value an Int8 can hold

signedOverflow = signedOverflow &- 1

// signedOverflow is now equal to 127

The minimum value that an Int8 can hold is -128, or 10000000 in binary. Subtracting 1 from this
binary number with the overflow operator gives a binary value of 01111111, which toggles the sign bit
and gives positive 127, the maximum positive value that an Int8 can hold.

For both signed and unsigned integers, overflow in the positive direction wraps around from the
maximum valid integer value back to the minimum, and overflow in the negative direction wraps
around from the minimum value to the maximum.

Precedence and Associativity

Operator precedence gives some operators higher priority than others; these operators are applied
first.
Operator associativity defines how operators of the same precedence are grouped together (or
associated)either grouped from the left, or grouped from the right. Think of it as meaning they
associate with the expression to their left, or they associate with the expression to their right.
It is important to consider each operators precedence and associativity when working out the order
in which a compound expression will be calculated. Heres an example. Why does the following
expression equal 4?
1

2 + 3 * 4 % 5

// this equals 4

Taken strictly from left to right, you might expect this to read as follows:
2 plus 3 equals 5;
5 times 4 equals 20;
20 remainder 5 equals 0
However, the actual answer is 4, not 0. Higher-precedence operators are evaluated before lowerprecedence ones. In Swift, as in C, the multiplication operator (*) and the remainder operator (%)
have a higher precedence than the addition operator (+). As a result, they are both evaluated before
the addition is considered.

However, multiplication and remainder have the same precedence as each other. To work out the
exact evaluation order to use, you also need to consider their associativity. Multiplication and
remainder both associate with the expression to their left. Think of this as adding implicit parentheses
around these parts of the expression, starting from their left:
2 + ((3 * 4) % 5)

(3 * 4)

is 12, so this is equivalent to:

2 + (12 % 5)

(12 % 5)

is 2, so this is equivalent to:

2 + 2

This calculation yields the final answer of 4.

For a complete list of Swift operator precedences and associativity rules, see Expressions.

NOTE
Swifts operator precedences and associativity rules are simpler and more predictable than those found in C and ObjectiveC. However, this means that they are not the same as in C-based languages. Be careful to ensure that operator interactions
still behave in the way you intend when porting existing code to Swift.

Operator Functions
Classes and structures can provide their own implementations of existing operators. This is known as
overloading the existing operators.
The example below shows how to implement the arithmetic addition operator (+) for a custom
structure. The arithmetic addition operator is a binary operator because it operates on two targets
and is said to be infix because it appears in between those two targets.
The example defines a Vector2D structure for a two-dimensional position vector (x, y), followed by
a definition of an operator function to add together instances of the Vector2D structure:

struct Vector2D {

var x = 0.0, y = 0.0

func + (left: Vector2D, right: Vector2D) -> Vector2D {

5
6

return Vector2D(x: left.x + right.x, y: left.y + right.y)

}

The operator function is defined as a global function with a function name that matches the operator to
be overloaded (+). Because the arithmetic addition operator is a binary operator, this operator
function takes two input parameters of type Vector2D and returns a single output value, also of type
Vector2D.
In this implementation, the input parameters are named left and right to represent the Vector2D
instances that will be on the left side and right side of the + operator. The function returns a new
Vector2D instance, whose x and y properties are initialized with the sum of the x and y properties
from the two Vector2D instances that are added together.
The function is defined globally, rather than as a method on the Vector2D structure, so that it can be
used as an infix operator between existing Vector2D instances:
1

let vector = Vector2D(x: 3.0, y: 1.0)

let anotherVector = Vector2D(x: 2.0, y: 4.0)

let combinedVector = vector + anotherVector

// combinedVector is a Vector2D instance with values of (5.0, 5.0)

This example adds together the vectors (3.0,

illustrated below.

1.0)

and (2.0,

4.0)

to make the vector (5.0,

5.0),

as

Prefix and Postfix Operators

The example shown above demonstrates a custom implementation of a binary infix operator. Classes
and structures can also provide implementations of the standard unary operators. Unary operators
operate on a single target. They are prefix if they precede their target (such as -a) and postfix
operators if they follow their target (such as i++).
You implement a prefix or postfix unary operator by writing the prefix or postfix modifier before
the func keyword when declaring the operator function:
1

prefix func - (vector: Vector2D) -> Vector2D {

2
3

return Vector2D(x: -vector.x, y: -vector.y)

}

The example above implements the unary minus operator (-a) for Vector2D instances. The unary
minus operator is a prefix operator, and so this function has to be qualified with the prefix modifier.
For simple numeric values, the unary minus operator converts positive numbers into their negative
equivalent and vice versa. The corresponding implementation for Vector2D instances performs this
operation on both the x and y properties:

let positive = Vector2D(x: 3.0, y: 4.0)

let negative = -positive

// negative is a Vector2D instance with values of (-3.0, -4.0)

let alsoPositive = -negative

// alsoPositive is a Vector2D instance with values of (3.0, 4.0)

Compound Assignment Operators

Compound assignment operators combine assignment (=) with another operation. For example, the
addition assignment operator (+=) combines addition and assignment into a single operation. You
mark a compound assignment operators left input parameter as inout, because the parameters value
will be modified directly from within the operator function.
The example below implements an addition assignment operator function for Vector2D instances:
1

func += (inout left: Vector2D, right: Vector2D) {

2
3

left = left + right

}

Because an addition operator was defined earlier, you dont need to reimplement the addition process
here. Instead, the addition assignment operator function takes advantage of the existing addition
operator function, and uses it to set the left value to be the left value plus the right value:
1

var original = Vector2D(x: 1.0, y: 2.0)

let vectorToAdd = Vector2D(x: 3.0, y: 4.0)

original += vectorToAdd

// original now has values of (4.0, 6.0)

You can combine assignment with either the prefix or postfix modifier, as in this implementation of
the prefix increment operator (++a) for Vector2D instances:
1

prefix func ++ (inout vector: Vector2D) -> Vector2D {

vector += Vector2D(x: 1.0, y: 1.0)

return vector

The prefix increment operator function above takes advantage of the addition assignment operator
defined earlier. It adds a Vector2D with x and y values of 1.0 to the Vector2D on which it is called,
and returns the result:
1

var toIncrement = Vector2D(x: 3.0, y: 4.0)

let afterIncrement = ++toIncrement

// toIncrement now has values of (4.0, 5.0)

// afterIncrement also has values of (4.0, 5.0)

NOTE
It is not possible to overload the default assignment operator (=). Only the compound assignment operators can be
overloaded. Similarly, the ternary conditional operator (a ? b : c) cannot be overloaded.

Equivalence Operators
Custom classes and structures do not receive a default implementation of the equivalence operators,
known as the equal to operator (==) and not equal to operator (!=). It is not possible for Swift to
guess what would qualify as equal for your own custom types, because the meaning of equal
depends on the roles that those types play in your code.
To use the equivalence operators to check for equivalence of your own custom type, provide an
implementation of the operators in the same way as for other infix operators:
1

func == (left: Vector2D, right: Vector2D) -> Bool {

return (left.x == right.x) && (left.y == right.y)

func != (left: Vector2D, right: Vector2D) -> Bool {

5
6

return !(left == right)

}

The above example implements an equal to operator (==) to check if two Vector2D instances have
equivalent values. In the context of Vector2D, it makes sense to consider equal as meaning both
instances have the same x values and y values, and so this is the logic used by the operator
implementation. The example also implements the not equal to operator (!=), which simply returns
the inverse of the result of the equal to operator.

You can now use these operators to check whether two Vector2D instances are equivalent:
1

let twoThree = Vector2D(x: 2.0, y: 3.0)

let anotherTwoThree = Vector2D(x: 2.0, y: 3.0)

if twoThree == anotherTwoThree {

println("These two vectors are equivalent.")

// prints "These two vectors are equivalent."

Custom Operators
You can declare and implement your own custom operators in addition to the standard operators
provided by Swift. For a list of characters that can be used to define custom operators, see Operators.
New operators are declared at a global level using the operator keyword, and are marked with the
prefix, infix or postfix modifiers:
prefix operator +++ {}

The example above defines a new prefix operator called +++. This operator does not have an existing
meaning in Swift, and so it is given its own custom meaning below in the specific context of working
with Vector2D instances. For the purposes of this example, +++ is treated as a new prefix doubling
incrementer operator. It doubles the x and y values of a Vector2D instance, by adding the vector to
itself with the addition assignment operator defined earlier:
1

prefix func +++ (inout vector: Vector2D) -> Vector2D {

vector += vector

return vector

This implementation of +++ is very similar to the implementation of ++ for Vector2D, except that this
operator function adds the vector to itself, rather than adding Vector2D(1.0, 1.0):

var toBeDoubled = Vector2D(x: 1.0, y: 4.0)

let afterDoubling = +++toBeDoubled

// toBeDoubled now has values of (2.0, 8.0)

// afterDoubling also has values of (2.0, 8.0)

Precedence and Associativity for Custom Infix Operators

Custom infix operators can also specify a precedence and an associativity. See Precedence and
Associativity for an explanation of how these two characteristics affect an infix operators interaction
with other infix operators.
The possible values for associativity are left, right, and none. Left-associative operators
associate to the left if written next to other left-associative operators of the same precedence.
Similarly, right-associative operators associate to the right if written next to other right-associative
operators of the same precedence. Non-associative operators cannot be written next to other
operators with the same precedence.
The associativity value defaults to none if it is not specified. The precedence value defaults to 100
if it is not specified.
The following example defines a new custom infix operator called +-, with left associativity and a
precedence of 140:
1

infix operator +- { associativity left precedence 140 }

func +- (left: Vector2D, right: Vector2D) -> Vector2D {

return Vector2D(x: left.x + right.x, y: left.y - right.y)

let firstVector = Vector2D(x: 1.0, y: 2.0)

let secondVector = Vector2D(x: 3.0, y: 4.0)

let plusMinusVector = firstVector +- secondVector

// plusMinusVector is a Vector2D instance with values of (4.0, -2.0)

This operator adds together the x values of two vectors, and subtracts the y value of the second vector
from the first. Because it is in essence an additive operator, it has been given the same associativity
and precedence values (left and 140) as default additive infix operators such as + and -. For a
complete list of the default Swift operator precedence and associativity settings, see Expressions.

NOTE
You do not specify a precedence when defining a prefix or postfix operator. However, if you apply both a prefix and a
postfix operator to the same operand, the postfix operator is applied first.

Language Reference

About the Language Reference

This part of the book describes the formal grammar of the Swift programming language. The grammar
described here is intended to help you understand the language in more detail, rather than to allow
you to directly implement a parser or compiler.
The Swift language is relatively small, because many common types, functions, and operators that
appear virtually everywhere in Swift code are actually defined in the Swift standard library. Although
these types, functions, and operators are not part of the Swift language itself, they are used extensively
in the discussions and code examples in this part of the book.

How to Read the Grammar

The notation used to describe the formal grammar of the Swift programming language follows a few
conventions:
An arrow () is used to mark grammar productions and can be read as can consist of.
Syntactic categories are indicated by italic text and appear on both sides of a grammar
production rule.
Literal words and punctuation are indicated by boldface constant width text and appear only
on the right-hand side of a grammar production rule.
Alternative grammar productions are separated by vertical bars (|). When alternative
productions are too long to read easily, they are broken into multiple grammar production
rules on new lines.
In a few cases, regular font text is used to describe the right-hand side of a grammar
production rule.
Optional syntactic categories and literals are marked by a trailing subscript, opt.
As an example, the grammar of a getter-setter block is defined as follows:
G R A M M A R O F A G ET T ER - SET T ER B LO C K

getter-setter-block

getter-clause setter-clause opt

setter-clause getter-clause

This definition indicates that a getter-setter block can consist of a getter clause followed by an
optional setter clause, enclosed in braces, or a setter clause followed by a getter clause, enclosed in
braces. The grammar production above is equivalent to the following two productions, where the

alternatives are spelled out explicitly:

G R A M M A R O F A G ET T ER - SET T ER B LO C K

getter-setter-block
getter-setter-block

{
{

getter-clause setter-clause opt

setter-clause getter-clause }

Lexical Structure
The lexical structure of Swift describes what sequence of characters form valid tokens of the
language. These valid tokens form the lowest-level building blocks of the language and are used to
describe the rest of the language in subsequent chapters. A token consists of an identifier, keyword,
punctuation, literal, or operator.
In most cases, tokens are generated from the characters of a Swift source file by considering the
longest possible substring from the input text, within the constraints of the grammar that are specified
below. This behavior is referred to as longest match or maximal munch.

Whitespace and Comments

Whitespace has two uses: to separate tokens in the source file and to help determine whether an
operator is a prefix or postfix (see Operators), but is otherwise ignored. The following characters are
considered whitespace: space (U+0020), line feed (U+000A), carriage return (U+000D), horizontal
tab (U+0009), vertical tab (U+000B), form feed (U+000C) and null (U+0000).
Comments are treated as whitespace by the compiler. Single line comments begin with // and
continue until a line feed (U+000A) or carriage return (U+000D). Multiline comments begin with /*
and end with */. Nesting multiline comments is allowed, but the comment markers must be balanced.

Identifiers
Identifiers begin with an uppercase or lowercase letter A through Z, an underscore (_), a
noncombining alphanumeric Unicode character in the Basic Multilingual Plane, or a character outside
the Basic Multilingual Plane that isnt in a Private Use Area. After the first character, digits and
combining Unicode characters are also allowed.
To use a reserved word as an identifier, put a backtick (`) before and after it. For example, class is
not a valid identifier, but `class` is valid. The backticks are not considered part of the identifier; `x`
and x have the same meaning.
Inside a closure with no explicit parameter names, the parameters are implicitly named $0, $1, $2, and
so on. These names are valid identifiers within the scope of the closure.

G RA M M A R O F A N ID EN T IF IER

identifier identifier-head identifier-characters opt

identifier ` identifier-head identifier-characters opt `
identifier implicit-parameter-name
identifier-list identifier | identifier , identifier-list
identifier-head Upper- or lowercase letter A through Z
identifier-head _
identifier-head U+00A8, U+00AA, U+00AD, U+00AF, U+00B2U+00B5, or U+00B7
U+00BA
identifier-head U+00BCU+00BE, U+00C0U+00D6, U+00D8U+00F6, or U+00F8
U+00FF
identifier-head U+0100U+02FF, U+0370U+167F, U+1681U+180D, or U+180FU+1DBF
identifier-head U+1E00U+1FFF
identifier-head U+200BU+200D, U+202AU+202E, U+203FU+2040, U+2054, or
U+2060U+206F
identifier-head U+2070U+20CF, U+2100U+218F, U+2460U+24FF, or U+2776U+2793
identifier-head U+2C00U+2DFF or U+2E80U+2FFF
identifier-head U+3004U+3007, U+3021U+302F, U+3031U+303F, or U+3040U+D7FF
identifier-head U+F900U+FD3D, U+FD40U+FDCF, U+FDF0U+FE1F, or U+FE30
U+FE44
identifier-head U+FE47U+FFFD
identifier-head U+10000U+1FFFD, U+20000U+2FFFD, U+30000U+3FFFD, or
U+40000U+4FFFD
identifier-head U+50000U+5FFFD, U+60000U+6FFFD, U+70000U+7FFFD, or
U+80000U+8FFFD
identifier-head U+90000U+9FFFD, U+A0000U+AFFFD, U+B0000U+BFFFD, or
U+C0000U+CFFFD
identifier-head U+D0000U+DFFFD or U+E0000U+EFFFD
identifier-character Digit 0 through 9
identifier-character U+0300U+036F, U+1DC0U+1DFF, U+20D0U+20FF, or U+FE20
U+FE2F
identifier-character identifier-head
identifier-characters identifier-character identifier-characters opt
implicit-parameter-name

Keywords and Punctuation

decimal-digits

The following keywords are reserved and cant be used as identifiers, unless theyre escaped with
backticks, as described above in Identifiers.
Keywords used in declarations: class, deinit, enum, extension, func, import, init,
internal, let, operator, private, protocol, public, static, struct, subscript, typealias,
and var.
Keywords used in statements: break, case, continue, default, do, else, fallthrough, for,
if, in, return, switch, where, and while.
Keywords used in expressions and types: as, dynamicType, false, is, nil, self, Self, super,
true, __COLUMN__, __FILE__, __FUNCTION__, and __LINE__.
Keywords reserved in particular contexts: associativity, convenience, dynamic, didSet,
final, get, infix, inout, lazy, left, mutating, none, nonmutating, optional, override,
postfix, precedence, prefix, Protocol, required, right, set, Type, unowned, weak, and
willSet. Outside the context in which they appear in the grammar, they can be used as
identifiers.
The following tokens are reserved as punctuation and cant be used as custom operators: (, ), {, }, [,
], ., ,, :, ;, =, @, #, & (as a prefix operator), ->, `, ?, and ! (as a postfix operator).

Literals
A literal is the source code representation of a value of a type, such as a number or string.
The following are examples of literals:
1

42

// Integer literal

3.14159

// Floating-point literal

"Hello, world!"

// String literal

true

// Boolean literal

A literal doesnt have a type on its own. Instead, a literal is parsed as having infinite precision and
Swifts type inference attempts to infer a type for the literal. For example, in the declaration let x:
Int8 = 42, Swift uses the explicit type annotation (: Int8) to infer that the type of the integer literal
42 is Int8. If there isnt suitable type information available, Swift infers that the literals type is one
of the default literal types defined in the Swift standard library. The default types are Int for integer
literals, Double for floating-point literals, String for string literals, and Bool for Boolean literals. For
example, in the declaration let str = "Hello, world", the default inferred type of the string literal
"Hello, world" is String.

When specifying the type annotation for a literal value, the annotations type must be a type that can be
instantiated from that literal value. That is, the type must conform to one of the following Swift
standard library protocols: IntegerLiteralConvertible for integer literals,
FloatingPointLiteralConvertible for floating-point literals, StringLiteralConvertible for string
literals, and BooleanLiteralConvertible for Boolean literals. For example, Int8 conforms to the
IntegerLiteralConvertible protocol, and therefore it can be used in the type annotation for the
integer literal 42 in the declaration let x: Int8 = 42.
G RA M M A R O F A LIT ERA L

literal numeric-literal | string-literal | boolean-literal | nil-literal

numeric-literal
boolean-literal
nil-literal nil

integer-literal |
true | false
- opt

- opt

floating-point-literal

Integer Literals
Integer literals represent integer values of unspecified precision. By default, integer literals are
expressed in decimal; you can specify an alternate base using a prefix. Binary literals begin with 0b,
octal literals begin with 0o, and hexadecimal literals begin with 0x.
Decimal literals contain the digits 0 through 9. Binary literals contain 0 and 1, octal literals contain 0
through 7, and hexadecimal literals contain 0 through 9 as well as A through F in upper- or lowercase.
Negative integers literals are expressed by prepending a minus sign (-) to an integer literal, as in -42.
Underscores (_) are allowed between digits for readability, but they are ignored and therefore dont
affect the value of the literal. Integer literals can begin with leading zeros (0), but they are likewise
ignored and dont affect the base or value of the literal.
Unless otherwise specified, the default inferred type of an integer literal is the Swift standard library
type Int. The Swift standard library also defines types for various sizes of signed and unsigned
integers, as described in Integers.

G RA M M A R O F A N IN T EG ER LIT ERA L

integer-literal
integer-literal
integer-literal
integer-literal

binary-literal
octal-literal
decimal-literal
hexadecimal-literal

binary-literal 0b binary-digit binary-literal-characters opt

binary-digit Digit 0 or 1
binary-literal-character binary-digit | _
binary-literal-characters binary-literal-character binary-literal-characters opt
octal-literal 0o octal-digit octal-literal-characters opt
octal-digit Digit 0 through 7
octal-literal-character octal-digit | _
octal-literal-characters octal-literal-character octal-literal-characters opt
decimal-literal decimal-digit decimal-literal-characters opt
decimal-digit Digit 0 through 9
decimal-digits decimal-digit decimal-digits opt
decimal-literal-character decimal-digit | _
decimal-literal-characters decimal-literal-character decimal-literal-characters opt
hexadecimal-literal 0x hexadecimal-digit hexadecimal-literal-characters opt
hexadecimal-digit Digit 0 through 9, a through f, or A through F
hexadecimal-literal-character hexadecimal-digit | _
hexadecimal-literal-characters hexadecimal-literal-character hexadecimal-literalcharacters opt

Floating-Point Literals
Floating-point literals represent floating-point values of unspecified precision.
By default, floating-point literals are expressed in decimal (with no prefix), but they can also be
expressed in hexadecimal (with a 0x prefix).
Decimal floating-point literals consist of a sequence of decimal digits followed by either a decimal
fraction, a decimal exponent, or both. The decimal fraction consists of a decimal point (.) followed
by a sequence of decimal digits. The exponent consists of an upper- or lowercase e prefix followed
by a sequence of decimal digits that indicates what power of 10 the value preceding the e is
multiplied by. For example, 1.25e2 represents 1.25 102, which evaluates to 125.0. Similarly,

1.25e-2

represents 1.25 10-2, which evaluates to 0.0125.

Hexadecimal floating-point literals consist of a 0x prefix, followed by an optional hexadecimal

fraction, followed by a hexadecimal exponent. The hexadecimal fraction consists of a decimal point
followed by a sequence of hexadecimal digits. The exponent consists of an upper- or lowercase p
prefix followed by a sequence of decimal digits that indicates what power of 2 the value preceding
the p is multiplied by. For example, 0xFp2 represents 15 22, which evaluates to 60. Similarly, 0xFp2 represents 15 2-2, which evaluates to 3.75.
Negative floating-point literals are expressed by prepending a minus sign (-) to a floating-point
literal, as in -42.5.
Underscores (_) are allowed between digits for readability, but are ignored and therefore dont affect
the value of the literal. Floating-point literals can begin with leading zeros (0), but are likewise
ignored and dont affect the base or value of the literal.
Unless otherwise specified, the default inferred type of a floating-point literal is the Swift standard
library type Double, which represents a 64-bit floating-point number. The Swift standard library also
defines a Float type, which represents a 32-bit floating-point number.
G R A M M A R O F A F L O AT I N G - P O I N T L I T E R A L

floating-point-literal decimal-literal decimal-fraction opt decimal-exponent opt

floating-point-literal hexadecimal-literal hexadecimal-fraction opt hexadecimal-exponent
decimal-fraction . decimal-literal
decimal-exponent floating-point-e sign opt decimal-literal
hexadecimal-fraction . hexadecimal-digit hexadecimal-literal-characters opt
hexadecimal-exponent floating-point-p sign opt decimal-literal
floating-point-e
floating-point-p
sign + | -

e
p

|
|

E
P

String Literals
A string literal is a sequence of characters surrounded by double quotes, with the following form:
" characters "

String literals cannot contain an unescaped double quote ("), an unescaped backslash (\), a carriage
return, or a line feed.

Special characters can be included in string literals using the following escape sequences:

Null Character (\0)

Backslash (\\)
Horizontal Tab (\t)
Line Feed (\n)
Carriage Return (\r)
Double Quote (\")
Single Quote (\')
Unicode scalar (\u{n}), where n is between one and eight hexadecimal digits

The value of an expression can be inserted into a string literal by placing the expression in
parentheses after a backslash (\). The interpolated expression must not contain an unescaped double
quote ("), an unescaped backslash (\), a carriage return, or a line feed. The expression must evaluate
to a value of a type that the String class has an initializer for.
For example, all the following string literals have the same value:
1

"1 2 3"

"1 2 \(3)"

"1 2 \(1 + 2)"

let x = 3; "1 2 \(x)"

The default inferred type of a string literal is String. The default inferred type of the characters that
make up a string is Character. For more information about the String and Character types, see
Strings and Characters.
G R A M M A R O F A ST R I N G LI T ER A L

string-literal " quoted-text opt "

quoted-text quoted-text-item quoted-text opt
quoted-text-item escaped-character
quoted-text-item \( expression )
quoted-text-item Any Unicode scalar value except

"

, U+000A, or U+000D

escaped-character \0 | \\ | \t | \n | \r | \" | \'

escaped-character \u { unicode-scalar-digits }
unicode-scalar-digits Between one and eight hexadecimal digits

Operators
The Swift standard library defines a number of operators for your use, many of which are discussed
in Basic Operators and Advanced Operators. The present section describes which characters can be
used to define custom operators.
Custom operators can begin with one of the ASCII characters /, =, -, +, !, *, %, <, >, &, |, ^, ?, or ~, or
one of the Unicode characters defined in the grammar below (which include characters from the
Mathematical Operators, Miscellaneous Symbols, and Dingbats Unicode blocks, among others).
After the first character, combining Unicode characters are also allowed. You can also define custom
operators as a sequence of two or more dots (for example, ....). Although you can define custom
operators that contain a question mark character (?), they cant consist of a single question mark
character only.

NOTE
The tokens =, ->, //, /*, */, ., the prefix operators <, &, and ?, the infix operator ?, and the postfix operators >, !, and
? are reserved. These tokens cant be overloaded, nor can they be used as custom operators.

The whitespace around an operator is used to determine whether an operator is used as a prefix
operator, a postfix operator, or a binary operator. This behavior is summarized in the following rules:
If an operator has whitespace around both sides or around neither side, it is treated as a
binary operator. As an example, the + operator in a+b and a + b is treated as a binary
operator.
If an operator has whitespace on the left side only, it is treated as a prefix unary operator. As
an example, the ++ operator in a ++b is treated as a prefix unary operator.
If an operator has whitespace on the right side only, it is treated as a postfix unary operator.
As an example, the ++ operator in a++ b is treated as a postfix unary operator.
If an operator has no whitespace on the left but is followed immediately by a dot (.), it is
treated as a postfix unary operator. As an example, the ++ operator in a++.b is treated as a
postfix unary operator (a++ .b rather than a ++ .b).
For the purposes of these rules, the characters (, [, and { before an operator, the characters ), ], and }
after an operator, and the characters ,, ;, and : are also considered whitespace.
There is one caveat to the rules above. If the ! or ? predefined operator has no whitespace on the left,
it is treated as a postfix operator, regardless of whether it has whitespace on the right. To use the ? as
the optional-chaining operator, it must not have whitespace on the left. To use it in the ternary
conditional (? :) operator, it must have whitespace around both sides.

In certain constructs, operators with a leading < or > may be split into two or more tokens. The
remainder is treated the same way and may be split again. As a result, there is no need to use
whitespace to disambiguate between the closing > characters in constructs like Dictionary<String,
Array<Int>>. In this example, the closing > characters are not treated as a single token that may then
be misinterpreted as a bit shift >> operator.
To learn how to define new, custom operators, see Custom Operators and Operator Declaration. To
learn how to overload existing operators, see Operator Functions.

G R A M M A R O F O P E R AT O R S

operator operator-head operator-characters opt

operator dot-operator-head dot-operator-characters opt
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head

/ | = | - | + | ! | * | % | < | > | & | | | ^ | ~ | ?

U+00A1U+00A7
U+00A9 or U+00AB
U+00AC or U+00AE
U+00B0U+00B1, U+00B6, U+00BB, U+00BF, U+00D7, or U+00F7
U+2016U+2017 or U+2020U+2027
U+2030U+203E
U+2041U+2053
U+2055U+205E
U+2190U+23FF
U+2500U+2775
U+2794U+2BFF
U+2E00U+2E7F
U+3001U+3003
U+3008U+3030

operator-character operator-head
operator-character U+0300U+036F
operator-character U+1DC0U+1DFF
operator-character U+20D0U+20FF
operator-character U+FE00U+FE0F
operator-character U+FE20U+FE2F
operator-character U+E0100U+E01EF
operator-characters operator-character operator-characters opt
dot-operator-head ..
dot-operator-character . | operator-character
dot-operator-characters dot-operator-character dot-operator-characters opt
binary-operator operator
prefix-operator operator
postfix-operator operator

Types
In Swift, there are two kinds of types: named types and compound types. A named type is a type that
can be given a particular name when it is defined. Named types include classes, structures,
enumerations, and protocols. For example, instances of a user-defined class named MyClass have the
type MyClass. In addition to user-defined named types, the Swift standard library defines many
commonly used named types, including those that represent arrays, dictionaries, and optional values.
Data types that are normally considered basic or primitive in other languagessuch as types that
represent numbers, characters, and stringsare actually named types, defined and implemented in the
Swift standard library using structures. Because they are named types, you can extend their behavior
to suit the needs of your program, using an extension declaration, discussed in Extensions and
Extension Declaration.
A compound type is a type without a name, defined in the Swift language itself. There are two
compound types: function types and tuple types. A compound type may contain named types and other
compound types. For instance, the tuple type (Int, (Int, Int)) contains two elements: The first is
the named type Int, and the second is another compound type (Int, Int).
This chapter discusses the types defined in the Swift language itself and describes the type inference
behavior of Swift.
G R A M M A R O F A T YP E

type array-type | dictionary-type | function-type | type-identifier | tuple-type |

optional-type | implicitly-unwrapped-optional-type | protocol-composition-type |
metatype-type

Type Annotation
A type annotation explicitly specifies the type of a variable or expression. Type annotations begin
with a colon (:) and end with a type, as the following examples show:
1

let someTuple: (Double, Double) = (3.14159, 2.71828)

func someFunction(a: Int) { /* ... */ }

In the first example, the expression someTuple is specified to have the tuple type (Double, Double). In
the second example, the parameter a to the function someFunction is specified to have the type Int.
Type annotations can contain an optional list of type attributes before the type.

G R A M M A R O F A T Y P E A N N O T AT I O N

type-annotation

attributes opt type

Type Identifier
A type identifier refers to either a named type or a type alias of a named or compound type.
Most of the time, a type identifier directly refers to a named type with the same name as the identifier.
For example, Int is a type identifier that directly refers to the named type Int, and the type identifier
Dictionary<String, Int> directly refers to the named type Dictionary<String, Int>.
There are two cases in which a type identifier does not refer to a type with the same name. In the first
case, a type identifier refers to a type alias of a named or compound type. For instance, in the
example below, the use of Point in the type annotation refers to the tuple type (Int, Int).
1

typealias Point = (Int, Int)

let origin: Point = (0, 0)

In the second case, a type identifier uses dot (.) syntax to refer to named types declared in other
modules or nested within other types. For example, the type identifier in the following code
references the named type MyType that is declared in the ExampleModule module.
var someValue: ExampleModule.MyType

G R A M M A R O F A T YP E I D EN T I F I ER

type-identifier type-name generic-argument-clause opt | type-name generic-argumentclause opt . type-identifier

type-name identifier

Tuple Type
A tuple type is a comma-separated list of zero or more types, enclosed in parentheses.
You can use a tuple type as the return type of a function to enable the function to return a single tuple
containing multiple values. You can also name the elements of a tuple type and use those names to
refer to the values of the individual elements. An element name consists of an identifier followed
immediately by a colon (:). For an example that demonstrates both of these features, see Functions
with Multiple Return Values.

is a typealias for the empty tuple type, (). If there is only one element inside the parentheses, the
type is simply the type of that element. For example, the type of (Int) is Int, not (Int). As a result,
you can name a tuple element only when the tuple type has two or more elements.
Void

G R A M M A R O F A T U P LE T YP E

tuple-type ( tuple-type-body opt )

tuple-type-body tuple-type-element-list ... opt
tuple-type-element-list tuple-type-element | tuple-type-element , tuple-type-element-list
tuple-type-element attributes opt inout opt type | inout opt element-name type-annotation
element-name identifier

Function Type
A function type represents the type of a function, method, or closure and consists of a parameter and
return type separated by an arrow (->):
parameter type

->

return type

Because the parameter type and the return type can be a tuple type, function types support functions
and methods that take multiple parameters and return multiple values.
You can apply the autoclosure attribute to a parameter declaration for a function type that has a
parameter type of () and that returns the type of an expression (see Declaration Attributes). An
autoclosure function captures an implicit closure over the specified expression, instead of the
expression itself. The following example uses the autoclosure attribute in defining a very simple
assert function:
1

func simpleAssert(@autoclosure condition: () -> Bool, message: String) {

if !condition() {

println(message)

let testNumber = 5

simpleAssert(testNumber % 2 == 0, "testNumber isn't an even number.")

// prints "testNumber isn't an even number."

A function type can have a variadic parameter as the last parameter in its parameter type.

Syntactically, a variadic parameter consists of a base type name followed immediately by three dots
(...), as in Int.... A variadic parameter is treated as an array that contains elements of the base type
name. For instance, the variadic parameter Int... is treated as [Int]. For an example that uses a
variadic parameter, see Variadic Parameters.
To specify an in-out parameter, prefix the parameter type with the inout keyword. You cant mark a
variadic parameter or a return type with the inout keyword. In-out parameters are discussed in In-Out
Parameters.
The function types of a curried function are grouped from right to left. For instance, the function type
Int -> Int -> Int is understood as Int -> (Int -> Int)that is, a function that takes an Int and
returns another function that takes and return an Int. Curried function are described in Curried
Functions.
G R A M M A R O F A F U N C T I O N T YP E

function-type type

->

type

Array Type
The Swift language provides the following syntactic sugar for the Swift standard library Array<T>
type:
[ type ]

In other words, the following two declarations are equivalent:

1

let someArray: Array<String> = ["Alex", "Brian", "Dave"]

let someArray: [String] = ["Alex", "Brian", "Dave"]

In both cases, the constant someArray is declared as an array of strings. The elements of an array can
be accessed through subscripting by specifying a valid index value in square brackets: someArray[0]
refers to the element at index 0, "Alex".
You can create multidimensional arrays by nesting pairs of square brackets, where the name of the
base type of the elements is contained in the innermost pair of square brackets. For example, you can
create a three-dimensional array of integers using three sets of square brackets:
var array3D: [[[Int]]] = [[[1, 2], [3, 4]], [[5, 6], [7, 8]]]

When accessing the elements in a multidimensional array, the left-most subscript index refers to the
element at that index in the outermost array. The next subscript index to the right refers to the element

at that index in the array thats nested one level in. And so on. This means that in the example above,
array3D[0] refers to [[1, 2], [3, 4]], array3D[0][1] refers to [3, 4], and array3D[0][1][1]
refers to the value 4.
For a detailed discussion of the Swift standard library Array type, see Arrays.
G R A M M A R O F A N A R R AY T YP E

array-type

type

Dictionary Type
The Swift language provides the following syntactic sugar for the Swift standard library
Dictionary<Key, Value> type:
[ key type :

value type ]

In other words, the following two declarations are equivalent:

1

let someDictionary: [String: Int] = ["Alex": 31, "Paul": 39]

let someDictionary: Dictionary<String, Int> = ["Alex": 31, "Paul": 39]

In both cases, the constant someDictionary is declared as a dictionary with strings as keys and
integers as values.
The values of a dictionary can be accessed through subscripting by specifying the corresponding key
in square brackets: someDictionary["Alex"] refers to the value associated with the key "Alex". The
subscript returns an optional value of the dictionarys value type. If the specified key isnt contained
in the dictionary, the subscript returns nil.
The key type of a dictionary must conform to the Swift standard library Hashable protocol.
For a detailed discussion of the Swift standard library Dictionary type, see Dictionaries.
G R A M M A R O F A D I C T I O N A RY T YP E

dictionary-type

type

type

Optional Type
The Swift language defines the postfix ? as syntactic sugar for the named type Optional<T>, which is

defined in the Swift standard library. In other words, the following two declarations are equivalent:
1

var optionalInteger: Int?

var optionalInteger: Optional<Int>

In both cases, the variable optionalInteger is declared to have the type of an optional integer. Note
that no whitespace may appear between the type and the ?.
The type Optional<T> is an enumeration with two cases, None and Some(T), which are used to
represent values that may or may not be present. Any type can be explicitly declared to be (or
implicitly converted to) an optional type. If you dont provide an initial value when you declare an
optional variable or property, its value automatically defaults to nil.
If an instance of an optional type contains a value, you can access that value using the postfix operator
!, as shown below:
1

optionalInteger = 42

optionalInteger! // 42

Using the ! operator to unwrap an optional that has a value of nil results in a runtime error.
You can also use optional chaining and optional binding to conditionally perform an operation on an
optional expression. If the value is nil, no operation is performed and therefore no runtime error is
produced.
For more information and to see examples that show how to use optional types, see Optionals.
G R A M M A R O F A N O P T I O N A L T YP E

optional-type type

Implicitly Unwrapped Optional Type

The Swift language defines the postfix ! as syntactic sugar for the named type
ImplicitlyUnwrappedOptional<T>, which is defined in the Swift standard library. In other words, the
following two declarations are equivalent:
1

var implicitlyUnwrappedString: String!

var implicitlyUnwrappedString: ImplicitlyUnwrappedOptional<String>

In both cases, the variable implicitlyUnwrappedString is declared to have the type of an implicitly
unwrapped optional string. Note that no whitespace may appear between the type and the !.

You can use implicitly unwrapped optionals in all the same places in your code that you can use
optionals. For instance, you can assign values of implicitly unwrapped optionals to variables,
constants, and properties of optionals, and vice versa.
As with optionals, if you dont provide an initial value when you declare an implicitly unwrapped
optional variable or property, its value automatically defaults to nil.
Because the value of an implicitly unwrapped optional is automatically unwrapped when you use it,
theres no need to use the ! operator to unwrap it. That said, if you try to use an implicitly unwrapped
optional that has a value of nil, youll get a runtime error.
Use optional chaining to conditionally perform an operation on an implicitly unwrapped optional
expression. If the value is nil, no operation is performed and therefore no runtime error is produced.
For more information about implicitly unwrapped optional types, see Implicitly Unwrapped
Optionals.
G R A M M A R O F A N I M P L I C I T LY U N W R A P P E D O P T I O N A L T Y P E

implicitly-unwrapped-optional-type type

Protocol Composition Type

A protocol composition type describes a type that conforms to each protocol in a list of specified
protocols. Protocol composition types may be used in type annotations and in generic parameters.
Protocol composition types have the following form:
protocol< Protocol 1 ,

Protocol 2 >

A protocol composition type allows you to specify a value whose type conforms to the requirements
of multiple protocols without having to explicitly define a new, named protocol that inherits from
each protocol you want the type to conform to. For example, specifying a protocol composition type
protocol<ProtocolA, ProtocolB, ProtocolC> is effectively the same as defining a new protocol
ProtocolD that inherits from ProtocolA, ProtocolB, and ProtocolC, but without having to introduce a
new name.
Each item in a protocol composition list must be either the name of protocol or a type alias of a
protocol composition type. If the list is empty, it specifies the empty protocol composition type,
which every type conforms to.

G R A M M A R O F A P R O T O C O L C O M P O SI T I O N T YP E

protocol-composition-type protocol < protocol-identifier-list opt >

protocol-identifier-list protocol-identifier | protocol-identifier , protocol-identifier-list
protocol-identifier type-identifier

Metatype Type
A metatype type refers to the type of any type, including class types, structure types, enumeration
types, and protocol types.
The metatype of a class, structure, or enumeration type is the name of that type followed by .Type.
The metatype of a protocol typenot the concrete type that conforms to the protocol at runtimeis
the name of that protocol followed by .Protocol. For example, the metatype of the class type
SomeClass is SomeClass.Type and the metatype of the protocol SomeProtocol is
SomeProtocol.Protocol.
You can use the postfix self expression to access a type as a value. For example, SomeClass.self
returns SomeClass itself, not an instance of SomeClass. And SomeProtocol.self returns SomeProtocol
itself, not an instance of a type that conforms to SomeProtocol at runtime. You can use a dynamicType
expression with an instance of a type to access that instances runtime type as a value, as the
following example shows:

class SomeBaseClass {

class func printClassName() {

println("SomeBaseClass")

class SomeSubClass: SomeBaseClass {

override class func printClassName() {

8
9

println("SomeSubClass")
}

10

11

let someInstance: SomeBaseClass = SomeSubClass()

12

// someInstance is of type SomeBaseClass at compile time, but

13

// someInstance is of type SomeSubClass at runtime

14

someInstance.dynamicType.printClassName()

15

// prints "SomeSubClass"

G R A M M A R O F A M E T AT Y P E T Y P E

metatype-type type

. Type

| type

. Protocol

Type Inheritance Clause

A type inheritance clause is used to specify which class a named type inherits from and which
protocols a named type conforms to. A type inheritance clause is also used to specify a class
requirement on a protocol. A type inheritance clause begins with a colon (:), followed by either a
class requirement, a list of type identifiers, or both.
Class types can inherit from a single superclass and conform to any number of protocols. When
defining a class, the name of the superclass must appear first in the list of type identifiers, followed
by any number of protocols the class must conform to. If the class does not inherit from another class,
the list can begin with a protocol instead. For an extended discussion and several examples of class
inheritance, see Inheritance.
Other named types can only inherit from or conform to a list of protocols. Protocol types can inherit
from any number of other protocols. When a protocol type inherits from other protocols, the set of
requirements from those other protocols are aggregated together, and any type that inherits from the

current protocol must conform to all of those requirements. As discussed in Protocol Declaration, you
can include the class keyword as the first item in the type inheritance clause to mark a protocol
declaration with a class requirement.
A type inheritance clause in an enumeration definition can be either a list of protocols, or in the case
of an enumeration that assigns raw values to its cases, a single, named type that specifies the type of
those raw values. For an example of an enumeration definition that uses a type inheritance clause to
specify the type of its raw values, see Raw Values.
G R A M M A R O F A T YP E I N H ER I TA N C E C LA U SE

type-inheritance-clause : class-requirement , type-inheritance-list

type-inheritance-clause : class-requirement
type-inheritance-clause : type-inheritance-list
type-inheritance-list type-identifier | type-identifier , type-inheritance-list
class-requirement class

Type Inference
Swift uses type inference extensively, allowing you to omit the type or part of the type of many
variables and expressions in your code. For example, instead of writing var x: Int = 0, you can
write var x = 0, omitting the type completelythe compiler correctly infers that x names a value of
type Int. Similarly, you can omit part of a type when the full type can be inferred from context. For
instance, if you write let dict: Dictionary = ["A": 1], the compiler infers that dict has the type
Dictionary<String, Int>.
In both of the examples above, the type information is passed up from the leaves of the expression
tree to its root. That is, the type of x in var x: Int = 0 is inferred by first checking the type of 0 and
then passing this type information up to the root (the variable x).
In Swift, type information can also flow in the opposite directionfrom the root down to the leaves.
In the following example, for instance, the explicit type annotation (: Float) on the constant eFloat
causes the numeric literal 2.71828 to have an inferred type of Float instead of Double.
1

let e = 2.71828 // The type of e is inferred to be Double.

let eFloat: Float = 2.71828 // The type of eFloat is Float.

Type inference in Swift operates at the level of a single expression or statement. This means that all
of the information needed to infer an omitted type or part of a type in an expression must be
accessible from type-checking the expression or one of its subexpressions.

Expressions
In Swift, there are four kinds of expressions: prefix expressions, binary expressions, primary
expressions, and postfix expressions. Evaluating an expression returns a value, causes a side effect,
or both.
Prefix and binary expressions let you apply operators to smaller expressions. Primary expressions
are conceptually the simplest kind of expression, and they provide a way to access values. Postfix
expressions, like prefix and binary expressions, let you build up more complex expressions using
postfixes such as function calls and member access. Each kind of expression is described in detail in
the sections below.
G R A M M A R O F A N EX P R ESSI O N

expression prefix-expression binary-expressions opt

expression-list expression | expression , expression-list

Prefix Expressions
Prefix expressions combine an optional prefix operator with an expression. Prefix operators take one
argument, the expression that follows them.
The Swift standard library provides the following prefix operators:

Increment
-- Decrement
! Logical NOT
~ Bitwise NOT
+ Unary plus
- Unary minus
++

For information about the behavior of these operators, see Basic Operators and Advanced Operators.
In addition to the standard library operators listed above, you use & immediately before the name of a
variable thats being passed as an in-out argument to a function call expression. For more information
and to see an example, see In-Out Parameters.

G R A M M A R O F A P R EF I X EX P R ESSI O N

prefix-expression prefix-operator opt postfix-expression

prefix-expression in-out-expression
in-out-expression & identifier

Binary Expressions
Binary expressions combine an infix binary operator with the expression that it takes as its left-hand
and right-hand arguments. It has the following form:
left-hand argument

operator

right-hand argument

The Swift standard library provides the following binary operators:

Exponentiative (No associativity, precedence level 160)

Bitwise left shift

>> Bitwise right shift
<<

Multiplicative (Left associative, precedence level 150)

Multiply
/ Divide
% Remainder
&* Multiply, ignoring overflow
& Bitwise AND
*

Additive (Left associative, precedence level 140)

Add
- Subtract
&+ Add with overflow
&- Subtract with overflow
| Bitwise OR
^ Bitwise XOR
+

 Range (No associativity, precedence level 135)

Half-open range
... Closed range
..<

Cast (No associativity, precedence level 132)

Type check
as, as?, and as! Type cast
is

Nil Coalescing (Right associative, precedence level 131)

??

Nil coalescing

Comparative (No associativity, precedence level 130)

Less than
<= Less than or equal
> Greater than
>= Greater than or equal
== Equal
!= Not equal
=== Identical
!== Not identical
~= Pattern match
<

Conjunctive (Left associative, precedence level 120)

&&

Logical AND

Disjunctive (Left associative, precedence level 110)

||

Logical OR

Ternary Conditional (Right associative, precedence level 100)

?:

Ternary conditional

Assignment (Right associative, precedence level 90)

Assign
*= Multiply and assign
/= Divide and assign
%= Remainder and assign
+= Add and assign
-= Subtract and assign
<<= Left bit shift and assign
>>= Right bit shift and assign
&= Bitwise AND and assign
^= Bitwise XOR and assign
|= Bitwise OR and assign
&&= Logical AND and assign
||= Logical OR and assign
=

For information about the behavior of these operators, see Basic Operators and Advanced Operators.

NOTE
At parse time, an expression made up of binary operators is represented as a flat list. This list is transformed into a tree by
applying operator precedence. For example, the expression 2 + 3 * 5 is initially understood as a flat list of five items, 2,
+, 3, *, and 5. This process transforms it into the tree (2 + (3 * 5)).

G R A M M A R O F A B I N A RY EX P R ESSI O N

binary-expression binary-operator prefix-expression

binary-expression assignment-operator prefix-expression
binary-expression conditional-operator prefix-expression
binary-expression type-casting-operator
binary-expressions binary-expression binary-expressions opt

Assignment Operator
The assignment operator sets a new value for a given expression. It has the following form:
expression

value

The value of the expression is set to the value obtained by evaluating the value. If the expression is a
tuple, the value must be a tuple with the same number of elements. (Nested tuples are allowed.)
Assignment is performed from each part of the value to the corresponding part of the expression. For
example:
1

(a, _, (b, c)) = ("test", 9.45, (12, 3))

// a is "test", b is 12, c is 3, and 9.45 is ignored

The assignment operator does not return any value.

G R A M M A R O F A N A S S I G N M E N T O P E R AT O R

assignment-operator

Ternary Conditional Operator

The ternary conditional operator evaluates to one of two given values based on the value of a
condition. It has the following form:
condition

expression used if true

expression used if false

If the condition evaluates to true, the conditional operator evaluates the first expression and returns
its value. Otherwise, it evaluates the second expression and returns its value. The unused expression
is not evaluated.
For an example that uses the ternary conditional operator, see Ternary Conditional Operator.
G R A M M A R O F A C O N D I T I O N A L O P E R AT O R

conditional-operator

expression

Type-Casting Operators
There are four type-casting operators: the is operator, the as operator, the as? operator, and the as!

operator.
They have the following form:
expression

is

type

expression

as

type

expression

as?

type

expression

as!

type

The is operator checks at runtime whether the expression can be downcast to the specified type. It
returns true if the expression can be downcast to the specified type; otherwise, it returns false.
The as operator performs a cast when it is known at compile time that the cast always succeeds, such
as upcasting or bridging. Upcasting lets you use an expression as an instance of its types supertype,
without using an intermediate variable. The following approaches are equivalent:
1

func f(any: Any) { println("Function for Any") }

func f(int: Int) { println("Function for Int") }

let x = 10

f(x)

// prints "Function for Int"

6
7

let y: Any = x

f(y)

// prints "Function for Any"

10

11

f(x as Any)

12

// prints "Function for Any"

Bridging lets you use an expression of a Swift standard library type such as String as its
corresponding Foundation type such as NSString without needing to create a new instance. For more
information on bridging, see Working with Cocoa Data Types in Using Swift with Cocoa and
Objective-C.
The as? operator performs a conditional cast of the expression to the specified type. The as? operator
returns an optional of the specified type. At runtime, if the cast succeeds, the value of expression is
wrapped in an optional and returned; otherwise, the value returned is nil. If casting to the specified
type is guaranteed to fail or is guaranteed to succeed, a compile-time error is raised.

The as! operator performs a forced cast of the expression to the specified type. The as! operator
returns a value of the specified type, not an optional type. If the cast fails, a runtime error is raised.
The behavior of x as! T is the same as the behavior of (x as? T)!.
For more information about type casting and to see examples that use the type-casting operators, see
Type Casting.
G R A M M A R O F A T Y P E - C A S T I N G O P E R AT O R

type-casting-operator
type-casting-operator
type-casting-operator
type-casting-operator

is
as
as
as

type
type
? type
! type

Primary Expressions
Primary expressions are the most basic kind of expression. They can be used as expressions on their
own, and they can be combined with other tokens to make prefix expressions, binary expressions, and
postfix expressions.
G R A M M A R O F A P R I M A RY EX P R ESSI O N

primary-expression
primary-expression
primary-expression
primary-expression
primary-expression
primary-expression
primary-expression
primary-expression

identifier generic-argument-clause opt

literal-expression
self-expression
superclass-expression
closure-expression
parenthesized-expression
implicit-member-expression
wildcard-expression

Literal Expression
A literal expression consists of either an ordinary literal (such as a string or a number), an array or
dictionary literal, or one of the following special literals:

Literal

Type

Value

__FILE__

String

The name of the file in which it appears.

__LINE__

Int

The line number on which it appears.

__COLUMN__

Int

The column number in which it begins.

__FUNCTION__

String

The name of the declaration in which it appears.

Inside a function, the value of __FUNCTION__ is the name of that function, inside a method it is the name
of that method, inside a property getter or setter it is the name of that property, inside special
members like init or subscript it is the name of that keyword, and at the top level of a file it is the
name of the current module.
When used as the default value of a function or method, the special literals value is determined when
the default value expression is evaluated at the call site.
1

func logFunctionName(string: String = __FUNCTION__) {

println(string)

func myFunction() {

5
6

logFunctionName() // Prints "myFunction()".

}

7
8

myFunction()

namedArgs(1, withJay: 2)

An array literal is an ordered collection of values. It has the following form:

[ value 1 ,

value 2 ,

... ]

The last expression in the array can be followed by an optional comma. The value of an array literal
has type [T], where T is the type of the expressions inside it. If there are expressions of multiple
types, T is their closest common supertype. Empty array literals are written using an empty pair of
square brackets and can be used to create an empty array of a specified type.
var emptyArray: [Double] = []

A dictionary literal is an unordered collection of key-value pairs. It has the following form:
[ key 1 :

value 1 ,

key 2 :

value 2 ,

... ]

The last expression in the dictionary can be followed by an optional comma. The value of a
dictionary literal has type [Key: Value], where Key is the type of its key expressions and Value is the
type of its value expressions. If there are expressions of multiple types, Key and Value are the closest
common supertype for their respective values. An empty dictionary literal is written as a colon inside
a pair of brackets ([:]) to distinguish it from an empty array literal. You can use an empty dictionary
literal to create an empty dictionary literal of specified key and value types.
var emptyDictionary: [String: Double] = [:]

G R A M M A R O F A LI T ER A L EX P R ESSI O N

literal-expression literal
literal-expression array-literal | dictionary-literal
literal-expression __FILE__ | __LINE__ | __COLUMN__ |

__FUNCTION__

array-literal [ array-literal-items opt ]

array-literal-items array-literal-item , opt | array-literal-item
array-literal-item expression

array-literal-items

dictionary-literal [ dictionary-literal-items ] | [ : ]
dictionary-literal-items dictionary-literal-item , opt | dictionary-literalitem , dictionary-literal-items
dictionary-literal-item expression : expression

Self Expression
The self expression is an explicit reference to the current type or instance of the type in which it
occurs. It has the following forms:
self
self. member name
self[ subscript index ]
self( initializer arguments )
self.init( initializer arguments )

In an initializer, subscript, or instance method, self refers to the current instance of the type in which
it occurs. In a type method, self refers to the current type in which it occurs.
The self expression is used to specify scope when accessing members, providing disambiguation
when there is another variable of the same name in scope, such as a function parameter. For example:
1

class SomeClass {

var greeting: String

init(greeting: String) {

self.greeting = greeting

5
6

}
}

In a mutating method of a value type, you can assign a new instance of that value type to self. For
example:
1

struct Point {

var x = 0.0, y = 0.0

mutating func moveByX(deltaX: Double, y deltaY: Double) {

self = Point(x: x + deltaX, y: y + deltaY)

5
6

}
}

G R A M M A R O F A SELF EX P R ESSI O N

self-expression
self-expression
self-expression
self-expression

self
self .
self [

identifier
expression

self . init

Superclass Expression
A superclass expression lets a class interact with its superclass. It has one of the following forms:

super. member name

super[ subscript index ]
super.init( initializer arguments )

The first form is used to access a member of the superclass. The second form is used to access the
superclasss subscript implementation. The third form is used to access an initializer of the
superclass.
Subclasses can use a superclass expression in their implementation of members, subscripting, and
initializers to make use of the implementation in their superclass.
G R A M M A R O F A SU P ER C LA SS EX P R ESSI O N

superclass-expression superclass-method-expression | superclass-subscript-expression |

superclass-initializer-expression
superclass-method-expression super . identifier
superclass-subscript-expression super [ expression
superclass-initializer-expression super . init

Closure Expression
A closure expression creates a closure, also known as a lambda or an anonymous function in other
programming languages. Like function declarations, closures contain statements which they execute,
and they capture values from their enclosing scope. It has the following form:
{ ( parameters ) ->

return type

in

statements
}

The parameters have the same form as the parameters in a function declaration, as described in
Function Declaration.
There are several special forms that allow closures to be written more concisely:
A closure can omit the types of its parameters, its return type, or both. If you omit the
parameter names and both types, omit the in keyword before the statements. If the omitted
types cant be inferred, a compile-time error is raised.
A closure may omit names for its parameters. Its parameters are then implicitly named $

followed by their position: $0, $1, $2, and so on.

A closure that consists of only a single expression is understood to return the value of that
expression. The contents of this expression are also considered when performing type
inference on the surrounding expression.
The following closure expressions are equivalent:
1

myFunction {

(x: Int, y: Int) -> Int in

return x + y

5
6

myFunction {

(x, y) in

return x + y

10

11

myFunction { return $0 + $1 }

12

13

myFunction { $0 + $1 }

For information about passing a closure as an argument to a function, see Function Call Expression.
A closure expression can explicitly specify the values that it captures from the surrounding scope
using a capture list. A capture list is written as a comma separated list surrounded by square
brackets, before the list of parameters. If you use a capture list, you must also use the in keyword,
even if you omit the parameter names, parameter types, and return type.
Each entry in the capture list can be marked as weak or unowned to capture a weak or unowned
reference to the value.
1

myFunction { print(self.title) }

// strong capture

myFunction { [weak self] in print(self!.title) }

// weak capture

myFunction { [unowned self] in print(self.title) }

// unowned capture

You can also bind an arbitrary expression to a named value in the capture list. The expression is
evaluated when the closure is formed, and captured with the specified strength. For example:

// Weak capture of "self.parent" as "parent"

myFunction { [weak parent = self.parent] in print(parent!.title) }

For more information and examples of closure expressions, see Closure Expressions.
G R A M M A R O F A C LO SU R E EX P R ESSI O N

closure-expression
closure-signature
closure-signature
closure-signature
closure-signature
closure-signature

closure-signature opt statements

parameter-clause function-result opt in

identifier-list function-result opt in
capture-list parameter-clause function-result opt
capture-list identifier-list function-result opt in
capture-list in

capture-list [ capture-specifier expression ]

capture-specifier weak | unowned | unowned(safe) |

in

unowned(unsafe)

Implicit Member Expression

An implicit member expression is an abbreviated way to access a member of a type, such as an
enumeration case or a type method, in a context where type inference can determine the implied type.
It has the following form:
. member name

For example:
1

var x = MyEnumeration.SomeValue

x = .AnotherValue

G R A M M A R O F A I M P LI C I T M EM B ER EX P R ESSI O N

implicit-member-expression

identifier

Parenthesized Expression
A parenthesized expression consists of a comma-separated list of expressions surrounded by
parentheses. Each expression can have an optional identifier before it, separated by a colon (:). It has

the following form:

( identifier 1 :

expression 1 ,

identifier 2 :

expression 2 ,

... )

Use parenthesized expressions to create tuples and to pass arguments to a function call. If there is
only one value inside the parenthesized expression, the type of the parenthesized expression is the
type of that value. For example, the type of the parenthesized expression (1) is Int, not (Int).
G R A M M A R O F A PA R E N T H E SI Z E D E X P R E SSI O N

parenthesized-expression ( expression-element-list opt )

expression-element-list expression-element | expression-element
list
expression-element expression | identifier : expression

expression-element-

Wildcard Expression
A wildcard expression is used to explicitly ignore a value during an assignment. For example, in the
following assignment 10 is assigned to x and 20 is ignored:
1

(x, _) = (10, 20)

// x is 10, and 20 is ignored

G R A M M A R O F A WI LD C A R D EX P R ESSI O N

wildcard-expression

Postfix Expressions
Postfix expressions are formed by applying a postfix operator or other postfix syntax to an
expression. Syntactically, every primary expression is also a postfix expression.
The Swift standard library provides the following postfix operators:

Increment
-- Decrement
++

For information about the behavior of these operators, see Basic Operators and Advanced Operators.

G R A M M A R O F A P O ST F I X EX P R ESSI O N

postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression

primary-expression
postfix-expression postfix-operator
function-call-expression
initializer-expression
explicit-member-expression
postfix-self-expression
dynamic-type-expression
subscript-expression
forced-value-expression
optional-chaining-expression

Function Call Expression

A function call expression consists of a function name followed by a comma-separated list of the
functions arguments in parentheses. Function call expressions have the following form:
function name ( argument value 1 ,

argument value 2 )

The function name can be any expression whose value is of a function type.
If the function definition includes names for its parameters, the function call must include names
before its argument values separated by a colon (:). This kind of function call expression has the
following form:
function name ( argument name 1 :

argument value 1 ,

argument name 2 :

argument value 2 )

A function call expression can include a trailing closure in the form of a closure expression
immediately after the closing parenthesis. The trailing closure is understood as an argument to the
function, added after the last parenthesized argument. The following function calls are equivalent:
1

// someFunction takes an integer and a closure as its arguments

someFunction(x, {$0 == 13})

someFunction(x) {$0 == 13}

If the trailing closure is the functions only argument, the parentheses can be omitted.

// someFunction takes a closure as its only argument

myData.someMethod() {$0 == 13}

myData.someMethod {$0 == 13}

G R A M M A R O F A F U N C T I O N C A LL EX P R ESSI O N

function-call-expression postfix-expression parenthesized-expression

function-call-expression postfix-expression parenthesized-expression opt trailing-closure
trailing-closure closure-expression

Initializer Expression
An initializer expression provides access to a types initializer. It has the following form:
expression .init( initializer arguments )

You use the initializer expression in a function call expression to initialize a new instance of a type.
Unlike functions, an initializer cant be used as a value. For example:
1

var x = SomeClass.someClassFunction // ok

var y = SomeClass.init

// error

You also use an initializer expression to delegate to the initializer of a superclass.

1

class SomeSubClass: SomeSuperClass {

override init() {

// subclass initialization goes here

super.init()

5
6

}
}

G R A M M A R O F A N I N I T I A LI Z ER EX P R ESSI O N

initializer-expression postfix-expression

Explicit Member Expression

. init

A explicit member expression allows access to the members of a named type, a tuple, or a module. It
consists of a period (.) between the item and the identifier of its member.
expression . member name

The members of a named type are named as part of the types declaration or extension. For example:
1

class SomeClass {

var someProperty = 42

let c = SomeClass()

let y = c.someProperty

// Member access

The members of a tuple are implicitly named using integers in the order they appear, starting from
zero. For example:
1

var t = (10, 20, 30)

t.0 = t.1

// Now t is (20, 20, 30)

The members of a module access the top-level declarations of that module.

G R A M M A R O F A N EX P LI C I T M EM B ER EX P R ESSI O N

explicit-member-expression postfix-expression
explicit-member-expression postfix-expression

.
.

decimal-digits
identifier generic-argument-clause opt

Postfix Self Expression

A postfix self expression consists of an expression or the name of a type, immediately followed by
.self. It has the following forms:
expression .self
type .self

The first form evaluates to the value of the expression. For example, x.self evaluates to x.
The second form evaluates to the value of the type. Use this form to access a type as a value. For

example, because SomeClass.self evaluates to the SomeClass type itself, you can pass it to a function
or method that accepts a type-level argument.
G R A M M A R O F A SELF EX P R ESSI O N

postfix-self-expression postfix-expression

. self

Dynamic Type Expression

A dynamicType expression consists of an expression, immediately followed by .dynamicType. It has
the following form:
expression .dynamicType

The expression cant be the name of a type. The entire dynamicType expression evaluates to the value
of the runtime type of the expression, as the following example shows:
1

class SomeBaseClass {

class func printClassName() {

println("SomeBaseClass")

class SomeSubClass: SomeBaseClass {

override class func printClassName() {

8
9

println("SomeSubClass")
}

10

11

let someInstance: SomeBaseClass = SomeSubClass()

12

// someInstance has a static type of SomeBaseClass at compile time, and

13

// it has a dynamc type of SomeSubClass at runtime

14

someInstance.dynamicType.printClassName()

15

// prints "SomeSubClass"

G R A M M A R O F A D YN A M I C T YP E EX P R ESSI O N

dynamic-type-expression postfix-expression

. dynamicType

Subscript Expression
A subscript expression provides subscript access using the getter and setter of the corresponding
subscript declaration. It has the following form:
expression [ index expressions ]

To evaluate the value of a subscript expression, the subscript getter for the expressions type is called
with the index expressions passed as the subscript parameters. To set its value, the subscript setter is
called in the same way.
For information about subscript declarations, see Protocol Subscript Declaration.
G R A M M A R O F A SU B SC R I P T EX P R ESSI O N

subscript-expression postfix-expression

expression-list

Forced-Value Expression
A forced-value expression unwraps an optional value that you are certain is not nil. It has the
following form:
expression !

If the value of the expression is not nil, the optional value is unwrapped and returned with the
corresponding nonoptional type. Otherwise, a runtime error is raised.
The unwrapped value of a forced-value expression can be modified, either by mutating the value
itself, or by assigning to one of the values members. For example:
1

var x: Int? = 0

x!++

// x is now 1

4
5

var someDictionary = ["a": [1, 2, 3], "b": [10, 20]]

someDictionary["a"]![0] = 100

// someDictionary is now [b: [10, 20], a: [100, 2, 3]]

G R A M M A R O F A F O R C E D - VA L U E E X P R E S S I O N

forced-value-expression postfix-expression

Optional-Chaining Expression
An optional-chaining expression provides a simplified syntax for using optional values in postfix
expressions. It has the following form:
expression ?

Optional-chaining expressions must appear within a postfix expression, and they cause the postfix
expression to be evaluated in a special way. If the optional-chaining expression is nil, all of the other
operations in the postfix expression are ignored and the entire postfix expression evaluates to nil. If
the optional-chaining expression is not nil, the value of the optional-chaining expression is
unwrapped and used to evaluate the rest of the postfix expression. In either case, the value of the
postfix expression is still of an optional type.
If a postfix expression that contains an optional-chaining expression is nested inside other postfix
expressions, only the outermost expression returns an optional type. In the example below, when c is
not nil, its value is unwrapped and used to evaluate .property, the value of which is used to evaluate
.performAction(). The entire expression c?.property.performAction() has a value of an optional
type.
1

var c: SomeClass?

var result: Bool? = c?.property.performAction()

The following example shows the behavior of the example above without using optional chaining.
1

var result: Bool? = nil

if let unwrappedC = c {

3
4

result = unwrappedC.property.performAction()
}

The unwrapped value of an optional-chaining expression can be modified, either by mutating the
value itself, or by assigning to one of the values members. If the value of the optional-chaining
expression is nil, the expression on the right hand side of the assignment operator is not evaluated.
For example:

func someFunctionWithSideEffects() -> Int {

return 42

// No actual side effects.

var someDictionary = ["a": [1, 2, 3], "b": [10, 20]]

5
6

someDictionary["not here"]?[0] = someFunctionWithSideEffects()

// someFunctionWithSideEffects is not evaluated

// someDictionary is still [b: [10, 20], a: [1, 2, 3]]

10

someDictionary["a"]?[0] = someFunctionWithSideEffects()

11

// someFunctionWithSideEffects is evaluated and returns 42

12

// someDictionary is now [b: [10, 20], a: [42, 2, 3]]

G R A M M A R O F A N O P T I O N A L- C H A I N I N G EX P R ESSI O N

optional-chaining-expression postfix-expression

Statements
In Swift, there are two kinds of statements: simple statements and control flow statements. Simple
statements are the most common and consist of either an expression or a declaration. Control flow
statements are used to control the flow of execution in a program. There are three types of control
flow statements in Swift: loop statements, branch statements, and control transfer statements.
Loop statements allow a block of code to be executed repeatedly, branch statements allow a certain
block of code to be executed only when certain conditions are met, and control transfer statements
provide a way to alter the order in which code is executed. Each type of control flow statement is
described in detail below.
A semicolon (;) can optionally appear after any statement and is used to separate multiple statements
if they appear on the same line.
G R A M M A R O F A S T AT E M E N T

statement expression ; opt

statement declaration ; opt
statement loop-statement ; opt
statement branch-statement ; opt
statement labeled-statement ; opt
statement control-transfer-statement
statements statement statements opt

; opt

Loop Statements
Loop statements allow a block of code to be executed repeatedly, depending on the conditions
specified in the loop. Swift has four loop statements: a for statement, a for-in statement, a while
statement, and a do-while statement.
Control flow in a loop statement can be changed by a break statement and a continue statement and is
discussed in Break Statement and Continue Statement below.

G R A M M A R O F A L O O P S T AT E M E N T

loop-statement
loop-statement
loop-statement
loop-statement

for-statement
for-in-statement
while-statement
do-while-statement

For Statement
A for statement allows a block of code to be executed repeatedly while incrementing a counter, as
long as a condition remains true.
A for statement has the following form:
for

initialization ;

condition ;

increment

statements
}

The semicolons between the initialization, condition, and increment are required. The braces around
the statements in the body of the loop are also required.
A for statement is executed as follows:
1. The initialization is evaluated only once. It is typically used to declare and initialize any
variables that are needed for the remainder of the loop.
2. The condition expression is evaluated.
If true, the program executes the statements, and execution continues to step 3. If false, the
program does not execute the statements or the increment expression, and the program is
finished executing the for statement.
3. The increment expression is evaluated, and execution returns to step 2.
Variables defined within the initialization are valid only within the scope of the for statement itself.
The value of the condition expression must have a type that conforms to the BooleanType protocol.
G R A M M A R O F A F O R S T AT E M E N T

for-statement
for-statement

for
for

for-init opt ; expression opt ; expression opt code-block

( for-init opt ; expression opt ; expression opt ) code-block

for-init variable-declaration | expression-list

For-In Statement
A for-in statement allows a block of code to be executed once for each item in a collection (or any
type) that conforms to the SequenceType protocol.
A for-in statement has the following form:
for

item

in

collection

statements
}

The generate() method is called on the collection expression to obtain a value of a generator type
that is, a type that conforms to the GeneratorType protocol. The program begins executing a loop by
calling the next() method on the stream. If the value returned is not None, it is assigned to the item
pattern, the program executes the statements, and then continues execution at the beginning of the
loop. Otherwise, the program does not perform assignment or execute the statements, and it is
finished executing the for-in statement.
G R A M M A R O F A F O R - I N S T AT E M E N T

for-in-statement

for

pattern

in

expression code-block

While Statement
A while statement allows a block of code to be executed repeatedly, as long as a condition remains
true.
A while statement has the following form:
while

condition

statements
}

A while statement is executed as follows:

1. The condition is evaluated.
If true, execution continues to step 2. If false, the program is finished executing the while
statement.

2. The program executes the statements, and execution returns to step 1.

Because the value of the condition is evaluated before the statements are executed, the statements in
a while statement can be executed zero or more times.
The value of the condition must have a type that conforms to the BooleanType protocol. The condition
can also be an optional binding declaration, as discussed in Optional Binding.
G R A M M A R O F A W H I L E S T AT E M E N T

while-statement while while-condition code-block

while-condition expression | expression opt optional-binding-list
optional-binding-list optional-binding-clause | optional-binding-clause , optionalbinding-list
optional-binding-clause optional-binding-head optional-binding-continuationlist opt guard-clause opt
optional-binding-head let identifier-pattern initializer | var identifierpattern initializer
optional-binding-continuation-list optional-binding-continuation | optional-bindingcontinuation , optional-binding-continuation-list
optional-binding-continuation identifier-pattern initializer | optional-binding-head

Do-While Statement
A do-while statement allows a block of code to be executed one or more times, as long as a condition
remains true.
A do-while statement has the following form:
do {
statements
} while

condition

A do-while statement is executed as follows:

1. The program executes the statements, and execution continues to step 2.
2. The condition is evaluated.
If true, execution returns to step 1. If false, the program is finished executing the do-while
statement.

Because the value of the condition is evaluated after the statements are executed, the statements in a
do-while statement are executed at least once.
The value of the condition must have a type that conforms to the BooleanType protocol. The condition
can also be an optional binding declaration, as discussed in Optional Binding.
G R A M M A R O F A D O - W H I L E S T AT E M E N T

do-while-statement

do

code-block

while

expression

Branch Statements
Branch statements allow the program to execute certain parts of code depending on the value of one
or more conditions. The values of the conditions specified in a branch statement control how the
program branches and, therefore, what block of code is executed. Swift has two branch statements: an
if statement and a switch statement.
Control flow in a switch statement can be changed by a break statement and is discussed in Break
Statement below.
G R A M M A R O F A B R A N C H S T AT E M E N T

branch-statement if-statement
branch-statement switch-statement

If Statement
An if statement is used for executing code based on the evaluation of one or more conditions.
There are two basic forms of an if statement. In each form, the opening and closing braces are
required.
The first form allows code to be executed only when a condition is true and has the following form:
if

condition

statements
}

The second form of an if statement provides an additional else clause (introduced by the else
keyword) and is used for executing one part of code when the condition is true and another part of
code when the same condition is false. When a single else clause is present, an if statement has the

following form:
if

condition

statements to execute if condition is true

} else {
statements to execute if condition is false
}

The else clause of an if statement can contain another if statement to test more than one condition.
An if statement chained together in this way has the following form:
if

condition 1

statements to execute if condition 1 is true

} else if

condition 2

statements to execute if condition 2 is true

} else {
statements to execute if both conditions are false
}

The value of any condition in an if statement must have a type that conforms to the BooleanType
protocol. The condition can also be an optional binding declaration, as discussed in Optional
Binding.
G R A M M A R O F A N I F S T AT E M E N T

if-statement if if-condition code-block else-clause opt

if-condition expression | expression opt optional-binding-list
else-clause else code-block | else if-statement

Switch Statement
A switch statement allows certain blocks of code to be executed depending on the value of a control
expression.
A switch statement has the following form:

switch
case

control expression

pattern 1 :
statements

case

pattern 2

where

condition :

where

condition ,

statements
case

pattern 3

pattern 4

where

condition :

statements
default:
statements
}

The control expression of the switch statement is evaluated and then compared with the patterns
specified in each case. If a match is found, the program executes the statements listed within the
scope of that case. The scope of each case cant be empty. As a result, you must include at least one
statement following the colon (:) of each case label. Use a single break statement if you dont intend
to execute any code in the body of a matched case.
The values of expressions your code can branch on are very flexible. For instance, in addition to the
values of scalar types, such as integers and characters, your code can branch on the values of any
type, including floating-point numbers, strings, tuples, instances of custom classes, and optionals. The
value of the control expression can even be matched to the value of a case in an enumeration and
checked for inclusion in a specified range of values. For examples of how to use these various types
of values in switch statements, see Switch in the Control Flow chapter.
A switch case can optionally contain a guard expression after each pattern. A guard expression is
introduced by the keyword where followed by an expression, and is used to provide an additional
condition before a pattern in a case is considered matched to the control expression. If a guard
expression is present, the statements within the relevant case are executed only if the value of the
control expression matches one of the patterns of the case and the guard expression evaluates to true.
For instance, a control expression matches the case in the example below only if it is a tuple that
contains two elements of the same value, such as (1, 1).
case let (x, y) where x == y:

As the above example shows, patterns in a case can also bind constants using the keyword let (they
can also bind variables using the keyword var). These constants (or variables) can then be referenced
in a corresponding guard expression and throughout the rest of the code within the scope of the case.

That said, if the case contains multiple patterns that match the control expression, none of those
patterns can contain constant or variable bindings.
A switch statement can also include a default case, introduced by the keyword default. The code
within a default case is executed only if no other cases match the control expression. A switch
statement can include only one default case, which must appear at the end of the switch statement.
Although the actual execution order of pattern-matching operations, and in particular the evaluation
order of patterns in cases, is unspecified, pattern matching in a switch statement behaves as if the
evaluation is performed in source orderthat is, the order in which they appear in source code. As a
result, if multiple cases contain patterns that evaluate to the same value, and thus can match the value
of the control expression, the program executes only the code within the first matching case in source
order.

Switch Statements Must Be Exhaustive

In Swift, every possible value of the control expressions type must match the value of at least one
pattern of a case. When this simply isnt feasible (for instance, when the control expressions type is
Int), you can include a default case to satisfy the requirement.

Execution Does Not Fall Through Cases Implicitly

After the code within a matched case has finished executing, the program exits from the switch
statement. Program execution does not continue or fall through to the next case or default case. That
said, if you want execution to continue from one case to the next, explicitly include a fallthrough
statement, which simply consists of the keyword fallthrough, in the case from which you want
execution to continue. For more information about the fallthrough statement, see Fallthrough
Statement below.

G R A M M A R O F A S W I T C H S T AT E M E N T

switch-statement switch expression { switch-cases opt }

switch-cases switch-case switch-cases opt
switch-case case-label statements | default-label statements
switch-case case-label ; | default-label ;
case-label case case-item-list :
case-item-list pattern guard-clause opt | pattern guard-clause opt
default-label default :

case-item-list

guard-clause where guard-expression

guard-expression expression

Labeled Statement
You can prefix a loop statement or a switch statement with a statement label, which consists of the
name of the label followed immediately by a colon (:). Use statement labels with break and continue
statements to be explicit about how you want to change control flow in a loop statement or a switch
statement, as discussed in Break Statement and Continue Statement below.
The scope of a labeled statement is the entire statement following the statement label. You can nest
labeled statements, but the name of each statement label must be unique.
For more information and to see examples of how to use statement labels, see Labeled Statements in
the Control Flow chapter.
G R A M M A R O F A L A B E L E D S T AT E M E N T

labeled-statement statement-label loop-statement | statement-label switch-statement

statement-label label-name :
label-name identifier

Control Transfer Statements

Control transfer statements can change the order in which code in your program is executed by
unconditionally transferring program control from one piece of code to another. Swift has four control
transfer statements: a break statement, a continue statement, a fallthrough statement, and a return
statement.

G R A M M A R O F A C O N T R O L T R A N S F E R S T AT E M E N T

control-transfer-statement
control-transfer-statement
control-transfer-statement
control-transfer-statement

break-statement
continue-statement
fallthrough-statement
return-statement

Break Statement
A break statement ends program execution of a loop or a switch statement. A break statement can
consist of only the keyword break, or it can consist of the keyword break followed by the name of a
statement label, as shown below.
break
break

label name

When a break statement is followed by the name of a statement label, it ends program execution of the
loop or switch statement named by that label.
When a break statement is not followed by the name of a statement label, it ends program execution of
the switch statement or the innermost enclosing loop statement in which it occurs.
In both cases, program control is then transferred to the first line of code following the enclosing loop
or switch statement, if any.
For examples of how to use a break statement, see Break and Labeled Statements in the Control Flow
chapter.
G R A M M A R O F A B R E A K S T AT E M E N T

break-statement

break

label-name opt

Continue Statement
A continue statement ends program execution of the current iteration of a loop statement but does not
stop execution of the loop statement. A continue statement can consist of only the keyword continue,
or it can consist of the keyword continue followed by the name of a statement label, as shown below.
continue
continue

label name

When a continue statement is followed by the name of a statement label, it ends program execution of
the current iteration of the loop statement named by that label.
When a continue statement is not followed by the name of a statement label, it ends program
execution of the current iteration of the innermost enclosing loop statement in which it occurs.
In both cases, program control is then transferred to the condition of the enclosing loop statement.
In a for statement, the increment expression is still evaluated after the continue statement is executed,
because the increment expression is evaluated after the execution of the loops body.
For examples of how to use a continue statement, see Continue and Labeled Statements in the Control
Flow chapter.
G R A M M A R O F A C O N T I N U E S T AT E M E N T

continue-statement

continue

label-name opt

Fallthrough Statement
A fallthrough statement consists of the fallthrough keyword and occurs only in a case block of a
switch statement. A fallthrough statement causes program execution to continue from one case in a
switch statement to the next case. Program execution continues to the next case even if the patterns of
the case label do not match the value of the switch statements control expression.
A fallthrough statement can appear anywhere inside a switch statement, not just as the last statement
of a case block, but it cant be used in the final case block. It also cannot transfer control into a case
block whose pattern contains value binding patterns.
For an example of how to use a fallthrough statement in a switch statement, see Control Transfer
Statements in the Control Flow chapter.
G R A M M A R O F A F A L LT H R O U G H S T AT E M E N T

fallthrough-statement

fallthrough

Return Statement
A return statement occurs in the body of a function or method definition and causes program
execution to return to the calling function or method. Program execution continues at the point
immediately following the function or method call.
A return statement can consist of only the keyword return, or it can consist of the keyword return

followed by an expression, as shown below.

return
return

expression

When a return statement is followed by an expression, the value of the expression is returned to the
calling function or method. If the value of the expression does not match the value of the return type
declared in the function or method declaration, the expressions value is converted to the return type
before it is returned to the calling function or method.

NOTE
As described in Failable Initializers, a special form of the return statement (return nil) can be used in a failable
initializer to indicate initialization failure.

When a return statement is not followed by an expression, it can be used only to return from a
function or method that does not return a value (that is, when the return type of the function or method
is Void or ()).
G R A M M A R O F A R E T U R N S T AT E M E N T

return-statement

return

expression opt

Declarations
A declaration introduces a new name or construct into your program. For example, you use
declarations to introduce functions and methods, variables and constants, and to define new, named
enumeration, structure, class, and protocol types. You can also use a declaration to extend the
behavior of an existing named type and to import symbols into your program that are declared
elsewhere.
In Swift, most declarations are also definitions in the sense that they are implemented or initialized at
the same time they are declared. That said, because protocols dont implement their members, most
protocol members are declarations only. For convenience and because the distinction isnt that
important in Swift, the term declaration covers both declarations and definitions.
G R A M M A R O F A D E C L A R AT I O N

declaration import-declaration
declaration constant-declaration
declaration variable-declaration
declaration typealias-declaration
declaration function-declaration
declaration enum-declaration
declaration struct-declaration
declaration class-declaration
declaration protocol-declaration
declaration initializer-declaration
declaration deinitializer-declaration
declaration extension-declaration
declaration subscript-declaration
declaration operator-declaration
declarations declaration declarations opt

Top-Level Code
The top-level code in a Swift source file consists of zero or more statements, declarations, and
expressions. By default, variables, constants, and other named declarations that are declared at the
top-level of a source file are accessible to code in every source file that is part of the same module.
You can override this default behavior by marking the declaration with an access level modifier, as
described in Access Control Levels.

G R A M M A R O F A T O P - L E V E L D E C L A R AT I O N

top-level-declaration statements opt

Code Blocks
A code block is used by a variety of declarations and control structures to group statements together.
It has the following form:
{
statements
}

The statements inside a code block include declarations, expressions, and other kinds of statements
and are executed in order of their appearance in source code.
G RA M M A R O F A CO D E BLO CK

code-block

statements opt

Import Declaration
An import declaration lets you access symbols that are declared outside the current file. The basic
form imports the entire module; it consists of the import keyword followed by a module name:
import

module

Providing more detail limits which symbols are importedyou can specify a specific submodule or a
specific declaration within a module or submodule. When this detailed form is used, only the
imported symbol (and not the module that declares it) is made available in the current scope.
import

import kind

module . symbol name

import

module . submodule

G R A M M A R O F A N I M P O R T D E C L A R AT I O N

import-declaration attributes opt

import

import-kind opt import-path

import-kind typealias | struct | class | enum | protocol | var | func

import-path import-path-identifier | import-path-identifier . import-path
import-path-identifier identifier | operator

Constant Declaration
A constant declaration introduces a constant named value into your program. Constant declarations
are declared using the keyword let and have the following form:
let

constant name :

type

expression

A constant declaration defines an immutable binding between the constant name and the value of the
initializer expression; after the value of a constant is set, it cannot be changed. That said, if a constant
is initialized with a class object, the object itself can change, but the binding between the constant
name and the object it refers to cant.
When a constant is declared at global scope, it must be initialized with a value. When a constant
declaration occurs in the context of a class or structure declaration, it is considered a constant
property. Constant declarations are not computed properties and therefore do not have getters or
setters.
If the constant name of a constant declaration is a tuple pattern, the name of each item in the tuple is
bound to the corresponding value in the initializer expression.
let (firstNumber, secondNumber) = (10, 42)

In this example, firstNumber is a named constant for the value 10, and secondNumber is a named
constant for the value 42. Both constants can now be used independently:
1

println("The first number is \(firstNumber).")

// prints "The first number is 10."

println("The second number is \(secondNumber).")

// prints "The second number is 42."

The type annotation (: type) is optional in a constant declaration when the type of the constant name
can be inferred, as described in Type Inference.

To declare a constant type property, mark the declaration with the static declaration modifier. Type
properties are discussed in Type Properties.
For more information about constants and for guidance about when to use them, see Constants and
Variables and Stored Properties.
G R A M M A R O F A C O N S T A N T D E C L A R AT I O N

constant-declaration attributes opt declaration-modifiers opt

let

pattern-initializer-list pattern-initializer | pattern-initializer

pattern-initializer pattern initializer opt
initializer = expression

pattern-initializer-list
pattern-initializer-list

Variable Declaration
A variable declaration introduces a variable named value into your program and is declared using
the keyword var.
Variable declarations have several forms that declare different kinds of named, mutable values,
including stored and computed variables and properties, stored variable and property observers, and
static variable properties. The appropriate form to use depends on the scope at which the variable is
declared and the kind of variable you intend to declare.

NOTE
You can also declare properties in the context of a protocol declaration, as described in Protocol Property Declaration.

You can override a property in a subclass by marking the subclasss property declaration with the
override declaration modifier, as described in Overriding.

Stored Variables and Stored Variable Properties

The following form declares a stored variable or stored variable property:
var

variable name :

type

expression

You define this form of a variable declaration at global scope, the local scope of a function, or in the
context of a class or structure declaration. When a variable declaration of this form is declared at

global scope or the local scope of a function, it is referred to as a stored variable. When it is
declared in the context of a class or structure declaration, it is referred to as a stored variable
property.
The initializer expression cant be present in a protocol declaration, but in all other contexts, the
initializer expression is optional. That said, if no initializer expression is present, the variable
declaration must include an explicit type annotation (: type).
As with constant declarations, if the variable name is a tuple pattern, the name of each item in the
tuple is bound to the corresponding value in the initializer expression.
As their names suggest, the value of a stored variable or a stored variable property is stored in
memory.

Computed Variables and Computed Properties

The following form declares a computed variable or computed property:
var

variable name :

type

get {
statements
}
set( setter name ) {
statements
}
}

You define this form of a variable declaration at global scope, the local scope of a function, or in the
context of a class, structure, enumeration, or extension declaration. When a variable declaration of
this form is declared at global scope or the local scope of a function, it is referred to as a computed
variable. When it is declared in the context of a class, structure, or extension declaration, it is
referred to as a computed property.
The getter is used to read the value, and the setter is used to write the value. The setter clause is
optional, and when only a getter is needed, you can omit both clauses and simply return the requested
value directly, as described in Read-Only Computed Properties. But if you provide a setter clause,
you must also provide a getter clause.
The setter name and enclosing parentheses is optional. If you provide a setter name, it is used as the

name of the parameter to the setter. If you do not provide a setter name, the default parameter name to
the setter is newValue, as described in Shorthand Setter Declaration.
Unlike stored named values and stored variable properties, the value of a computed named value or a
computed property is not stored in memory.
For more information and to see examples of computed properties, see Computed Properties.

Stored Variable Observers and Property Observers

You can also declare a stored variable or property with willSet and didSet observers. A stored
variable or property declared with observers has the following form:
var

variable name :

type

expression

willSet( setter name ) {

statements
}
didSet( setter name ) {
statements
}
}

You define this form of a variable declaration at global scope, the local scope of a function, or in the
context of a class or structure declaration. When a variable declaration of this form is declared at
global scope or the local scope of a function, the observers are referred to as stored variable
observers. When it is declared in the context of a class or structure declaration, the observers are
referred to as property observers.
You can add property observers to any stored property. You can also add property observers to any
inherited property (whether stored or computed) by overriding the property within a subclass, as
described in Overriding Property Observers.
The initializer expression is optional in the context of a class or structure declaration, but required
elsewhere. The type annotation is optional when the type can be inferred from the initializer
expression.
The willSet and didSet observers provide a way to observe (and to respond appropriately) when the
value of a variable or property is being set. The observers are not called when the variable or
property is first initialized. Instead, they are called only when the value is set outside of an

initialization context.
A willSet observer is called just before the value of the variable or property is set. The new value is
passed to the willSet observer as a constant, and therefore it cant be changed in the implementation
of the willSet clause. The didSet observer is called immediately after the new value is set. In
contrast to the willSet observer, the old value of the variable or property is passed to the didSet
observer in case you still need access to it. That said, if you assign a value to a variable or property
within its own didSet observer clause, that new value that you assign will replace the one that was
just set and passed to the willSet observer.
The setter name and enclosing parentheses in the willSet and didSet clauses are optional. If you
provide setter names, they are used as the parameter names to the willSet and didSet observers. If
you do not provide setter names, the default parameter name to the willSet observer is newValue and
the default parameter name to the didSet observer is oldValue.
The didSet clause is optional when you provide a willSet clause. Likewise, the willSet clause is
optional when you provide a didSet clause.
For more information and to see an example of how to use property observers, see Property
Observers.

Type Variable Properties

To declare a type variable property, mark the declaration with the static declaration modifier.
Classes may mark type computed properties with the class declaration modifier instead to allow
subclasses to override the superclasss implementation. Type properties are discussed in Type
Properties.

NOTE
In a class declaration, the keyword static has the same effect as marking the declaration with both the class and
final declaration modifiers.

G R A M M A R O F A VA R I A B L E D E C L A R AT I O N

variable-declaration variable-declaration-head
variable-declaration variable-declaration-head
block
variable-declaration variable-declaration-head
setter-block
variable-declaration variable-declaration-head
setter-keyword-block
variable-declaration variable-declaration-head
block
variable-declaration variable-declaration-head
annotation initializer opt willSet-didSet-block

pattern-initializer-list
variable-name type-annotation codevariable-name type-annotation gettervariable-name type-annotation gettervariable-name initializer willSet-didSetvariable-name type-

variable-declaration-head attributes opt declaration-modifiers opt

variable-name identifier

var

getter-setter-block { getter-clause setter-clause opt }

getter-setter-block { setter-clause getter-clause }
getter-clause attributes opt get code-block
setter-clause attributes opt set setter-name opt code-block
setter-name ( identifier )
getter-setter-keyword-block { getter-keyword-clause setter-keyword-clause opt
getter-setter-keyword-block { setter-keyword-clause getter-keyword-clause }
getter-keyword-clause attributes opt get
setter-keyword-clause attributes opt set

willSet-didSet-block { willSet-clause didSet-clause opt }

willSet-didSet-block { didSet-clause willSet-clause opt }
willSet-clause attributes opt willSet setter-name opt code-block
didSet-clause attributes opt didSet setter-name opt code-block

Type Alias Declaration

A type alias declaration introduces a named alias of an existing type into your program. Type alias
declarations are declared using the keyword typealias and have the following form:
typealias

name

existing type

After a type alias is declared, the aliased name can be used instead of the existing type everywhere
in your program. The existing type can be a named type or a compound type. Type aliases do not
create new types; they simply allow a name to refer to an existing type.
See also Protocol Associated Type Declaration.
G R A M M A R O F A T Y P E A L I A S D E C L A R AT I O N

typealias-declaration typealias-head typealias-assignment

typealias-head attributes opt access-level-modifier opt typealias typealias-name
typealias-name identifier
typealias-assignment = type

Function Declaration
A function declaration introduces a function or method into your program. A function declared in the
context of class, structure, enumeration, or protocol is referred to as a method. Function declarations
are declared using the keyword func and have the following form:
func

function name ( parameters ) ->

return type

statements
}

If the function has a return type of Void, the return type can be omitted as follows:
func

function name ( parameters ) {

statements

The type of each parameter must be includedit cant be inferred. Although the parameters to a
function are constants by default, you can write let in front of a parameters name to emphasize this
behavior. Write var in front of a parameters name to make it a variable, scoping any changes made to
the variable just to the function body, or write inout to make those changes also apply to the argument
that was passed in the callers scope. For a discussion of in-out parameters, see In-Out Parameters.
Functions can return multiple values using a tuple type as the return type of the function.
A function definition can appear inside another function declaration. This kind of function is known as
a nested function. For a discussion of nested functions, see Nested Functions.

Parameter Names
Function parameters are a comma separated list where each parameter has one of several forms. The
order of arguments in a function call must match the order of parameters in the functions declaration.
The simplest entry in a parameter list has the following form:
parameter name :

parameter type

For function parameters, the parameter name is used within the function body, but is not used when
calling the function. For method parameters, the parameter name is used as within the function body,
and is also used as a label for the argument when calling the method. The name of a methods first
parameter is used only within the function body, like the parameter of a function. For example:
1

func f(x: Int, y: String) -> String {

return y + String(x)

f(7, "hello")

// x and y have no name

5
6

class C {

func f(x: Int, y: String) -> String {

return y + String(x)

10

11

let c = C()

12

c.f(7, y: "hello")

// x has no name, y has a name

You can override the default behavior for how parameter names are used with one of the following
forms:
external parameter name
# parameter name :
_

local parameter name :

parameter type

parameter type

local parameter name :

parameter type

A second name before the local parameter name gives the parameter an external name, which can be
different from the local parameter name. The external parameter name must be used when the function

is called. The corresponding argument must have the external name in function or method calls.
A hash symbol (#) before a parameter name indicates that the name should be used as both an external
and a local parameter name. It has the same meaning as writing the local parameter name twice. The
corresponding argument must have this name in function or method calls.
An underscore (_) before a local parameter name gives that parameter no name to be used in function
calls. The corresponding argument must have no name in function or method calls.

Special Kinds of Parameters

Parameters can be ignored, take a variable number of values, and provide default values using the
following forms:
_ :

parameter type

parameter name :

parameter type ...

parameter name :

parameter type

default argument value

A parameter named with an underscore (_) is explicitly ignored and cant be accessed within the
body of the function.
A parameter with a base type name followed immediately by three dots (...) is understood as a
variadic parameter. A function can have at most one variadic parameter, which must be its last
parameter. A variadic parameter is treated as an array that contains elements of the base type name.
For instance, the variadic parameter Int... is treated as [Int]. For an example that uses a variadic
parameter, see Variadic Parameters.
A parameter with an equals sign (=) and an expression after its type is understood to have a default
value of the given expression. The given expression is evaluated when the function is called. If the
parameter is omitted when calling the function, the default value is used instead. If the parameter is
not omitted, it must have its name in the function call.
1

func f(x: Int = 42) -> Int { return x }

f()

// Valid, uses default value

f(x: 7)

// Valid, name and value provided

f(7)

// Invalid, value provided without its name

Special Kinds of Methods

Methods on an enumeration or a structure that modify self must be marked with the mutating
declaration modifier.
Methods that override a superclass method must be marked with the override declaration modifier.
Its a compile-time error to override a method without the override modifier or to use the override
modifier on a method that doesnt override a superclass method.
Methods associated with a type rather than an instance of a type must be marked with the static
declaration modifier for enumerations and structures or the class declaration modifier for classes.

Curried Functions
You can rewrite a function that takes multiple parameters as an equivalent function that takes a single
parameter and returns a function. The returned function takes the next parameter and returns another
function. This continues until there are no remaining parameters, at which point the last function
returns the return value of the original multiparameter function. The rewritten function is known as a
curried function. For example, you can rewrite the addTwoInts function as the equivalent
addTwoIntsCurried function:
1

func addTwoInts(a: Int, b: Int) -> Int {

return a + b

func addTwoIntsCurried(a: Int) -> (Int -> Int) {

func addTheOtherInt(b: Int) -> Int {

return a + b

return addTheOtherInt

The addTwoInts function takes two integers and returns the result of adding them together. The
addTwoIntsCurried function takes a single integer, and returns another function that takes the second
integer and adds it to the first. (The nested function captures the value of the first integer argument
from the enclosing function.)
In Swift, you can write a curried function more concisely using the following syntax:

func

function name ( parameter )( parameter ) ->

return type

statements
}

For example, the following two declarations are equivalent:

1

func addTwoIntsCurried(a: Int)(b: Int) -> Int {

return a + b

func addTwoIntsCurried(a: Int) -> (Int -> Int) {

func addTheOtherInt(b: Int) -> Int {

return a + b

return addTheOtherInt

In order to use the addTwoIntsCurried function in the same way as the noncurried addTwoInts
function, you must call the addTwoIntsCurried function with the first integer argument and then call its
returned function with the second integer argument:
1

addTwoInts(4, 5)

// returns a value of 9

addTwoIntsCurried(4)(b: 5)

// returns a value of 9

Although you must provide the arguments to a noncurried function all at once in a single call, you can
use the curried form of a function to provide arguments in several function calls, one at a time (even
in different places in your code). This is known as partial function application. For example, you
can apply the addTwoIntsCurried function to an integer argument 1 and assign the result to the constant
plusOne:
1

let plusOne = addTwoIntsCurried(1)

// plusOne is a function of type Int -> Int

Because plusOne refers to the addTwoIntsCurried function with its argument bound as the value 1,
calling plusOne with an integer argument simply adds 1 to the argument.

plusOne(b: 10)

// returns a value of 11

G R A M M A R O F A F U N C T I O N D E C L A R AT I O N

function-declaration function-head function-name generic-parameter-clause opt functionsignature function-body

function-head attributes opt declaration-modifiers opt
function-name identifier | operator

func

function-signature parameter-clauses function-result opt

function-result -> attributes opt type
function-body code-block
parameter-clauses parameter-clause parameter-clauses opt
parameter-clause ( ) | ( parameter-list ... opt )
parameter-list parameter | parameter , parameter-list
parameter inout opt let opt # opt external-parameter-name opt local-parameter-name typeannotation default-argument-clause opt
parameter inout opt var # opt external-parameter-name opt local-parameter-name typeannotation default-argument-clause opt
parameter attributes opt type
external-parameter-name identifier | _
local-parameter-name identifier | _
default-argument-clause = expression

Enumeration Declaration
An enumeration declaration introduces a named enumeration type into your program.
Enumeration declarations have two basic forms and are declared using the keyword enum. The body
of an enumeration declared using either form contains zero or more valuescalled enumeration
casesand any number of declarations, including computed properties, instance methods, type
methods, initializers, type aliases, and even other enumeration, structure, and class declarations.
Enumeration declarations cant contain deinitializer or protocol declarations.
Enumeration types can adopt any number of protocols, but cant inherit from classes, structures, or
other enumerations.
Unlike classes and structures, enumeration types do not have an implicitly provided default

initializer; all initializers must be declared explicitly. Initializers can delegate to other initializers in
the enumeration, but the initialization process is complete only after an initializer assigns one of the
enumeration cases to self.
Like structures but unlike classes, enumerations are value types; instances of an enumeration are
copied when assigned to variables or constants, or when passed as arguments to a function call. For
information about value types, see Structures and Enumerations Are Value Types.
You can extend the behavior of an enumeration type with an extension declaration, as discussed in
Extension Declaration.

Enumerations with Cases of Any Type

The following form declares an enumeration type that contains enumeration cases of any type:
enum

enumeration name :

adopted protocols

case

enumeration case 1

case

enumeration case 2 ( associated value types )

Enumerations declared in this form are sometimes called discriminated unions in other programming
languages.
In this form, each case block consists of the keyword case followed by one or more enumeration
cases, separated by commas. The name of each case must be unique. Each case can also specify that it
stores values of a given type. These types are specified in the associated value types tuple,
immediately following the name of the case. For more information and to see examples of cases with
associated value types, see Associated Values.

Enumerations with Cases of a Raw-Value Type

The following form declares an enumeration type that contains enumeration cases of the same basic
type:

enum

enumeration name :

raw-value type ,

adopted protocols

case

enumeration case 1

raw value 1

case

enumeration case 2

raw value 2

In this form, each case block consists of the keyword case, followed by one or more enumeration
cases, separated by commas. Unlike the cases in the first form, each case has an underlying value,
called a raw value, of the same basic type. The type of these values is specified in the raw-value type
and must represent an integer, floating-point number, string, or single character. In particular, the rawvalue type must conform to the Equatable protocol and one of the following literal-convertible
protocols: IntegerLiteralConvertible for integer literals, FloatingPointLiteralConvertible for
floating-point literals, StringLiteralConvertible for string literals that contain any number of
characters, and ExtendedGraphemeClusterLiteralConvertible for string literals that contain only a
single character.
Each case must have a unique name and be assigned a unique raw value. If the raw-value type is
specified as Int and you dont assign a value to the cases explicitly, they are implicitly assigned the
values 0, 1, 2, and so on. Each unassigned case of type Int is implicitly assigned a raw value that is
automatically incremented from the raw value of the previous case.
1

enum ExampleEnum: Int {

case A, B, C = 5, D

In the above example, the raw value of ExampleEnum.A is 0 and the value of ExampleEnum.B is 1. And
because the value of ExampleEnum.C is explicitly set to 5, the value of ExampleEnum.D is automatically
incremented from 5 and is therefore 6.
Enumerations that have cases of a raw-value type implicitly conform to the RawRepresentable
protocol, defined in the Swift standard library. As a result, they have a rawValue property and a
failable initializer with the signature init?(rawValue: RawValue). You can use the rawValue property
to access the raw value of an enumeration case, as in ExampleEnum.B.rawValue. You can also use a
raw value to find a corresponding case, if there is one, by calling the enumerations failable
initializer, as in ExampleEnum(rawValue: 5), which returns an optional case. For more information
and to see examples of cases with raw-value types, see Raw Values.

Accessing Enumeration Cases

To reference the case of an enumeration type, use dot (.) syntax, as in

EnumerationType.EnumerationCase.

When the enumeration type can be inferred from context, you can
omit it (the dot is still required), as described in Enumeration Syntax and Implicit Member
Expression.
To check the values of enumeration cases, use a switch statement, as shown in Matching Enumeration
Values with a Switch Statement. The enumeration type is pattern-matched against the enumeration
case patterns in the case blocks of the switch statement, as described in Enumeration Case Pattern.
G R A M M A R O F A N E N U M E R AT I O N D E C L A R AT I O N

enum-declaration attributes opt access-level-modifier opt union-style-enum

enum-declaration attributes opt access-level-modifier opt raw-value-style-enum
union-style-enum enum enum-name generic-parameter-clause opt type-inheritanceclause opt { union-style-enum-members opt }
union-style-enum-members union-style-enum-member union-style-enum-members opt
union-style-enum-member declaration | union-style-enum-case-clause
union-style-enum-case-clause attributes opt case union-style-enum-case-list
union-style-enum-case-list union-style-enum-case | union-style-enum-case , union-styleenum-case-list
union-style-enum-case enum-case-name tuple-type opt
enum-name identifier
enum-case-name identifier
raw-value-style-enum enum enum-name generic-parameter-clause opt type-inheritanceclause { raw-value-style-enum-members }
raw-value-style-enum-members raw-value-style-enum-member raw-value-style-enummembers opt
raw-value-style-enum-member declaration | raw-value-style-enum-case-clause
raw-value-style-enum-case-clause attributes opt case raw-value-style-enum-case-list
raw-value-style-enum-case-list raw-value-style-enum-case | raw-value-style-enumcase , raw-value-style-enum-case-list
raw-value-style-enum-case enum-case-name raw-value-assignment opt
raw-value-assignment = raw-value-literal
raw-value-literal numeric-literal | string-literal | boolean-literal

Structure Declaration
A structure declaration introduces a named structure type into your program. Structure declarations
are declared using the keyword struct and have the following form:

struct

structure name :

adopted protocols

declarations
}

The body of a structure contains zero or more declarations. These declarations can include both
stored and computed properties, type properties, instance methods, type methods, initializers,
subscripts, type aliases, and even other structure, class, and enumeration declarations. Structure
declarations cant contain deinitializer or protocol declarations. For a discussion and several
examples of structures that include various kinds of declarations, see Classes and Structures.
Structure types can adopt any number of protocols, but cant inherit from classes, enumerations, or
other structures.
There are three ways create an instance of a previously declared structure:
Call one of the initializers declared within the structure, as described in Initializers.
If no initializers are declared, call the structures memberwise initializer, as described in
Memberwise Initializers for Structure Types.
If no initializers are declared, and all properties of the structure declaration were given
initial values, call the structures default initializer, as described in Default Initializers.
The process of initializing a structures declared properties is described in Initialization.
Properties of a structure instance can be accessed using dot (.) syntax, as described in Accessing
Properties.
Structures are value types; instances of a structure are copied when assigned to variables or
constants, or when passed as arguments to a function call. For information about value types, see
Structures and Enumerations Are Value Types.
You can extend the behavior of a structure type with an extension declaration, as discussed in
Extension Declaration.
G R A M M A R O F A S T R U C T U R E D E C L A R AT I O N

struct-declaration attributes opt access-level-modifier opt struct struct-name genericparameter-clause opt type-inheritance-clause opt struct-body
struct-name identifier
struct-body { declarations opt }

Class Declaration
A class declaration introduces a named class type into your program. Class declarations are
declared using the keyword class and have the following form:
class

class name :

superclass ,

adopted protocols

declarations
}

The body of a class contains zero or more declarations. These declarations can include both stored
and computed properties, instance methods, type methods, initializers, a single deinitializer,
subscripts, type aliases, and even other class, structure, and enumeration declarations. Class
declarations cant contain protocol declarations. For a discussion and several examples of classes
that include various kinds of declarations, see Classes and Structures.
A class type can inherit from only one parent class, its superclass, but can adopt any number of
protocols. The superclass appears first after the class name and colon, followed by any adopted
protocols. Generic classes can inherit from other generic and nongeneric classes, but a nongeneric
class can inherit only from other nongeneric classes. When you write the name of a generic superclass
class after the colon, you must include the full name of that generic class, including its generic
parameter clause.
As discussed in Initializer Declaration, classes can have designated and convenience initializers. The
designated initializer of a class must initialize all of the classs declared properties and it must do so
before calling any of its superclasss designated initializers.
A class can override properties, methods, subscripts, and initializers of its superclass. Overridden
properties, methods, subscripts, and designated initializers must be marked with the override
declaration modifier.
To require that subclasses implement a superclasss initializer, mark the superclasss initializer with
the required declaration modifier. The subclasss implementation of that initializer must also be
marked with the required declaration modifier.
Although properties and methods declared in the superclass are inherited by the current class,
designated initializers declared in the superclass are not. That said, if the current class overrides all
of the superclasss designated initializers, it inherits the superclasss convenience initializers. Swift
classes do not inherit from a universal base class.
There are two ways create an instance of a previously declared class:
Call one of the initializers declared within the class, as described in Initializers.
If no initializers are declared, and all properties of the class declaration were given initial

values, call the classs default initializer, as described in Default Initializers.

Access properties of a class instance with dot (.) syntax, as described in Accessing Properties.
Classes are reference types; instances of a class are referred to, rather than copied, when assigned to
variables or constants, or when passed as arguments to a function call. For information about
reference types, see Structures and Enumerations Are Value Types.
You can extend the behavior of a class type with an extension declaration, as discussed in Extension
Declaration.
G R A M M A R O F A C L A S S D E C L A R AT I O N

class-declaration attributes opt access-level-modifier opt class class-name genericparameter-clause opt type-inheritance-clause opt class-body
class-name identifier
class-body { declarations opt }

Protocol Declaration
A protocol declaration introduces a named protocol type into your program. Protocol declarations
are declared at global scope using the keyword protocol and have the following form:
protocol

protocol name :

inherited protocols

protocol member declarations

}

The body of a protocol contains zero or more protocol member declarations, which describe the
conformance requirements that any type adopting the protocol must fulfill. In particular, a protocol
can declare that conforming types must implement certain properties, methods, initializers, and
subscripts. Protocols can also declare special kinds of type aliases, called associated types, that can
specify relationships among the various declarations of the protocol. Protocol declarations cant
contain class, structure, enumeration, or other protocol declarations. The protocol member
declarations are discussed in detail below.
Protocol types can inherit from any number of other protocols. When a protocol type inherits from
other protocols, the set of requirements from those other protocols are aggregated, and any type that
inherits from the current protocol must conform to all those requirements. For an example of how to
use protocol inheritance, see Protocol Inheritance.

NOTE
You can also aggregate the conformance requirements of multiple protocols using protocol composition types, as described
in Protocol Composition Type and Protocol Composition.

You can add protocol conformance to a previously declared type by adopting the protocol in an
extension declaration of that type. In the extension, you must implement all of the adopted protocols
requirements. If the type already implements all of the requirements, you can leave the body of the
extension declaration empty.
By default, types that conform to a protocol must implement all properties, methods, and subscripts
declared in the protocol. That said, you can mark these protocol member declarations with the
optional declaration modifier to specify that their implementation by a conforming type is optional.
The optional modifier can be applied only to protocols that are marked with the objc attribute. As a
result, only class types can adopt and conform to a protocol that contains optional member
requirements. For more information about how to use the optional declaration modifier and for
guidance about how to access optional protocol membersfor example, when youre not sure
whether a conforming type implements themsee Optional Protocol Requirements.
To restrict the adoption of a protocol to class types only, mark the protocol with the class
requirement by writing the class keyword as the first item in the inherited protocols list after the
colon. For example, the following protocol can be adopted only by class types:
1

protocol SomeProtocol: class {

2
3

/* Protocol members go here */

}

Any protocol that inherits from a protocol thats marked with the class requirement can likewise be
adopted only by class types.

NOTE
If a protocol is marked with the objc attribute, the class requirement is implicitly applied to that protocol; theres no
need to mark the protocol with the class requirement explicitly.

Protocols are named types, and thus they can appear in all the same places in your code as other
named types, as discussed in Protocols as Types. However, you cant construct an instance of a
protocol, because protocols do not actually provide the implementations for the requirements they
specify.
You can use protocols to declare which methods a delegate of a class or structure should implement,

as described in Delegation.
G R A M M A R O F A P R O T O C O L D E C L A R AT I O N

protocol-declaration attributes opt access-level-modifier opt

inheritance-clause opt protocol-body
protocol-name identifier
protocol-body { protocol-member-declarations opt }

protocol

protocol-name type-

protocol-member-declaration protocol-property-declaration
protocol-member-declaration protocol-method-declaration
protocol-member-declaration protocol-initializer-declaration
protocol-member-declaration protocol-subscript-declaration
protocol-member-declaration protocol-associated-type-declaration
protocol-member-declarations protocol-member-declaration protocol-memberdeclarations opt

Protocol Property Declaration

Protocols declare that conforming types must implement a property by including a protocol property
declaration in the body of the protocol declaration. Protocol property declarations have a special
form of a variable declaration:
var

property name :

type

{ get set }

As with other protocol member declarations, these property declarations declare only the getter and
setter requirements for types that conform to the protocol. As a result, you dont implement the getter
or setter directly in the protocol in which it is declared.
The getter and setter requirements can be satisfied by a conforming type in a variety of ways. If a
property declaration includes both the get and set keywords, a conforming type can implement it
with a stored variable property or a computed property that is both readable and writeable (that is,
one that implements both a getter and a setter). However, that property declaration cant be
implemented as a constant property or a read-only computed property. If a property declaration
includes only the get keyword, it can be implemented as any kind of property. For examples of
conforming types that implement the property requirements of a protocol, see Property Requirements.
See also Variable Declaration.

G R A M M A R O F A P R O T O C O L P R O P E R T Y D E C L A R AT I O N

protocol-property-declaration variable-declaration-head variable-name typeannotation getter-setter-keyword-block

Protocol Method Declaration

Protocols declare that conforming types must implement a method by including a protocol method
declaration in the body of the protocol declaration. Protocol method declarations have the same form
as function declarations, with two exceptions: They dont include a function body, and you cant
provide any default parameter values as part of the function declaration. For examples of conforming
types that implement the method requirements of a protocol, see Method Requirements.
To declare a class or static method requirement in a protocol declaration, mark the method
declaration with the static declaration modifier. Classes that implement this method declare the
method with the class modifier. Structures that implement it must declare the method with the static
declaration modifier instead. If youre implementing the method in an extension, use the class
modifier if youre extending a class and the static modifier if youre extending a structure.
See also Function Declaration.
G R A M M A R O F A P R O T O C O L M E T H O D D E C L A R AT I O N

protocol-method-declaration function-head function-name generic-parameterclause opt function-signature

Protocol Initializer Declaration

Protocols declare that conforming types must implement an initializer by including a protocol
initializer declaration in the body of the protocol declaration. Protocol initializer declarations have
the same form as initializer declarations, except they dont include the initializers body.
A conforming type can satisfy a nonfailable protocol initializer requirement by implementing a
nonfailable initializer or an init! failable initializer. A conforming type can satisfy a failable
protocol initializer requirement by implementing any kind of initializer.
When a class implements an initializer to satisfy a protocols initializer requirement, the initializer
must be marked with the required declaration modifier if the class is not already marked with the
final declaration modifier.
See also Initializer Declaration.

G R A M M A R O F A P R O T O C O L I N I T I A L I Z E R D E C L A R AT I O N

protocol-initializer-declaration initializer-head generic-parameter-clause opt parameterclause

Protocol Subscript Declaration

Protocols declare that conforming types must implement a subscript by including a protocol subscript
declaration in the body of the protocol declaration. Protocol subscript declarations have a special
form of a subscript declaration:
subscript ( parameters ) ->

return type

{ get set }

Subscript declarations only declare the minimum getter and setter implementation requirements for
types that conform to the protocol. If the subscript declaration includes both the get and set
keywords, a conforming type must implement both a getter and a setter clause. If the subscript
declaration includes only the get keyword, a conforming type must implement at least a getter clause
and optionally can implement a setter clause.
See also Subscript Declaration.
G R A M M A R O F A P R O T O C O L S U B S C R I P T D E C L A R AT I O N

protocol-subscript-declaration subscript-head subscript-result getter-setter-keywordblock

Protocol Associated Type Declaration

Protocols declare associated types using the keyword typealias. An associated type provides an
alias for a type that is used as part of a protocols declaration. Associated types are similar to type
parameters in generic parameter clauses, but theyre associated with Self in the protocol in which
theyre declared. In that context, Self refers to the eventual type that conforms to the protocol. For
more information and examples, see Associated Types.
See also Type Alias Declaration.
G R A M M A R O F A P R O T O C O L A S S O C I AT E D T Y P E D E C L A R AT I O N

protocol-associated-type-declaration typealias-head type-inheritance-clause opt typealiasassignment opt

Initializer Declaration
An initializer declaration introduces an initializer for a class, structure, or enumeration into your
program. Initializer declarations are declared using the keyword init and have two basic forms.
Structure, enumeration, and class types can have any number of initializers, but the rules and
associated behavior for class initializers are different. Unlike structures and enumerations, classes
have two kinds of initializers: designated initializers and convenience initializers, as described in
Initialization.
The following form declares initializers for structures, enumerations, and designated initializers of
classes:
init( parameters ) {
statements
}

A designated initializer of a class initializes all of the classs properties directly. It cant call any
other initializers of the same class, and if the class has a superclass, it must call one of the
superclasss designated initializers. If the class inherits any properties from its superclass, one of the
superclasss designated initializers must be called before any of these properties can be set or
modified in the current class.
Designated initializers can be declared in the context of a class declaration only and therefore cant
be added to a class using an extension declaration.
Initializers in structures and enumerations can call other declared initializers to delegate part or all of
the initialization process.
To declare convenience initializers for a class, mark the initializer declaration with the convenience
declaration modifier.
convenience init( parameters ) {
statements
}

Convenience initializers can delegate the initialization process to another convenience initializer or
to one of the classs designated initializers. That said, the initialization processes must end with a call
to a designated initializer that ultimately initializes the classs properties. Convenience initializers
cant call a superclasss initializers.

You can mark designated and convenience initializers with the required declaration modifier to
require that every subclass implement the initializer. A subclasss implementation of that initializer
must also be marked with the required declaration modifier.
By default, initializers declared in a superclass are not inherited by subclasses. That said, if a
subclass initializes all of its stored properties with default values and doesnt define any initializers
of its own, it inherits all of the superclasss initializers. If the subclass overrides all of the
superclasss designated initializers, it inherits the superclasss convenience initializers.
As with methods, properties, and subscripts, you need to mark overridden designated initializers with
the override declaration modifier.

NOTE
If you mark an initializer with the required declaration modifier, you dont also mark the initializer with the override
modifier when you override the required initializer in a subclass.

To see examples of initializers in various type declarations, see Initialization.

Failable Initializers
A failable initializer is a type of initializer that produces an optional instance or an implicitly
unwrapped optional instance of the type the initializer is declared on. As a result, a failable initializer
can return nil to indicate that initialization failed.
To declare a failable initializer that produces an optional instance, append a question mark to the init
keyword in the initializer declaration (init?). To declare a failable initializer that produces an
implicitly unwrapped optional instance, append an exclamation mark instead (init!). The example
below shows an init? failable initializer that produces an optional instance of a structure.

1
2

let string: String

// produces an optional instance of 'SomeStruct'

init?(input: String) {

if input.isEmpty {

// discard 'self' and return 'nil'

return nil

string = input

10

11

struct SomeStruct {

}
}

You call an init? failable initializer in the same way that you call a nonfailable initializer, except that
you must deal with the optionality of the result.
1

if let actualInstance = SomeStruct(input: "Hello") {

2
3

// do something with the instance of 'SomeStruct'

} else {

4
5

// initialization of 'SomeStruct' failed and the initializer returned 'nil'

}

A failable initializer of a structure or an enumeration can return nil at any point in the implementation
of the initializers body. A failable initializer of a class, however, can return nil only after all stored
properties of that class are initialized and self.init or super.init is called (that is, any initializer
delegation is performed).
A failable initializer can delegate to any kind of initializer. A nonfailable initializer can delegate to
another nonfailable initializer or to an init! failable initializer.
Initialization failure propagates through initializer delegation. Specifically, if a failable initializer
delegates to an initializer that fails and returns nil, then the initializer that delegated also fails and
implicitly returns nil. If a nonfailable initializer delegates to an init! failable initializer that fails
and returns nil, then a runtime error is raised (as if you used the ! operator to unwrap an optional that
has a nil value).
A failable designated initializer can be overridden in a subclass by any kind of designated initializer.
A nonfailable designated initializer can be overridden in a subclass by a nonfailable designated
initializer only.

For more information and to see examples of failable initializers, see Failable Initializers.
G R A M M A R O F A N I N I T I A L I Z E R D E C L A R AT I O N

initializer-declaration initializer-head generic-parameter-clause opt parameterclause initializer-body

initializer-head attributes opt declaration-modifiers opt init
initializer-head attributes opt declaration-modifiers opt init ?
initializer-head attributes opt declaration-modifiers opt init !
initializer-body code-block

Deinitializer Declaration
A deinitializer declaration declares a deinitializer for a class type. Deinitializers take no parameters
and have the following form:
deinit {
statements
}

A deinitializer is called automatically when there are no longer any references to a class object, just
before the class object is deallocated. A deinitializer can be declared only in the body of a class
declarationbut not in an extension of a classand each class can have at most one.
A subclass inherits its superclasss deinitializer, which is implicitly called just before the subclass
object is deallocated. The subclass object is not deallocated until all deinitializers in its inheritance
chain have finished executing.
Deinitializers are not called directly.
For an example of how to use a deinitializer in a class declaration, see Deinitialization.
G R A M M A R O F A D E I N I T I A L I Z E R D E C L A R AT I O N

deinitializer-declaration attributes opt

deinit

code-block

Extension Declaration
An extension declaration allows you to extend the behavior of existing class, structure, and

enumeration types. Extension declarations are declared using the keyword extension and have the
following form:
extension

type name :

adopted protocols

declarations
}

The body of an extension declaration contains zero or more declarations. These declarations can
include computed properties, computed type properties, instance methods, type methods, initializers,
subscript declarations, and even class, structure, and enumeration declarations. Extension
declarations cant contain deinitializer or protocol declarations, stored properties, property
observers, or other extension declarations. For a discussion and several examples of extensions that
include various kinds of declarations, see Extensions.
Extension declarations can add protocol conformance to an existing class, structure, and enumeration
type in the adopted protocols. Extension declarations cant add class inheritance to an existing class,
and therefore you can specify only a list of protocols after the type name and colon.
Properties, methods, and initializers of an existing type cant be overridden in an extension of that
type.
Extension declarations can contain initializer declarations. That said, if the type youre extending is
defined in another module, an initializer declaration must delegate to an initializer already defined in
that module to ensure members of that type are properly initialized.
G R A M M A R O F A N E X T E N S I O N D E C L A R AT I O N

extension-declaration access-level-modifier opt

inheritance-clause opt extension-body
extension-body { declarations opt }

extension

type-identifier type-

Subscript Declaration
A subscript declaration allows you to add subscripting support for objects of a particular type and
are typically used to provide a convenient syntax for accessing the elements in a collection, list, or
sequence. Subscript declarations are declared using the keyword subscript and have the following
form:

subscript ( parameters ) ->

return type

get {
statements
}
set( setter name ) {
statements
}
}

Subscript declarations can appear only in the context of a class, structure, enumeration, extension, or
protocol declaration.
The parameters specify one or more indexes used to access elements of the corresponding type in a
subscript expression (for example, the i in the expression object[i]). Although the indexes used to
access the elements can be of any type, each parameter must include a type annotation to specify the
type of each index. The return type specifies the type of the element being accessed.
As with computed properties, subscript declarations support reading and writing the value of the
accessed elements. The getter is used to read the value, and the setter is used to write the value. The
setter clause is optional, and when only a getter is needed, you can omit both clauses and simply
return the requested value directly. That said, if you provide a setter clause, you must also provide a
getter clause.
The setter name and enclosing parentheses are optional. If you provide a setter name, it is used as the
name of the parameter to the setter. If you do not provide a setter name, the default parameter name to
the setter is value. The type of the setter name must be the same as the return type.
You can overload a subscript declaration in the type in which it is declared, as long as the
parameters or the return type differ from the one youre overloading. You can also override a
subscript declaration inherited from a superclass. When you do so, you must mark the overridden
subscript declaration with the override declaration modifier.
You can also declare subscripts in the context of a protocol declaration, as described in Protocol
Subscript Declaration.
For more information about subscripting and to see examples of subscript declarations, see
Subscripts.

G R A M M A R O F A S U B S C R I P T D E C L A R AT I O N

subscript-declaration subscript-head subscript-result code-block

subscript-declaration subscript-head subscript-result getter-setter-block
subscript-declaration subscript-head subscript-result getter-setter-keyword-block
subscript-head attributes opt declaration-modifiers opt subscript parameter-clause
subscript-result -> attributes opt type

Operator Declaration
An operator declaration introduces a new infix, prefix, or postfix operator into your program and is
declared using the keyword operator.
You can declare operators of three different fixities: infix, prefix, and postfix. The fixity of an
operator specifies the relative position of an operator to its operands.
There are three basic forms of an operator declaration, one for each fixity. The fixity of the operator
is specified by marking the operator declaration with the infix, prefix, or postfix declaration
modifier before the operator keyword. In each form, the name of the operator can contain only the
operator characters defined in Operators.
The following form declares a new infix operator:
infix operator
precedence

operator name

precedence level

associativity

associativity

An infix operator is a binary operator that is written between its two operands, such as the familiar
addition operator (+) in the expression 1 + 2.
Infix operators can optionally specify a precedence, associativity, or both.
The precedence of an operator specifies how tightly an operator binds to its operands in the absence
of grouping parentheses. You specify the precedence of an operator by writing the context-sensitive
keyword precedence followed by the precedence level. The precedence level can be any whole
number (decimal integer) from 0 to 255; unlike decimal integer literals, it cant contain any
underscore characters. Although the precedence level is a specific number, it is significant only
relative to another operator. That is, when two operators compete with each other for their operands,
such as in the expression 2 + 3 * 5, the operator with the higher precedence level binds more tightly
to its operands.

The associativity of an operator specifies how a sequence of operators with the same precedence
level are grouped together in the absence of grouping parentheses. You specify the associativity of an
operator by writing the context-sensitive keyword associativity followed by the associativity,
which is one of the context-sensitive keywords left, right, or none. Operators that are leftassociative group left-to-right. For example, the subtraction operator (-) is left-associative, and
therefore the expression 4 - 5 - 6 is grouped as (4 - 5) - 6 and evaluates to -7. Operators that are
right-associative group right-to-left, and operators that are specified with an associativity of none
dont associate at all. Nonassociative operators of the same precedence level cant appear adjacent
to each to other. For example, 1 < 2 < 3 is not a valid expression.
Infix operators that are declared without specifying a precedence or associativity are initialized with
a precedence level of 100 and an associativity of none.
The following form declares a new prefix operator:
prefix operator

operator name

{}

A prefix operator is a unary operator that is written immediately before its operand, such as the
prefix increment operator (++) is in the expression ++i.
Prefix operators declarations dont specify a precedence level. Prefix operators are nonassociative.
The following form declares a new postfix operator:
postfix operator

operator name

{}

A postfix operator is a unary operator that is written immediately after its operand, such as the
postfix increment operator (++) is in the expression i++.
As with prefix operators, postfix operator declarations dont specify a precedence level. Postfix
operators are nonassociative.
After declaring a new operator, you implement it by declaring a function that has the same name as the
operator. If youre implementing a prefix or postfix operator, you must also mark that function
declaration with the corresponding prefix or postfix declaration modifier. If youre implementing an
infix operator, you dont mark that function declaration with the infix declaration modifier. To see an
example of how to create and implement a new operator, see Custom Operators.

G R A M M A R O F A N O P E R AT O R D E C L A R AT I O N

operator-declaration prefix-operator-declaration | postfix-operator-declaration | infixoperator-declaration

prefix-operator-declaration prefix operator operator { }
postfix-operator-declaration postfix operator operator { }
infix-operator-declaration infix operator operator { infix-operator-attributes opt

infix-operator-attributes precedence-clause opt associativity-clause opt

precedence-clause precedence precedence-level
precedence-level A decimal integer between 0 and 255, inclusive
associativity-clause associativity associativity
associativity left | right | none

Declaration Modifiers
Declaration modifiers are keywords or context-sensitive keywords that modify the behavior or
meaning of a declaration. You specify a declaration modifier by writing the appropriate keyword or
context-sensitive keyword between a declarations attributes (if any) and the keyword that introduces
the declaration.
dynamic

Apply this modifier to any member of a class that can be represented by Objective-C. When you
mark a member declaration with the dynamic modifier, access to that member is always
dynamically dispatched using the Objective-C runtime. Access to that member is never inlined
or devirtualized by the compiler.
Because declarations marked with the dynamic modifier are dispatched using the Objective-C
runtime, theyre implicitly marked with the objc attribute.
final

Apply this modifier to a class or to a property, method, or subscript member of a class. Its
applied to a class to indicate that the class cant be subclassed. Its applied to a property,
method, or subscript of a class to indicate that a class member cant be overridden in any
subclass.
lazy

Apply this modifier to a stored variable property of a class or structure to indicate that the
propertys initial value is calculated and stored at most once, when the property is first
accessed. For an example of how to use the lazy modifier, see Lazy Stored Properties.
optional

Apply this modifier to a protocols property, method, or subscript members to indicate that a
conforming type isnt required to implement those members.
You can apply the optional modifier only to protocols that are marked with the objc attribute.
As a result, only class types can adopt and conform to a protocol that contains optional member
requirements. For more information about how to use the optional modifier and for guidance
about how to access optional protocol membersfor example, when youre not sure whether a
conforming type implements themsee Optional Protocol Requirements.
required

Apply this modifier to a designated or convenience initializer of a class to indicate that every
subclass must implement that initializer. The subclasss implementation of that initializer must
also be marked with the required modifier.
weak

The weak modifier is applied to a variable or a stored variable property to indicate that the
variable or property has a weak reference to the object stored as its value. The type of the
variable or property must be an optional class type. Use the weak modifier to avoid strong
reference cycles. For an example and more information about the weak modifier, see Weak
References.

Access Control Levels

Swift provides three levels of access control: public, internal, and private. You can mark a
declaration with one of the access-level modifiers below to specify the declarations access level.
Access control is discussed in detail in Access Control.
public

Apply this modifier to a declaration to indicate the declaration can be accessed by code in the
same module as the declaration. Declarations marked with the public access-level modifier can
also be accessed by code in a module that imports the module that contains that declaration.
internal

Apply this modifier to a declaration to indicate the declaration can be accessed only by code in
the same module as the declaration. By default, most declarations are implicitly marked with the
internal access-level modifier.
private

Apply this modifier to a declaration to indicate the declaration can be accessed only by code in
the same source file as the declaration.
Each access-level modifier above optionally accepts a single argument, which consists of the
keyword set enclosed in parentheses (for instance, private(set)). Use this form of an access-level

modifier when you want to specify an access level for the setter of a variable or subscript thats less
than or equal to the access level of the variable or subscript itself, as discussed in Getters and
Setters.
G R A M M A R O F A D E C L A R AT I O N M O D I F I E R

declaration-modifier class | convenience | dynamic | final | infix | lazy |

mutating | nonmutating | optional | override | postfix | prefix | required |
static | unowned | unowned ( safe ) | unowned ( unsafe ) | weak
declaration-modifier access-level-modifier
declaration-modifiers declaration-modifier declaration-modifiers opt
access-level-modifier internal | internal ( set )
access-level-modifier private | private ( set )
access-level-modifier public | public ( set )
access-level-modifiers access-level-modifier access-level-modifiers opt

Attributes
Attributes provide more information about a declaration or type. There are two kinds of attributes in
Swift, those that apply to declarations and those that apply to types.
You specify an attribute by writing the @ symbol followed by the attributes name and any arguments
that the attribute accepts:
@ attribute name
@ attribute name ( attribute arguments )

Some declaration attributes accept arguments that specify more information about the attribute and
how it applies to a particular declaration. These attribute arguments are enclosed in parentheses,
and their format is defined by the attribute they belong to.

Declaration Attributes
You can apply a declaration attribute to declarations only. However, you can also apply the noreturn
attribute to a function or method type.
availability

Apply this attribute to any declaration to indicate the declarations lifecycle relative to certain
platforms and operating system versions.
The availability attribute always appears with a list of two or more comma-separated attribute
arguments. These arguments begin with one of the following platform names: iOS,
iOSApplicationExtension, OSX, or OSXApplicationExtension. You can also use an asterisk (*) to
indicate the availability of the declaration on all of the platform names listed above. The
remaining arguments can appear in any order and specify additional information about the
declarations lifecycle, including important milestones.
The unavailable argument indicates that the declaration isnt available on the specified
platform.
The introduced argument indicates the first version of the specified platform in which
the declaration was introduced. It has the following form:
introduced= version number

The version number consists of a positive integer or floating-point decimal number.

The deprecated argument indicates the first version of the specified platform in which
the declaration was deprecated. It has the following form:
deprecated= version number

The version number consists of a positive integer or floating-point decimal number.

The obsoleted argument indicates the first version of the specified platform in which the
declaration was obsoleted. When a declaration is obsoleted, its removed from the
specified platform and can no longer be used. It has the following form:
obsoleted= version number

The version number consists of a positive integer or floating-point decimal number.

The message argument is used to provide a textual message thats displayed by the
compiler when emitting a warning or error about the use of a deprecated or obsoleted
declaration. It has the following form:
message= message

The message consists of a string literal.

The renamed argument is used to provide a textual message that indicates the new name
for a declaration thats been renamed. The new name is displayed by the compiler when
emitting an error about the use of a renamed declaration. It has the following form:
renamed= new name

The new name consists of a string literal.

You can use the renamed argument in conjunction with the unavailable argument and a
type alias declaration to indicate to clients of your code that a declaration has been
renamed. For example, this is useful when the name of a declaration is changed between
releases of a framework or library.
1

// First release

protocol MyProtocol {

3
4

// protocol definition
}

// Subsequent release renames MyProtocol

protocol MyRenamedProtocol {

3
4

// protocol definition
}

5
6

@availability(*, unavailable, renamed="MyRenamedProtocol")

typealias MyProtocol = MyRenamedProtocol

You can apply multiple availability attributes on a single declaration to specify the
declarations availability on different platforms. The compiler uses an availability attribute
only when the attribute specifies a platform that matches the current target platform.
autoclosure

This attribute is used to delay the evaluation of an expression by automatically wrapping that
expression in a closure with no arguments. Apply this attribute to a parameter declaration for a
function or method type that takes no arguments and that returns the type of the expression.
Declarations with the autoclosure attribute imply noescape as well, except when passed the
optional attribute argument escaping. For an example of how to use the autoclosure attribute,
see Function Type.
noescape

Apply this attribute to a function or method declaration to indicate that a parameter it will not be
stored for later execution, such that it is guaranteed not to outlive the lifetime of the call.
Function type parameters with the noescape declaration attribute do not require explicit use of
self. for properties or methods.
noreturn

Apply this attribute to a function or method declaration to indicate that the corresponding type of
that function or method, T, is @noreturn T. You can mark a function or method type with this
attribute to indicate that the function or method doesnt return to its caller.
You can override a function or method that is not marked with the noreturn attribute with a
function or method that is. That said, you cant override a function or method that is marked with
the noreturn attribute with a function or method that is not. Similar rules apply when you
implement a protocol method in a conforming type.
NSApplicationMain

Apply this attribute to a class to indicate that it is the application delegate. Using this attribute is
equivalent to calling the NSApplicationMain function and passing this classs name as the name
of the delegate class.
If you do not use this attribute, supply a main.swift file with a main function that calls the

function. For example, if your app uses a custom subclass of NSApplication

as its principal class, call the NSApplicationMain function instead of using this attribute.
NSApplicationMain

NSCopying

Apply this attribute to a stored variable property of a class. This attribute causes the propertys
setter to be synthesized with a copy of the propertys valuereturned by the copyWithZone(_:)
methodinstead of the value of the property itself. The type of the property must conform to the
NSCopying protocol.
The NSCopying attribute behaves in a way similar to the Objective-C copy property attribute.
NSManaged

Apply this attribute to a stored variable property of a class that inherits from NSManagedObject to
indicate that the storage and implementation of the property are provided dynamically by Core
Data at runtime based on the associated entity description.
objc

Apply this attribute to any declaration that can be represented in Objective-Cfor example,
non-nested classes, protocols, nongeneric enumerations (constrained to integer raw-value types),
properties and methods (including getters and setters) of classes and protocols, initializers,
deinitializers, and subscripts. The objc attribute tells the compiler that a declaration is available
to use in Objective-C code.
If you apply the objc attribute to a class or protocol, its implicitly applied to the members of
that class or protocol. The compiler also implicitly adds the objc attribute to a class that inherits
from another class marked with the objc attribute. Protocols marked with the objc attribute cant
inherit from protocols that arent.
If you apply the objc attribute to an enumeration, each enumeration case is exposed to ObjectiveC code as the concatenation of the enumeration name and the case name. For example, a case
named Venus in a Swift Planet enumeration is exposed to Objective-C code as a case named
PlanetVenus.
The objc attribute optionally accepts a single attribute argument, which consists of an identifier.
Use this attribute when you want to expose a different name to Objective-C for the entity the
objc attribute applies to. You can use this argument to name classes, protocols, methods, getters,
setters, and initializers. The example below exposes the getter for the enabled property of the
ExampleClass to Objective-C code as isEnabled rather than just as the name of the property
itself.

@objc

class ExampleClass {

var enabled: Bool {

@objc(isEnabled) get {

// Return the appropriate value

7
8

}
}

UIApplicationMain

Apply this attribute to a class to indicate that it is the application delegate. Using this attribute is
equivalent to calling the UIApplicationMain function and passing this classs name as the name
of the delegate class.
If you do not use this attribute, supply a main.swift file with a main function that calls the
UIApplicationMain function. For example, if your app uses a custom subclass of UIApplication
as its principal class, call the UIApplicationMain function instead of using this attribute.

Declaration Attributes Used by Interface Builder

Interface Builder attributes are declaration attributes used by Interface Builder to synchronize with
Xcode. Swift provides the following Interface Builder attributes: IBAction, IBDesignable,
IBInspectable, and IBOutlet. These attributes are conceptually the same as their Objective-C
counterparts.
You apply the IBOutlet and IBInspectable attributes to property declarations of a class. You apply
the IBAction attribute to method declarations of a class and the IBDesignable attribute to class
declarations.

Type Attributes
You can apply type attributes to types only. However, you can also apply the noreturn attribute to a
function or method declaration.
noreturn

Apply this attribute to the type of a function or method to indicate that the function or method
doesnt return to its caller. You can also mark a function or method declaration with this attribute

to indicate that the corresponding type of that function or method, T, is @noreturn T.

G R A M M A R O F A N AT T R I B U T E

attribute @ attribute-name attribute-argument-clause opt

attribute-name identifier
attribute-argument-clause ( balanced-tokens opt )
attributes attribute attributes opt
balanced-tokens balanced-token balanced-tokens opt
balanced-token ( balanced-tokens opt )
balanced-token [ balanced-tokens opt ]
balanced-token { balanced-tokens opt }
balanced-token Any identifier, keyword, literal, or operator
balanced-token Any punctuation except ( , ) , [ , ] , { , or

Patterns
A pattern represents the structure of a single value or a composite value. For example, the structure
of a tuple (1, 2) is a comma-separated list of two elements. Because patterns represent the structure
of a value rather than any one particular value, you can match them with a variety of values. For
instance, the pattern (x, y) matches the tuple (1, 2) and any other two-element tuple. In addition to
matching a pattern with a value, you can extract part or all of a composite value and bind each part to
a constant or variable name.
In Swift, patterns occur in variable and constant declarations (on their left-hand side), in for-in
statements, and in switch statements (in their case labels). Although any pattern can occur in the case
labels of a switch statement, in the other contexts, only wildcard patterns, identifier patterns, and
patterns containing those two patterns can occur.
You can specify a type annotation for a wildcard pattern, an identifier pattern, and a tuple pattern to
constrain the pattern to match only values of a certain type.
G R A M M A R O F A P AT T E R N

pattern
pattern
pattern
pattern
pattern
pattern
pattern

wildcard-pattern type-annotation opt

identifier-pattern type-annotation opt
value-binding-pattern
tuple-pattern type-annotation opt
enum-case-pattern
type-casting-pattern
expression-pattern

Wildcard Pattern
A wildcard pattern matches and ignores any value and consists of an underscore (_). Use a wildcard
pattern when you dont care about the values being matched against. For example, the following code
iterates through the closed range 1...3, ignoring the current value of the range on each iteration of the
loop:
1

for _ in 1...3 {

2
3

// Do something three times.

}

G R A M M A R O F A W I L D C A R D P AT T E R N

wildcard-pattern

Identifier Pattern
An identifier pattern matches any value and binds the matched value to a variable or constant name.
For example, in the following constant declaration, someValue is an identifier pattern that matches the
value 42 of type Int:
let someValue = 42

When the match succeeds, the value 42 is bound (assigned) to the constant name someValue.
When the pattern on the left-hand side of a variable or constant declaration is an identifier pattern, the
identifier pattern is implicitly a subpattern of a value-binding pattern.
G R A M M A R O F A N I D E N T I F I E R P AT T E R N

identifier-pattern identifier

Value-Binding Pattern
A value-binding pattern binds matched values to variable or constant names. Value-binding patterns
that bind a matched value to the name of a constant begin with the keyword let; those that bind to the
name of variable begin with the keyword var.
Identifiers patterns within a value-binding pattern bind new named variables or constants to their
matching values. For example, you can decompose the elements of a tuple and bind the value of each
element to a corresponding identifier pattern.
1

let point = (3, 2)

switch point {

3
4

// Bind x and y to the elements of point.

case let (x, y):

println("The point is at (\(x), \(y)).")

// prints "The point is at (3, 2)."

In the example above, let distributes to each identifier pattern in the tuple pattern (x, y). Because of
this behavior, the switch cases case let (x, y): and case (let x, let y): match the same values.
G R A M M A R O F A VA L U E - B I N D I N G P AT T E R N

value-binding-pattern

var

pattern |

let

pattern

Tuple Pattern
A tuple pattern is a comma-separated list of zero or more patterns, enclosed in parentheses. Tuple
patterns match values of corresponding tuple types.
You can constrain a tuple pattern to match certain kinds of tuple types by using type annotations. For
example, the tuple pattern (x, y): (Int, Int) in the constant declaration let (x, y): (Int, Int) =
(1, 2) matches only tuple types in which both elements are of type Int. To constrain only some
elements of a tuple pattern, provide type annotations directly to those individual elements. For
example, the tuple pattern in let (x: String, y) matches any two-element tuple type, as long as the
first element is of type String.
When a tuple pattern is used as the pattern in a for-in statement or in a variable or constant
declaration, it can contain only wildcard patterns, identifier patterns, or other tuple patterns that
contain those. For example, the following code isnt valid because the element 0 in the tuple pattern
(x, 0) is an expression pattern:
1

let points = [(0, 0), (1, 0), (1, 1), (2, 0), (2, 1)]

// This code isn't valid.

for (x, 0) in points {

4
5

/* ... */
}

The parentheses around a tuple pattern that contains a single element have no effect. The pattern
matches values of that single elements type. For example, the following are equivalent:
1

let a = 2

// a: Int = 2

let (a) = 2

// a: Int = 2

let (a): Int = 2 // a: Int = 2

G R A M M A R O F A T U P L E P AT T E R N

tuple-pattern ( tuple-pattern-element-list opt )

tuple-pattern-element-list tuple-pattern-element | tuple-pattern-element
element-list
tuple-pattern-element pattern

tuple-pattern-

Enumeration Case Pattern

An enumeration case pattern matches a case of an existing enumeration type. Enumeration case
patterns appear only in switch statement case labels.
If the enumeration case youre trying to match has any associated values, the corresponding
enumeration case pattern must specify a tuple pattern that contains one element for each associated
value. For an example that uses a switch statement to match enumeration cases containing associated
values, see Associated Values.
G R A M M A R O F A N E N U M E R AT I O N C A S E P AT T E R N

enum-case-pattern type-identifier opt

enum-case-name tuple-pattern opt

Type-Casting Patterns
There are two type-casting patterns, the is pattern and the as pattern. Both type-casting patterns
appear only in switch statement case labels. The is and as patterns have the following form:
is

type

pattern

as

type

The is pattern matches a value if the type of that value at runtime is the same as the type specified in
the right-hand side of the is patternor a subclass of that type. The is pattern behaves like the is
operator in that they both perform a type cast but discard the returned type.
The as pattern matches a value if the type of that value at runtime is the same as the type specified in
the right-hand side of the as patternor a subclass of that type. If the match succeeds, the type of the
matched value is cast to the pattern specified in the left-hand side of the as pattern.
For an example that uses a switch statement to match values with is and as patterns, see Type Casting
for Any and AnyObject.

G R A M M A R O F A T Y P E C A S T I N G P AT T E R N

type-casting-pattern is-pattern | as-pattern

is-pattern is type
as-pattern pattern as type

Expression Pattern
An expression pattern represents the value of an expression. Expression patterns appear only in
switch statement case labels.
The expression represented by the expression pattern is compared with the value of an input
expression using the Swift standard library ~= operator. The matches succeeds if the ~= operator
returns true. By default, the ~= operator compares two values of the same type using the == operator.
It can also match an integer value with a range of integers in an Range object, as the following
example shows:
1

let point = (1, 2)

switch point {

case (0, 0):

4
5

println("(0, 0) is at the origin.")

case (-2...2, -2...2):

6
7

println("(\(point.0), \(point.1)) is near the origin.")

default:

8
9

10

println("The point is at (\(point.0), \(point.1)).")

}

// prints "(1, 2) is near the origin."

You can overload the ~= operator to provide custom expression matching behavior. For example, you
can rewrite the above example to compare the point expression with a string representations of
points.

// Overload the ~= operator to match a string with an integer

func ~=(pattern: String, value: Int) -> Bool {

return pattern == "\(value)"

switch point {

case ("0", "0"):

7
8
9

println("(0, 0) is at the origin.")

default:
println("The point is at (\(point.0), \(point.1)).")

10

11

// prints "The point is at (1, 2)."

G R A M M A R O F A N E X P R E S S I O N P AT T E R N

expression-pattern expression

Generic Parameters and Arguments

This chapter describes parameters and arguments for generic types, functions, and initializers. When
you declare a generic type, function, or initializer, you specify the type parameters that the generic
type, function, or initializer can work with. These type parameters act as placeholders that are
replaced by actual concrete type arguments when an instance of a generic type is created or a generic
function or initializer is called.
For an overview of generics in Swift, see Generics.

Generic Parameter Clause

A generic parameter clause specifies the type parameters of a generic type or function, along with
any associated constraints and requirements on those parameters. A generic parameter clause is
enclosed in angle brackets (<>) and has one of the following forms:
< generic parameter list >
< generic parameter list

where

requirements >

The generic parameter list is a comma-separated list of generic parameters, each of which has the
following form:
type parameter :

constraint

A generic parameter consists of a type parameter followed by an optional constraint. A type

parameter is simply the name of a placeholder type (for instance, T, U, V, Key, Value, and so on). You
have access to the type parameters (and any of their associated types) in the rest of the type, function,
or initializer declaration, including in the signature of the function or initializer.
The constraint specifies that a type parameter inherits from a specific class or conforms to a protocol
or protocol composition. For instance, in the generic function below, the generic parameter T:
Comparable indicates that any type argument substituted for the type parameter T must conform to the
Comparable protocol.

func simpleMax<T: Comparable>(x: T, y: T) -> T {

if x < y {

return y

return x

Because Int and Double, for example, both conform to the Comparable protocol, this function accepts
arguments of either type. In contrast with generic types, you dont specify a generic argument clause
when you use a generic function or initializer. The type arguments are instead inferred from the type
of the arguments passed to the function or initializer.
1

simpleMax(17, 42) // T is inferred to be Int

simpleMax(3.14159, 2.71828) // T is inferred to be Double

Where Clauses
You can specify additional requirements on type parameters and their associated types by including a
where clause after the generic parameter list. A where clause consists of the keyword where,
followed by a comma-separated list of one or more requirements.
The requirements in a where clause specify that a type parameter inherits from a class or conforms to
a protocol or protocol composition. Although the where clause provides syntactic sugar for
expressing simple constraints on type parameters (for instance, T: Comparable is equivalent to T
where T: Comparable and so on), you can use it to provide more complex constraints on type
parameters and their associated types. For instance, you can express the constraints that a generic type
T inherits from a class C and conforms to a protocol P as <T where T: C, T: P>.
As mentioned above, you can constrain the associated types of type parameters to conform to
protocols. For example, the generic parameter clause <T: Generator where T.Element: Equatable>
specifies that T conforms to the Generator protocol and the associated type of T, T.Element, conforms
to the Equatable protocol (T has the associated type Element because Generator declares Element and
T conforms to Generator).
You can also specify the requirement that two types be identical, using the == operator. For example,
the generic parameter clause <T: Generator, U: Generator where T.Element == U.Element>
expresses the constraints that T and U conform to the Generator protocol and that their associated
types must be identical.
Any type argument substituted for a type parameter must meet all the constraints and requirements

placed on the type parameter.

You can overload a generic function or initializer by providing different constraints, requirements, or
both on the type parameters in the generic parameter clause. When you call an overloaded generic
function or initializer, the compiler uses these constraints to resolve which overloaded function or
initializer to invoke.
G R A M M A R O F A G E N E R I C PA R A M E T E R C L A U SE

generic-parameter-clause < generic-parameter-list requirement-clause opt >

generic-parameter-list generic-parameter | generic-parameter , generic-parameter-list
generic-parameter type-name
generic-parameter type-name : type-identifier
generic-parameter type-name : protocol-composition-type
requirement-clause where requirement-list
requirement-list requirement | requirement , requirement-list
requirement conformance-requirement | same-type-requirement
conformance-requirement type-identifier : type-identifier
conformance-requirement type-identifier : protocol-composition-type
same-type-requirement type-identifier == type

Generic Argument Clause

A generic argument clause specifies the type arguments of a generic type. A generic argument clause
is enclosed in angle brackets (<>) and has the following form:
< generic argument list >

The generic argument list is a comma-separated list of type arguments. A type argument is the name
of an actual concrete type that replaces a corresponding type parameter in the generic parameter
clause of a generic type. The result is a specialized version of that generic type. As an example, the
Swift standard library defines a generic dictionary type as:
1

struct Dictionary<Key: Hashable, Value>: CollectionType,

DictionaryLiteralConvertible {

2
3

/* ... */
}

The specialized version of the generic Dictionary type, Dictionary<String, Int> is formed by
replacing the generic parameters Key: Hashable and Value with the concrete type arguments String
and Int. Each type argument must satisfy all the constraints of the generic parameter it replaces,
including any additional requirements specified in a where clause. In the example above, the Key type
parameter is constrained to conform to the Hashable protocol and therefore String must also conform
to the Hashable protocol.
You can also replace a type parameter with a type argument that is itself a specialized version of a
generic type (provided it satisfies the appropriate constraints and requirements). For example, you
can replace the type parameter T in Array<T> with a specialized version of an array, Array<Int>, to
form an array whose elements are themselves arrays of integers.
let arrayOfArrays: Array<Array<Int>> = [[1, 2, 3], [4, 5, 6], [7, 8, 9]]

As mentioned in Generic Parameter Clause, you dont use a generic argument clause to specify the
type arguments of a generic function or initializer.
G R A M M A R O F A G EN ER I C A R G U M EN T C LA U SE

generic-argument-clause < generic-argument-list >

generic-argument-list generic-argument | generic-argument
generic-argument type

generic-argument-list

Summary of the Grammar

Statements
G R A M M A R O F A S T AT E M E N T

statement expression ; opt

statement declaration ; opt
statement loop-statement ; opt
statement branch-statement ; opt
statement labeled-statement ; opt
statement control-transfer-statement
statements statement statements opt

; opt

G R A M M A R O F A L O O P S T AT E M E N T

loop-statement
loop-statement
loop-statement
loop-statement

for-statement
for-in-statement
while-statement
do-while-statement

G R A M M A R O F A F O R S T AT E M E N T

for-statement
for-statement

for
for

for-init opt ; expression opt ; expression opt code-block

( for-init opt ; expression opt ; expression opt ) code-block

for-init variable-declaration | expression-list

G R A M M A R O F A F O R - I N S T AT E M E N T

for-in-statement

for

pattern

in

expression code-block

G R A M M A R O F A W H I L E S T AT E M E N T

while-statement while while-condition code-block

while-condition expression | expression opt optional-binding-list
optional-binding-list optional-binding-clause | optional-binding-clause , optionalbinding-list
optional-binding-clause optional-binding-head optional-binding-continuationlist opt guard-clause opt
optional-binding-head let identifier-pattern initializer | var identifierpattern initializer
optional-binding-continuation-list optional-binding-continuation | optional-bindingcontinuation , optional-binding-continuation-list
optional-binding-continuation identifier-pattern initializer | optional-binding-head
G R A M M A R O F A D O - W H I L E S T AT E M E N T

do-while-statement

do

code-block

while

expression

G R A M M A R O F A B R A N C H S T AT E M E N T

branch-statement if-statement
branch-statement switch-statement
G R A M M A R O F A N I F S T AT E M E N T

if-statement if if-condition code-block else-clause opt

if-condition expression | expression opt optional-binding-list
else-clause else code-block | else if-statement
G R A M M A R O F A S W I T C H S T AT E M E N T

switch-statement switch expression { switch-cases opt }

switch-cases switch-case switch-cases opt
switch-case case-label statements | default-label statements
switch-case case-label ; | default-label ;
case-label case case-item-list :
case-item-list pattern guard-clause opt | pattern guard-clause opt
default-label default :
guard-clause where guard-expression
guard-expression expression

case-item-list

G R A M M A R O F A L A B E L E D S T AT E M E N T

labeled-statement statement-label loop-statement | statement-label switch-statement

statement-label label-name :
label-name identifier
G R A M M A R O F A C O N T R O L T R A N S F E R S T AT E M E N T

control-transfer-statement
control-transfer-statement
control-transfer-statement
control-transfer-statement

break-statement
continue-statement
fallthrough-statement
return-statement

G R A M M A R O F A B R E A K S T AT E M E N T

break-statement

break

label-name opt

G R A M M A R O F A C O N T I N U E S T AT E M E N T

continue-statement

continue

label-name opt

G R A M M A R O F A F A L LT H R O U G H S T AT E M E N T

fallthrough-statement

fallthrough

G R A M M A R O F A R E T U R N S T AT E M E N T

return-statement

return

expression opt

Generic Parameters and Arguments

G R A M M A R O F A G E N E R I C PA R A M E T E R C L A U SE

generic-parameter-clause < generic-parameter-list requirement-clause opt >

generic-parameter-list generic-parameter | generic-parameter , generic-parameter-list
generic-parameter type-name
generic-parameter type-name : type-identifier
generic-parameter type-name : protocol-composition-type
requirement-clause where requirement-list
requirement-list requirement | requirement , requirement-list
requirement conformance-requirement | same-type-requirement
conformance-requirement type-identifier : type-identifier
conformance-requirement type-identifier : protocol-composition-type
same-type-requirement type-identifier == type
G R A M M A R O F A G EN ER I C A R G U M EN T C LA U SE

generic-argument-clause < generic-argument-list >

generic-argument-list generic-argument | generic-argument
generic-argument type

Declarations
G R A M M A R O F A D E C L A R AT I O N

declaration import-declaration
declaration constant-declaration
declaration variable-declaration
declaration typealias-declaration
declaration function-declaration
declaration enum-declaration
declaration struct-declaration
declaration class-declaration
declaration protocol-declaration
declaration initializer-declaration
declaration deinitializer-declaration
declaration extension-declaration
declaration subscript-declaration
declaration operator-declaration
declarations declaration declarations opt

generic-argument-list

G R A M M A R O F A T O P - L E V E L D E C L A R AT I O N

top-level-declaration statements opt

G RA M M A R O F A CO D E BLO CK

code-block

statements opt

G R A M M A R O F A N I M P O R T D E C L A R AT I O N

import-declaration attributes opt

import

import-kind opt import-path

import-kind typealias | struct | class | enum | protocol | var | func

import-path import-path-identifier | import-path-identifier . import-path
import-path-identifier identifier | operator
G R A M M A R O F A C O N S T A N T D E C L A R AT I O N

constant-declaration attributes opt declaration-modifiers opt

let

pattern-initializer-list pattern-initializer | pattern-initializer

pattern-initializer pattern initializer opt
initializer = expression

pattern-initializer-list
pattern-initializer-list

G R A M M A R O F A VA R I A B L E D E C L A R AT I O N

variable-declaration variable-declaration-head
variable-declaration variable-declaration-head
block
variable-declaration variable-declaration-head
setter-block
variable-declaration variable-declaration-head
setter-keyword-block
variable-declaration variable-declaration-head
block
variable-declaration variable-declaration-head
annotation initializer opt willSet-didSet-block

pattern-initializer-list
variable-name type-annotation codevariable-name type-annotation gettervariable-name type-annotation gettervariable-name initializer willSet-didSetvariable-name type-

variable-declaration-head attributes opt declaration-modifiers opt

variable-name identifier

var

getter-setter-block { getter-clause setter-clause opt }

getter-setter-block { setter-clause getter-clause }
getter-clause attributes opt get code-block
setter-clause attributes opt set setter-name opt code-block
setter-name ( identifier )
getter-setter-keyword-block { getter-keyword-clause setter-keyword-clause opt
getter-setter-keyword-block { setter-keyword-clause getter-keyword-clause }
getter-keyword-clause attributes opt get
setter-keyword-clause attributes opt set

willSet-didSet-block { willSet-clause didSet-clause opt }

willSet-didSet-block { didSet-clause willSet-clause opt }
willSet-clause attributes opt willSet setter-name opt code-block
didSet-clause attributes opt didSet setter-name opt code-block
G R A M M A R O F A T Y P E A L I A S D E C L A R AT I O N

typealias-declaration typealias-head typealias-assignment

typealias-head attributes opt access-level-modifier opt typealias typealias-name
typealias-name identifier
typealias-assignment = type

G R A M M A R O F A F U N C T I O N D E C L A R AT I O N

function-declaration function-head function-name generic-parameter-clause opt functionsignature function-body

function-head attributes opt declaration-modifiers opt
function-name identifier | operator

func

function-signature parameter-clauses function-result opt

function-result -> attributes opt type
function-body code-block
parameter-clauses parameter-clause parameter-clauses opt
parameter-clause ( ) | ( parameter-list ... opt )
parameter-list parameter | parameter , parameter-list
parameter inout opt let opt # opt external-parameter-name opt local-parameter-name typeannotation default-argument-clause opt
parameter inout opt var # opt external-parameter-name opt local-parameter-name typeannotation default-argument-clause opt
parameter attributes opt type
external-parameter-name identifier | _
local-parameter-name identifier | _
default-argument-clause = expression

G R A M M A R O F A N E N U M E R AT I O N D E C L A R AT I O N

enum-declaration attributes opt access-level-modifier opt union-style-enum

enum-declaration attributes opt access-level-modifier opt raw-value-style-enum
union-style-enum enum enum-name generic-parameter-clause opt type-inheritanceclause opt { union-style-enum-members opt }
union-style-enum-members union-style-enum-member union-style-enum-members opt
union-style-enum-member declaration | union-style-enum-case-clause
union-style-enum-case-clause attributes opt case union-style-enum-case-list
union-style-enum-case-list union-style-enum-case | union-style-enum-case , union-styleenum-case-list
union-style-enum-case enum-case-name tuple-type opt
enum-name identifier
enum-case-name identifier
raw-value-style-enum enum enum-name generic-parameter-clause opt type-inheritanceclause { raw-value-style-enum-members }
raw-value-style-enum-members raw-value-style-enum-member raw-value-style-enummembers opt
raw-value-style-enum-member declaration | raw-value-style-enum-case-clause
raw-value-style-enum-case-clause attributes opt case raw-value-style-enum-case-list
raw-value-style-enum-case-list raw-value-style-enum-case | raw-value-style-enumcase , raw-value-style-enum-case-list
raw-value-style-enum-case enum-case-name raw-value-assignment opt
raw-value-assignment = raw-value-literal
raw-value-literal numeric-literal | string-literal | boolean-literal
G R A M M A R O F A S T R U C T U R E D E C L A R AT I O N

struct-declaration attributes opt access-level-modifier opt struct struct-name genericparameter-clause opt type-inheritance-clause opt struct-body
struct-name identifier
struct-body { declarations opt }
G R A M M A R O F A C L A S S D E C L A R AT I O N

class-declaration attributes opt access-level-modifier opt class class-name genericparameter-clause opt type-inheritance-clause opt class-body
class-name identifier
class-body { declarations opt }

G R A M M A R O F A P R O T O C O L D E C L A R AT I O N

protocol-declaration attributes opt access-level-modifier opt

inheritance-clause opt protocol-body
protocol-name identifier
protocol-body { protocol-member-declarations opt }

protocol

protocol-name type-

protocol-member-declaration protocol-property-declaration
protocol-member-declaration protocol-method-declaration
protocol-member-declaration protocol-initializer-declaration
protocol-member-declaration protocol-subscript-declaration
protocol-member-declaration protocol-associated-type-declaration
protocol-member-declarations protocol-member-declaration protocol-memberdeclarations opt
G R A M M A R O F A P R O T O C O L P R O P E R T Y D E C L A R AT I O N

protocol-property-declaration variable-declaration-head variable-name typeannotation getter-setter-keyword-block

G R A M M A R O F A P R O T O C O L M E T H O D D E C L A R AT I O N

protocol-method-declaration function-head function-name generic-parameterclause opt function-signature

G R A M M A R O F A P R O T O C O L I N I T I A L I Z E R D E C L A R AT I O N

protocol-initializer-declaration initializer-head generic-parameter-clause opt parameterclause

G R A M M A R O F A P R O T O C O L S U B S C R I P T D E C L A R AT I O N

protocol-subscript-declaration subscript-head subscript-result getter-setter-keywordblock

G R A M M A R O F A P R O T O C O L A S S O C I AT E D T Y P E D E C L A R AT I O N

protocol-associated-type-declaration typealias-head type-inheritance-clause opt typealiasassignment opt

G R A M M A R O F A N I N I T I A L I Z E R D E C L A R AT I O N

initializer-declaration initializer-head generic-parameter-clause opt parameterclause initializer-body

initializer-head attributes opt declaration-modifiers opt init
initializer-head attributes opt declaration-modifiers opt init ?
initializer-head attributes opt declaration-modifiers opt init !
initializer-body code-block
G R A M M A R O F A D E I N I T I A L I Z E R D E C L A R AT I O N

deinitializer-declaration attributes opt

deinit

code-block

G R A M M A R O F A N E X T E N S I O N D E C L A R AT I O N

extension-declaration access-level-modifier opt

inheritance-clause opt extension-body
extension-body { declarations opt }

extension

type-identifier type-

G R A M M A R O F A S U B S C R I P T D E C L A R AT I O N

subscript-declaration subscript-head subscript-result code-block

subscript-declaration subscript-head subscript-result getter-setter-block
subscript-declaration subscript-head subscript-result getter-setter-keyword-block
subscript-head attributes opt declaration-modifiers opt subscript parameter-clause
subscript-result -> attributes opt type
G R A M M A R O F A N O P E R AT O R D E C L A R AT I O N

operator-declaration prefix-operator-declaration | postfix-operator-declaration | infixoperator-declaration

prefix-operator-declaration prefix operator operator { }
postfix-operator-declaration postfix operator operator { }
infix-operator-declaration infix operator operator { infix-operator-attributes opt
infix-operator-attributes precedence-clause opt associativity-clause opt
precedence-clause precedence precedence-level
precedence-level A decimal integer between 0 and 255, inclusive
associativity-clause associativity associativity
associativity left | right | none

G R A M M A R O F A D E C L A R AT I O N M O D I F I E R

declaration-modifier class | convenience | dynamic | final | infix | lazy |

mutating | nonmutating | optional | override | postfix | prefix | required |
static | unowned | unowned ( safe ) | unowned ( unsafe ) | weak
declaration-modifier access-level-modifier
declaration-modifiers declaration-modifier declaration-modifiers opt
access-level-modifier internal | internal ( set )
access-level-modifier private | private ( set )
access-level-modifier public | public ( set )
access-level-modifiers access-level-modifier access-level-modifiers opt

Patterns
G R A M M A R O F A P AT T E R N

pattern
pattern
pattern
pattern
pattern
pattern
pattern

wildcard-pattern type-annotation opt

identifier-pattern type-annotation opt
value-binding-pattern
tuple-pattern type-annotation opt
enum-case-pattern
type-casting-pattern
expression-pattern

G R A M M A R O F A W I L D C A R D P AT T E R N

wildcard-pattern

G R A M M A R O F A N I D E N T I F I E R P AT T E R N

identifier-pattern identifier
G R A M M A R O F A VA L U E - B I N D I N G P AT T E R N

value-binding-pattern

var

pattern |

let

pattern

G R A M M A R O F A T U P L E P AT T E R N

tuple-pattern ( tuple-pattern-element-list opt )

tuple-pattern-element-list tuple-pattern-element | tuple-pattern-element
element-list
tuple-pattern-element pattern
G R A M M A R O F A N E N U M E R AT I O N C A S E P AT T E R N

enum-case-pattern type-identifier opt

enum-case-name tuple-pattern opt

G R A M M A R O F A T Y P E C A S T I N G P AT T E R N

type-casting-pattern is-pattern | as-pattern

is-pattern is type
as-pattern pattern as type
G R A M M A R O F A N E X P R E S S I O N P AT T E R N

expression-pattern expression

Attributes
G R A M M A R O F A N AT T R I B U T E

attribute @ attribute-name attribute-argument-clause opt

attribute-name identifier
attribute-argument-clause ( balanced-tokens opt )
attributes attribute attributes opt
balanced-tokens balanced-token balanced-tokens opt
balanced-token ( balanced-tokens opt )
balanced-token [ balanced-tokens opt ]
balanced-token { balanced-tokens opt }
balanced-token Any identifier, keyword, literal, or operator
balanced-token Any punctuation except ( , ) , [ , ] , { , or

Expressions

tuple-pattern-

G R A M M A R O F A N EX P R ESSI O N

expression prefix-expression binary-expressions opt

expression-list expression | expression , expression-list
G R A M M A R O F A P R EF I X EX P R ESSI O N

prefix-expression prefix-operator opt postfix-expression

prefix-expression in-out-expression
in-out-expression & identifier
G R A M M A R O F A B I N A RY EX P R ESSI O N

binary-expression binary-operator prefix-expression

binary-expression assignment-operator prefix-expression
binary-expression conditional-operator prefix-expression
binary-expression type-casting-operator
binary-expressions binary-expression binary-expressions opt
G R A M M A R O F A N A S S I G N M E N T O P E R AT O R

assignment-operator

G R A M M A R O F A C O N D I T I O N A L O P E R AT O R

conditional-operator

expression

G R A M M A R O F A T Y P E - C A S T I N G O P E R AT O R

type-casting-operator
type-casting-operator
type-casting-operator
type-casting-operator

is
as
as
as

type
type
? type
! type

G R A M M A R O F A P R I M A RY EX P R ESSI O N

primary-expression
primary-expression
primary-expression
primary-expression
primary-expression
primary-expression
primary-expression
primary-expression

identifier generic-argument-clause opt

literal-expression
self-expression
superclass-expression
closure-expression
parenthesized-expression
implicit-member-expression
wildcard-expression

G R A M M A R O F A LI T ER A L EX P R ESSI O N

literal-expression literal
literal-expression array-literal | dictionary-literal
literal-expression __FILE__ | __LINE__ | __COLUMN__ |

__FUNCTION__

array-literal [ array-literal-items opt ]

array-literal-items array-literal-item , opt | array-literal-item
array-literal-item expression

array-literal-items

dictionary-literal [ dictionary-literal-items ] | [ : ]
dictionary-literal-items dictionary-literal-item , opt | dictionary-literalitem , dictionary-literal-items
dictionary-literal-item expression : expression
G R A M M A R O F A SELF EX P R ESSI O N

self-expression
self-expression
self-expression
self-expression

self
self .
self [

identifier
expression

self . init

G R A M M A R O F A SU P ER C LA SS EX P R ESSI O N

superclass-expression superclass-method-expression | superclass-subscript-expression |

superclass-initializer-expression
superclass-method-expression super . identifier
superclass-subscript-expression super [ expression
superclass-initializer-expression super . init

G R A M M A R O F A C LO SU R E EX P R ESSI O N

closure-expression
closure-signature
closure-signature
closure-signature
closure-signature
closure-signature

closure-signature opt statements

parameter-clause function-result opt in

identifier-list function-result opt in
capture-list parameter-clause function-result opt
capture-list identifier-list function-result opt in
capture-list in

capture-list [ capture-specifier expression ]

capture-specifier weak | unowned | unowned(safe) |

in

unowned(unsafe)

G R A M M A R O F A I M P LI C I T M EM B ER EX P R ESSI O N

implicit-member-expression

identifier

G R A M M A R O F A PA R E N T H E SI Z E D E X P R E SSI O N

parenthesized-expression ( expression-element-list opt )

expression-element-list expression-element | expression-element
list
expression-element expression | identifier : expression

expression-element-

G R A M M A R O F A WI LD C A R D EX P R ESSI O N

wildcard-expression

G R A M M A R O F A P O ST F I X EX P R ESSI O N

postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression
postfix-expression

primary-expression
postfix-expression postfix-operator
function-call-expression
initializer-expression
explicit-member-expression
postfix-self-expression
dynamic-type-expression
subscript-expression
forced-value-expression
optional-chaining-expression

G R A M M A R O F A F U N C T I O N C A LL EX P R ESSI O N

function-call-expression postfix-expression parenthesized-expression

function-call-expression postfix-expression parenthesized-expression opt trailing-closure
trailing-closure closure-expression
G R A M M A R O F A N I N I T I A LI Z ER EX P R ESSI O N

initializer-expression postfix-expression

. init

G R A M M A R O F A N EX P LI C I T M EM B ER EX P R ESSI O N

explicit-member-expression postfix-expression
explicit-member-expression postfix-expression

.
.

G R A M M A R O F A SELF EX P R ESSI O N

postfix-self-expression postfix-expression

. self

decimal-digits
identifier generic-argument-clause opt

G R A M M A R O F A D YN A M I C T YP E EX P R ESSI O N

dynamic-type-expression postfix-expression

. dynamicType

G R A M M A R O F A SU B SC R I P T EX P R ESSI O N

subscript-expression postfix-expression

expression-list

G R A M M A R O F A F O R C E D - VA L U E E X P R E S S I O N

forced-value-expression postfix-expression

G R A M M A R O F A N O P T I O N A L- C H A I N I N G EX P R ESSI O N

optional-chaining-expression postfix-expression

Lexical Structure

G RA M M A R O F A N ID EN T IF IER

identifier identifier-head identifier-characters opt

identifier ` identifier-head identifier-characters opt `
identifier implicit-parameter-name
identifier-list identifier | identifier , identifier-list
identifier-head Upper- or lowercase letter A through Z
identifier-head _
identifier-head U+00A8, U+00AA, U+00AD, U+00AF, U+00B2U+00B5, or U+00B7
U+00BA
identifier-head U+00BCU+00BE, U+00C0U+00D6, U+00D8U+00F6, or U+00F8
U+00FF
identifier-head U+0100U+02FF, U+0370U+167F, U+1681U+180D, or U+180FU+1DBF
identifier-head U+1E00U+1FFF
identifier-head U+200BU+200D, U+202AU+202E, U+203FU+2040, U+2054, or
U+2060U+206F
identifier-head U+2070U+20CF, U+2100U+218F, U+2460U+24FF, or U+2776U+2793
identifier-head U+2C00U+2DFF or U+2E80U+2FFF
identifier-head U+3004U+3007, U+3021U+302F, U+3031U+303F, or U+3040U+D7FF
identifier-head U+F900U+FD3D, U+FD40U+FDCF, U+FDF0U+FE1F, or U+FE30
U+FE44
identifier-head U+FE47U+FFFD
identifier-head U+10000U+1FFFD, U+20000U+2FFFD, U+30000U+3FFFD, or
U+40000U+4FFFD
identifier-head U+50000U+5FFFD, U+60000U+6FFFD, U+70000U+7FFFD, or
U+80000U+8FFFD
identifier-head U+90000U+9FFFD, U+A0000U+AFFFD, U+B0000U+BFFFD, or
U+C0000U+CFFFD
identifier-head U+D0000U+DFFFD or U+E0000U+EFFFD
identifier-character Digit 0 through 9
identifier-character U+0300U+036F, U+1DC0U+1DFF, U+20D0U+20FF, or U+FE20
U+FE2F
identifier-character identifier-head
identifier-characters identifier-character identifier-characters opt
implicit-parameter-name

decimal-digits

G RA M M A R O F A LIT ERA L

literal numeric-literal | string-literal | boolean-literal | nil-literal

numeric-literal
boolean-literal
nil-literal nil

integer-literal |
true | false
- opt

- opt

floating-point-literal

G RA M M A R O F A N IN T EG ER LIT ERA L

integer-literal
integer-literal
integer-literal
integer-literal

binary-literal
octal-literal
decimal-literal
hexadecimal-literal

binary-literal 0b binary-digit binary-literal-characters opt

binary-digit Digit 0 or 1
binary-literal-character binary-digit | _
binary-literal-characters binary-literal-character binary-literal-characters opt
octal-literal 0o octal-digit octal-literal-characters opt
octal-digit Digit 0 through 7
octal-literal-character octal-digit | _
octal-literal-characters octal-literal-character octal-literal-characters opt
decimal-literal decimal-digit decimal-literal-characters opt
decimal-digit Digit 0 through 9
decimal-digits decimal-digit decimal-digits opt
decimal-literal-character decimal-digit | _
decimal-literal-characters decimal-literal-character decimal-literal-characters opt
hexadecimal-literal 0x hexadecimal-digit hexadecimal-literal-characters opt
hexadecimal-digit Digit 0 through 9, a through f, or A through F
hexadecimal-literal-character hexadecimal-digit | _
hexadecimal-literal-characters hexadecimal-literal-character hexadecimal-literalcharacters opt

G R A M M A R O F A F L O AT I N G - P O I N T L I T E R A L

floating-point-literal decimal-literal decimal-fraction opt decimal-exponent opt

floating-point-literal hexadecimal-literal hexadecimal-fraction opt hexadecimal-exponent
decimal-fraction . decimal-literal
decimal-exponent floating-point-e sign opt decimal-literal
hexadecimal-fraction . hexadecimal-digit hexadecimal-literal-characters opt
hexadecimal-exponent floating-point-p sign opt decimal-literal
floating-point-e
floating-point-p
sign + | -

e
p

|
|

E
P

G R A M M A R O F A ST R I N G LI T ER A L

string-literal " quoted-text opt "

quoted-text quoted-text-item quoted-text opt
quoted-text-item escaped-character
quoted-text-item \( expression )
quoted-text-item Any Unicode scalar value except

"

, U+000A, or U+000D

escaped-character \0 | \\ | \t | \n | \r | \" | \'

escaped-character \u { unicode-scalar-digits }
unicode-scalar-digits Between one and eight hexadecimal digits

G R A M M A R O F O P E R AT O R S

operator operator-head operator-characters opt

operator dot-operator-head dot-operator-characters opt
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head
operator-head

/ | = | - | + | ! | * | % | < | > | & | | | ^ | ~ | ?

U+00A1U+00A7
U+00A9 or U+00AB
U+00AC or U+00AE
U+00B0U+00B1, U+00B6, U+00BB, U+00BF, U+00D7, or U+00F7
U+2016U+2017 or U+2020U+2027
U+2030U+203E
U+2041U+2053
U+2055U+205E
U+2190U+23FF
U+2500U+2775
U+2794U+2BFF
U+2E00U+2E7F
U+3001U+3003
U+3008U+3030

operator-character operator-head
operator-character U+0300U+036F
operator-character U+1DC0U+1DFF
operator-character U+20D0U+20FF
operator-character U+FE00U+FE0F
operator-character U+FE20U+FE2F
operator-character U+E0100U+E01EF
operator-characters operator-character operator-characters opt
dot-operator-head ..
dot-operator-character . | operator-character
dot-operator-characters dot-operator-character dot-operator-characters opt
binary-operator operator
prefix-operator operator
postfix-operator operator

Types

G R A M M A R O F A T YP E

type array-type | dictionary-type | function-type | type-identifier | tuple-type |

optional-type | implicitly-unwrapped-optional-type | protocol-composition-type |
metatype-type
G R A M M A R O F A T Y P E A N N O T AT I O N

type-annotation

attributes opt type

G R A M M A R O F A T YP E I D EN T I F I ER

type-identifier type-name generic-argument-clause opt | type-name generic-argumentclause opt . type-identifier

type-name identifier
G R A M M A R O F A T U P LE T YP E

tuple-type ( tuple-type-body opt )

tuple-type-body tuple-type-element-list ... opt
tuple-type-element-list tuple-type-element | tuple-type-element , tuple-type-element-list
tuple-type-element attributes opt inout opt type | inout opt element-name type-annotation
element-name identifier
G R A M M A R O F A F U N C T I O N T YP E

function-type type

->

type

G R A M M A R O F A N A R R AY T YP E

array-type

type

G R A M M A R O F A D I C T I O N A RY T YP E

dictionary-type

type

type

G R A M M A R O F A N O P T I O N A L T YP E

optional-type type

G R A M M A R O F A N I M P L I C I T LY U N W R A P P E D O P T I O N A L T Y P E

implicitly-unwrapped-optional-type type

G R A M M A R O F A P R O T O C O L C O M P O SI T I O N T YP E

protocol-composition-type protocol < protocol-identifier-list opt >

protocol-identifier-list protocol-identifier | protocol-identifier , protocol-identifier-list
protocol-identifier type-identifier
G R A M M A R O F A M E T AT Y P E T Y P E

metatype-type type

. Type

| type

. Protocol

G R A M M A R O F A T YP E I N H ER I TA N C E C LA U SE

type-inheritance-clause : class-requirement , type-inheritance-list

type-inheritance-clause : class-requirement
type-inheritance-clause : type-inheritance-list
type-inheritance-list type-identifier | type-identifier , type-inheritance-list
class-requirement class

Revision History

Document Revision History

This table describes the changes to The Swift Programming Language.
Date

Notes
Swift now has a native Set collection type. For more information, see Sets.
@autoclosure is now an attribute of the parameter declaration, not its type.
There is also a new @noescape parameter declaration attribute. For more
information, see Declaration Attributes.
Type methods and properties now use the static keyword as a declaration
modifier. For more information see Type Variable Properties.
Swift now includes the as? and as! failable downcast operators. For more
information, see Checking for Protocol Conformance.
Added a new guide section about String Indexes.
Removed the overflow division (&/) and overflow remainder (&%) operators
from Overflow Operators.
Updated the rules for constant and constant property declaration and
initialization. For more information, see Constant Declaration.

201504-08

Updated the definition of Unicode scalars in string literals. See Special

Characters in String Literals.
Updated Range Operators to note that a half-open range with the same start
and end index will be empty.
Updated Closures Are Reference Types to clarify the capturing rules for
variables.
Updated Value Overflow to clarify the overflow behavior of signed and
unsigned integers
Updated Protocol Declaration to clarify protocol declaration scope and
members.
Updated Defining a Capture List to clarify the syntax for weak and unowned
references in closure capture lists.

 Updated Operators to explicitly mention examples of supported characters for

custom operators, such as those in the Mathematical Operators, Miscellaneous
Symbols, and Dingbats Unicode blocks.

Constants can now be declared without being initialized in local function

scope. They must have a set value before first use. For more information, see
Constant Declaration.
In an initializer, constant properties can now only assign a value once. For
more information, see Assigning Constant Properties During Initialization.
201502-09

Multiple optional bindings can now appear in a single if statement as a

comma-separated list of assignment expressions. For more information, see
Optional Binding.
An Optional-Chaining Expression must appear within a postfix expression.
Protocol casts are no longer limited to @objc protocols.
Type casts that can fail at runtime now use the as? or as! operator, and type
casts that are guaranteed not to fail use the as operator. For more information,
see Type-Casting Operators.

Added a full guide to Failable Initializers.

Added a description of Failable Initializer Requirements for protocols.
201410-16

201409-15

Constants and variables of type Any can now contain function instances.
Updated the example for Any to show how to check for and cast to a function
type within a switch statement.

Enumerations with raw values now have a rawValue property rather than a
toRaw() method and a failable initializer with a rawValue parameter rather
than a fromRaw() method. For more information, see Raw Values and
Enumerations with Cases of a Raw-Value Type.

Added a new reference section about Failable Initializers, which can trigger
initialization failure.

201409-09

Custom operators can now contain the ? character. Updated the Operators
reference to describe the revised rules. Removed a duplicate description of
the valid set of operator characters from Custom Operators.

Added a new section about Initializer Requirements in protocols.

Added a new section about Class-Only Protocols.
Assertions can now use string interpolation. Removed a note to the contrary.
201408-18

Updated the Concatenating Strings and Characters section to reflect the fact
that String and Character values can no longer be combined with the
addition operator (+) or addition assignment operator (+=). These operators
are now used only with String values. Use the String types append(_:)
method to append a single Character value onto the end of a string.
Added information about the availability attribute to the Declaration
Attributes section.

Optionals no longer implicitly evaluate to true when they have a value and
false when they do not, to avoid confusion when working with optional Bool
values. Instead, make an explicit check against nil with the == or !=
operators to find out if an optional contains a value.
Swift now has a Nil Coalescing Operator (a ?? b), which unwraps an
optionals value if it exists, or returns a default value if the optional is nil.
Updated and expanded the Comparing Strings section to reflect and
demonstrate that string and character comparison and prefix / suffix
comparison are now based on Unicode canonical equivalence of extended
grapheme clusters.
You can now try to set a propertys value, assign to a subscript, or call a
mutating method or operator through Optional Chaining. The information
about Accessing Properties Through Optional Chaining has been updated
accordingly, and the examples of checking for method call success in Calling
Methods Through Optional Chaining have been expanded to show how to
check for property setting success.
Added a new section about Accessing Subscripts of Optional Type through
optional chaining.

 Updated the Accessing and Modifying an Array section to note that you can no
longer append a single item to an array with the += operator. Instead, use the
append(_:) method, or append a single-item array with the += operator.
Added a note that the start value a for the Range Operators a...b and a..<b
must not be greater than the end value b.

201408-04

Rewrote the Inheritance chapter to remove its introductory coverage of

initializer overrides. This chapter now focuses more on the addition of new
functionality in a subclass, and the modification of existing functionality with
overrides. The chapters example of Overriding Property Getters and Setters
has been rewritten to show how to override a description property. (The
examples of modifying an inherited propertys default value in a subclass
initializer have been moved to the Initialization chapter.)
Updated the Initializer Inheritance and Overriding section to note that
overrides of a designated initializer must now be marked with the override
modifier.
Updated the Required Initializers section to note that the required modifier
is now written before every subclass implementation of a required initializer,
and that the requirements for required initializers can now be satisfied by
automatically inherited initializers.
Infix Operator Functions no longer require the @infix attribute.
The @prefix and @postfix attributes for Prefix and Postfix Operators have
been replaced by prefix and postfix declaration modifiers.
Added a note about the order in which Prefix and Postfix Operators are
applied when both a prefix and a postfix operator are applied to the same
operand.
Operator functions for Compound Assignment Operators no longer use the
@assignment attribute when defining the function.
The order in which modifiers are specified when defining Custom Operators
has changed. You now write prefix operator rather than operator
prefix, for example.
Added information about the dynamic declaration modifier in Declaration
Modifiers.
Added information about how type inference works with Literals.
Added more information about Curried Functions.

 Added a new chapter about Access Control.

Updated the Strings and Characters chapter to reflect the fact that Swifts
Character type now represents a single Unicode extended grapheme cluster.
Includes a new section on Extended Grapheme Clusters and more information
about Unicode Scalars and Comparing Strings.
Updated the String Literals section to note that Unicode scalars inside string
literals are now written as \u{n}, where n is a hexadecimal number between
0 and 10FFFF, the range of Unicodes codespace.
The NSString length property is now mapped onto Swifts native String
type as utf16Count, not utf16count.
Swifts native String type no longer has an uppercaseString or
lowercaseString property. The corresponding section in Strings and
Characters has been removed, and various code examples have been updated.
Added a new section about Initializer Parameters Without External Names.
201407-21

Added a new section about Required Initializers.

Added a new section about Optional Tuple Return Types.
Updated the Type Annotations section to note that multiple related variables
can be defined on a single line with one type annotation.
The @optional, @lazy, @final, and @required attributes are now the
optional, lazy, final, and required Declaration Modifiers.
Updated the entire book to refer to ..< as the Half-Open Range Operator
(rather than the half-closed range operator).
Updated the Accessing and Modifying a Dictionary section to note that
Dictionary now has a Boolean isEmpty property.
Clarified the full list of characters that can be used when defining Custom
Operators.
nil and the Booleans true and false are now Literals.

Swifts Array type now has full value semantics. Updated the information
about Mutability of Collections and Arrays to reflect the new approach. Also
clarified the Assignment and Copy Behavior for Strings, Arrays, and
Dictionaries.
Array Type Shorthand Syntax is now written as [SomeType] rather than

SomeType[].

Added a new section about Dictionary Type Shorthand Syntax, which is

written as [KeyType: ValueType].
201407-07

Added a new section about Hash Values for Set Types.

Examples of Closure Expressions now use the global sorted function rather
than the global sort function, to reflect the new array value semantics.
Updated the information about Memberwise Initializers for Structure Types to
clarify that the memberwise structure initializer is made available even if a
structures stored properties do not have default values.
Updated to ..< rather than .. for the Half-Open Range Operator.
Added an example of Extending a Generic Type.

201406-02

New document that describes Swift, Apples new programming language for
building iOS and OS X apps.

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