INFO: C2059, C2143: Syntax Errors Involving 'int constant'

• The Microsoft C/C++ Compiler (CL.EXE) included with: - Microsoft C for MS-DOS, versions 6.0, 6.0a, 6.0ax - Microsoft C for OS/2, versions 6.0, 6.0a - Microsoft C/C++ for MS-DOS, version 7.0 - Microsoft Visual C++ for Windows, versions 1.0, 1.5, 1.51, 1.52 - Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Edition, versions 1.0, 2.0, 2.1, 4.0,

       5.0
  

SUMMARY

When compiling a program with the Microsoft C/C++ compiler, the following error may be generated if an integer constant is recognized syntactically as being in an illegal location:

   error C2059: syntax error: 'int constant'

   C2143: syntax error: missing ';' before 'constant'

   C2143: syntax error: missing ';' before 'int constant'

MORE INFORMATION

The sample code below demonstrates how this particular error might be generated. The #define statement spans two lines, but the line continuation character (a backslash) was inadvertently omitted from the end of the first line. This causes the compiler to "see" the integer constants as being on a line by themselves without any contextual meaning, and thus the C2059 error is generated.

Sample Code

   /* Compile options needed: none
   */

   #define coordinates {
         16,16  }

   void main(void)
   {
   }