Return Statement

Return Statement

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Syntax

In a subroutine:

 Return 

In a function:

 Return   ReturnValue   

ReturnValue (required; any)

The return value of the function

Description

Returns to the calling program from a subroutine or function

Rules at a Glance

• If the Return statement appears in a function, it must specify a return value for the function.

• Return causes program flow to leave the function or subroutine and return to the calling program; any statements in the function or subroutine that follow Return are not executed.

Example

 Public Sub Main Dim d As Double = GetNumbers(  ) Console.WriteLine("The sum of values is " & d) End Sub Public Function GetNumbers As Double Dim iCtr As Integer = 1 Dim sInput As String Dim dblNums(9), dblSum, dblTemp As Double Do    sInput = InputBox("Enter number " & iCtr & ": ", "Sum")    If sInput = "" Then       if iCtr = 1 Then Return 0        Exit Do     End If     If IsNumeric(sInput) Then        dblNums(iCtr - 1) = CDbl(sInput)       iCtr = iCtr + 1    End If Loop While iCtr <= 9 ' Sum array elements for each dblTemp in dblNums    dblSum += dblTemp next return dblSum End Function 

Programming Tips and Gotchas

Return is identical in operation to the Exit Sub statement: it prematurely transfers control from a procedure to the calling routine. It is also similar to the Exit Function statement; while it prematurely transfers control out of the function, it also allows a particular value to be returned by the function.

VB.NET/VB 6 Differences

In VB 6, Return is a legacy statement that returns control after GoSub has invoked a subroutine within a procedure. In VB.NET, however, Return returns control from a called function or procedure and optionally allows the function's return value to be defined.

See Also

Exit Statement