Reverse a String Using C Programming – Simple Code with Explanation

Introduction

Reversing a string is one of the most basic yet important operations in programming. In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to reverse a string using C programming. This exercise will help you understand how character arrays work and how to manipulate them in place.

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C Program to Reverse a String

#include <stdio.h>
#include <string.h>

int main() {
    char str[100], temp;
    int i, len;

    printf("Enter a string: ");
    fgets(str, sizeof(str), stdin);

    len = strlen(str) - 1; // remove newline character

    for (i = 0; i < len / 2; i++) {
        temp = str[i];
        str[i] = str[len - 1 - i];
        str[len - 1 - i] = temp;
    }

    printf("Reversed string: %s", str);

    return 0;
}

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Explanation

• The input string is taken using fgets() to allow spaces.
• strlen() calculates the string length (excluding \0).
• A loop swaps characters from the start and end until the midpoint.
• The result is the reversed version of the input string.

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Sample Output

Enter a string: hello world
Reversed string: dlrow olleh

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Use Cases

• Useful in palindrome checking.
• Foundational logic for string-based algorithms.
• Helps improve understanding of array indexing and manipulation.