const_cast is used to add or remove the const/volatile attribute. It is only applicable to pointers, references, or pointers to members and cannot be used for primitive type conversion. 1. When the original object is not const, it is legal to modify its value through const_cast; 2. If the original object is a real const object, modification will lead to undefined behavior; 3. Common uses include calling the legacy non-const interface and implementing the reuse between const and non-const member functions, such as calling the non-const version in the const function to avoid code duplication. It is necessary to ensure that the object itself is modifiable, otherwise the behavior is undefined.
const_cast
is a type conversion operator in C, mainly used to add or remove the const
(or volatile
) attribute of a variable. The most common use is to convert const
pointer or reference to a non const
so that in special cases it is modified an object that was originally declared as const
.

?? Note: It is legal to use const_cast
to remove const
and modify its value if the original object itself is not const
object . If the original object is a real const
object (like const int x = 10;
), modifying it via const_cast
will result in undefined behavior .
? Legal use example: Modify objects that are not originally const
#include <iostream> using namespace std; void modifyValue(const int* ptr) { // Remove the const attribute, provided that the original object is not a const int* mutablePtr = const_cast<int*>(ptr); *mutablePtr = 100; // Modify the value} int main() { int value = 42; // non-const object cout << "Before: " << value << endl; modifyValue(&value); // The incoming address is treated as const int* cout << "After: " << value << endl; // Output 100 return 0; }
Output:

Before: 42 After: 100
? explain:
-
value
itself is notconst
, so it is safe to modify it viaconst_cast
. - The
modifyValue
function acceptsconst int*
, indicating that it promises not to modify the data. - But under special needs (such as calling old interfaces), we can use
const_cast
to temporarily removeconst
.
? Illegal use example: Modify the real const object
int main() { const int x = 10; int* p = const_cast<int*>(&x); *p = 20; // ?? Undefined behavior! cout << x << endl; // It may still be 10, or it may crash return 0; }
? Even if the compilation is passed, the operation results are unpredictable. Because x
is a true constant, it may be stored in read-only memory segments.

Other common uses: Calling overloaded functions
Sometimes you need to call different versions of member functions according to const
state:
class MyClass { public: void display() const { std::cout << "const version" << std::endl; // But I want to call the non-const version const_cast<MyClass*>(this)->display() in the const function; // Example, be careful in practice} void display() { std::cout << "non-const version" << std::endl; } }; int main() { MyClass obj; obj.display(); // Call non-const const MyClass cobj; cobj.display(); // Call const }
? This technique is often used when implementing const
and non- const
versions of getter
to avoid duplicate code.
For example:
const int& get(int i) const { return data[i]; } int& get(int i) { return const_cast<int&>( // Remove const static_cast<const MyClass*>(this)->get(i) ); }
Summary of the key points
-
const_cast<type>(expression)</type>
can only be used to add/removeconst
orvolatile
. - Cannot be used to change the primitive type (such as
int
todouble
). - Use only for pointers, references, or pointers to members.
- Modify an object that was originally
const
→ undefined behavior . - Common uses:
- Calling legacy interface (accepting non-const pointers)
- Implement the multiplexing of
const
and non-const
member functions
Basically that's it. const_cast
is one of the few legal ways to "break" const
, but must be used with caution.
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