C# Enum Type

An enumeration (enum) is a distinct value type that defines a set of named integral constants. Enums make your code more readable and maintainable by giving meaningful names to a set of related values.

 

Here's a basic example of defining and using an enum in C#.

using System;

public class Program
{
    // Define an enumeration named 'Days'.
    public enum Days
    {
        Sunday,
        Monday,
        Tuesday,
        Wednesday,
        Thursday,
        Friday,
        Saturday
    }

    public static void Main()
    {
        // Assign a value from the 'Days' enum.
        Days today = Days.Wednesday;

        // Output the value of the enum variable.
        Console.WriteLine("Today is: " + today);

        // Enum values can be compared using equality operators.
        if (today == Days.Wednesday)
        {
            Console.WriteLine("It's the middle of the week!");
        }
    }
}

 

In this example, the Days enum is defined with seven named constants representing the days of the week. An enum variable today is then declared and assigned the value Days.Wednesday.

 

Finally, the program outputs the value of the enum variable and checks if it's equal to Days.Wednesday.

 

Enums can also have an underlying type (e.g., byte, int) and can be used in switch statements, making them a powerful tool for writing more expressive and self-documenting code.

public enum Season
{
    Spring,
    Summer,
    Autumn,
    Winter
}

public class Program
{
    public static void Main()
    {
        Season currentSeason = Season.Summer;

        switch (currentSeason)
        {
            case Season.Spring:
                Console.WriteLine("It's spring!");
                break;
            case Season.Summer:
                Console.WriteLine("It's summer!");
                break;
            case Season.Autumn:
                Console.WriteLine("It's autumn!");
                break;
            case Season.Winter:
                Console.WriteLine("It's winter!");
                break;
            default:
                Console.WriteLine("Unknown season");
                break;
        }
    }
}

 

In this example, the Season enum is used to represent the four seasons, and a switch statement is employed to handle different cases based on the current season.