STANDARD TEMPLATE
LIBRARY (STL)
Vector, List, Stack, Queue, Map
Array
■ Introduced in C++11, std::array is a wrapper around built-in arrays with extra features like bounds
checking, iterators, and algorithms.
■ Header File
– #include <array>
■ Declaration
– array<int, 5> arr = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5}; // array of 5 integers
for (int i : arr)
{
cout << i << " ";
}
Common Functions:
Function Syntax Description
Access element arr[0] or arr.at(0) Access 1st element
Size arr.size() Number of elements
Front arr.front() First element
Back arr.back() Last element
Fill arr.fill(0) Fill all elements with a value
Swap arr1.swap(arr2) Swap two arrays
Returns pointer to underlying
Data pointer arr.data()
array
Vector
■ In C++, a vector is a part of the Standard Template Library (STL) and is one of the most
commonly used sequence containers. It functions like a dynamic array that can grow or shrink in
size automatically.
■ Header File
– #include <vector>
• Declaration
• vector<int> v; // vector of integers
• vector<string> names; // vector of strings
Common Operations:
List
■ In C++, list is another container in the Standard Template Library (STL). It represents a doubly
linked list, which allows fast insertion and deletion from anywhere in the list, unlike vector which
is optimized for access and appending at the end.
■ Header
– #include <list>
■ Declaration
– list<int> myList; // list of integers
– list<string> nameList; // list of strings
Iterator-based Traversal:
for (int x : myList)
{
std::cout << x << " ";
}
Common Operations:
Operation Syntax Description
Add at end myList.push_back(10); Adds 10 at the end
Add at front myList.push_front(5); Adds 5 at the beginning
Remove from end myList.pop_back(); Removes last element
Remove from front myList.pop_front(); Removes first element
Size myList.size(); Returns number of elements
Check if empty myList.empty(); Returns true if empty
Remove element by value myList.remove(10); Removes all 10s
Sort list myList.sort(); Sorts in ascending order
Reverse list myList.reverse(); Reverses the list
Clear all elements myList.clear(); Deletes all elements
Stack
■ A stack is a Last In, First Out (LIFO) data structure — the last element added is the first to be
removed.
■ Header File
– #include <stack>
■ Declaration
– std::stack<int> s; // Stack of integers
– std::stack<std::string> names; // Stack of strings
Common Functions:
Function Syntax Description
Push s.push(10); Adds element to top
Pop s.pop(); Removes top element
Top s.top(); Returns top element
Size s.size(); Returns number of elements
Check Empty s.empty(); Returns true if stack is empty
Queue
■ A queue allows insertion at the back and deletion from the front — just like a real-world queue.
■ Header File
– #include <queue>
■ Declaration
– std::queue<int> q; // Queue of integers
– std::queue<std::string> names; // Queue of strings
Common Functions:
Function Syntax Description
Add element q.push(10); Adds 10 at the back
Remove element q.pop(); Removes element from the front
Get front q.front(); Returns front element
Get back q.back(); Returns last element
Size q.size(); Returns number of elements
Check empty q.empty(); Returns true if empty
map in STL (C++)
■ A map is an associative container that stores key-value pairs in sorted order (by key).
■ Header File
– #include <map>
■ Declaration
– map<int, string> m; // Key: int, Value: string
– map<string, int> marks; // Key: string, Value: int
for (auto& [key, value] : m)
{
cout << key << " => " << value << std::endl;
}
Common Operations:
Operation Syntax Description
m[101] = "John"; or m.insert({102,
Insert Adds a key-value pair
"Alice"});
Access m[101] Returns value for key 101
Erase m.erase(101); Removes key 101
Size m.size(); Returns number of elements
Check Empty m.empty(); True if map is empty
Find m.find(101) Returns iterator to key or m.end()
Clear m.clear(); Removes all elements
Multimap
■ Multimap in C++ STL – a powerful associative container.
• A multimap is similar to a map, but allows duplicate keys.
• It stores key-value pairs in a sorted order based on the key.
• It uses a balanced binary search tree internally (like map).
• Multiple entries can exist with the same key.
Common Operations
■ insert()
– mm.insert({3, "Cherry"});
■ find()– Finds the first occurrence of a key.
– auto it = mm.find(1); // Points to first key = 1
■ equal_range() – Returns a pair of iterators to all matching keys.
auto range = mm.equal_range(1);
for (auto it = range.first; it != range.second; ++it)
{
cout << it->first << " => " << it->second << endl;
}
■ erase()
– mm.erase(2); // Erases all pairs with key 2
– mm.erase(mm.begin()); // Erase first element
Key Differences: map vs multimap
Feature map multimap
Duplicate keys ❌ Not allowed ✅ Allowed
Access via [] ✅ Supported ❌ Not supported
insert() Overwrites existing key Adds new key-value pair
Algorithms: find(), count(), sort() in stl
■ find() - Purpose: Searches for the first occurrence of a value in a range.
■ Header: #include <algorithm>
#include <iostream>
#include <algorithm>
#include <vector>
using namespace std;
int main() {
vector<int> v = {10, 20, 30, 40};
auto it = find(v.begin(), v.end(), 30);
if (it != v.end()) {
cout << "Found at index: " << distance(v.begin(), it) << endl;
} else {
cout << "Not Found" << endl;
}
}
Algorithms: find(), count(), sort() in stl
■ count() - Purpose: Counts the number of times a value appears in the range.
■ Header: #include <algorithm>
#include <iostream>
#include <algorithm>
#include <vector>
using namespace std;
int main() {
vector<int> v = {1, 2, 2, 3, 4, 2};
int c = count(v.begin(), v.end(), 2);
cout << "2 appears " << c << " times" << endl;
}
Algorithms: find(), count(), sort() in stl
■ sort() - Purpose: Sorts the elements in ascending (default) or custom order.
■ Header: #include <algorithm>
#include <iostream>
#include <algorithm>
#include <vector>
using namespace std;
int main() {
vector<int> v = {4, 1, 5, 2};
sort(v.begin(), v.end()); // Ascending
for (int x : v)
cout << x << " ";
sort(v.begin(), v.end(), greater<int>());
for (int x : v)
cout << x << " ";
}
Algorithms: search(), merge(),for_each(), transform() stl
■ Search()- Purpose: Finds the first occurrence of a subsequence within a container.
■ Header: #include <algorithm>
#include <iostream>
#include <algorithm>
#include <vector>
using namespace std;
int main() {
vector<int> main = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6};
vector<int> pattern = {3, 4};
auto it = search(main.begin(), main.end(), pattern.begin(), pattern.end());
if (it != main.end())
cout << "Subsequence found at index: " << distance(main.begin(), it) << endl;
else
cout << "Not found" << endl;
}
Algorithms: search(), merge(),for_each(), transform() stl
■ merge()- Purpose: Merges two sorted ranges into a single sorted range.
■ Header: #include <algorithm>
#include <iostream>
#include <algorithm>
#include <vector>
using namespace std;
int main() {
vector<int> a = {1, 3, 5};
vector<int> b = {2, 4, 6};
vector<int> result(6);
merge(a.begin(), a.end(), b.begin(), b.end(), result.begin());
for (int x : result)
cout << x << " ";
}
Algorithms: search(), merge(),for_each(), transform() stl
■ for_each()- Purpose: Applies a function to each element in a range.
■ Header: #include <algorithm>
#include <iostream>
#include <algorithm>
#include <vector>
using namespace std;
void printSquare(int x) {
cout << x * x << " ";
}
int main() {
vector<int> v = {1, 2, 3};
for_each(v.begin(), v.end(), printSquare);
}
Algorithms: search(), merge(),for_each(), transform() stl
■ transform()- Purpose: Applies a function to a range and stores results in another range.
■ Header: #include <algorithm>
#include <iostream>
#include <algorithm>
#include <vector>
using namespace std;
int square(int x) { return x * x; }
int main() {
vector<int> input = {1, 2, 3};
vector<int> output(3);
transform(input.begin(), input.end(), output.begin(), square);
for (int x : output)
cout << x << " ";
}
