C++ Program to Find Largest Number Among Three Numbers

Source Code

#include <iostream>

using namespace std;

int main()
{
    int num1, num2, num3; // Declare variables to hold the three numbers

    cout << "Enter the first number: "; // Prompt the user to enter the first number
    cin >> num1; // Read the first number from the standard input stream

    cout << "Enter the second number: "; // Prompt the user to enter the second number
    cin >> num2; // Read the second number from the standard input stream

    cout << "Enter the third number: "; // Prompt the user to enter the third number
    cin >> num3; // Read the third number from the standard input stream

    int largest = num1; // Initialize the largest number to the first number

    // Compare the second number to the largest number
    if (num2 > largest)
        largest = num2;

    // Compare the third number to the largest number
    if (num3 > largest)
        largest = num3;

    cout << "The largest number is: " << largest << endl; // Print the largest number

    return 0;
}

Code Explanation

This program declares three variables num1, num2, and num3 of type int to hold the three numbers entered by the user. It then uses the cout object to print prompts asking the user to enter the numbers and the cin object to read the numbers from the standard input stream.

To find the largest number, the program initializes a variable largest to the value of num1. It then uses two if statements to compare num2 and num3 to largest and update largest if either of these numbers is greater than largest.

Finally, the program uses the cout object to print the value of largest, which is the largest number among the three numbers.

Explanation about if-else

In C++, the if-else statement is a control flow statement that allows you to execute a block of code conditionally.

The if clause specifies a condition, and the code inside the {} brackets following the if clause is executed if the condition is true. The else clause specifies an alternative block of code to execute if the condition is false.