AP CSA Unit 2 Day 26: Iteration Break In Nested Loops

Unit 2, Selection & Iteration • Cycle 2
Day 26 Advanced Practice • Harder Difficulty
Focus: Break Scope Hard Iteration (break in nested loops)

Advanced Practice Question

Format: Iteration (break in nested loops)

What is printed?
for (int i = 0; i < 3; i++) {
    for (int j = 0; j < 3; j++) {
        if (i == j) {
            break;
        }
        System.out.print(i + "," + j + " ");
    }
}
Difficulty: Hard | Topic: Iteration (break in nested loops) | Cycle: 2 (Advanced)
Why This Answer?

For each i, the inner loop increments c when j=1, then breaks at j=2. That's 1 increment per outer iteration. Outer runs 3 times → c = 3.

Common Mistake
Watch Out!

Thinking `break` exits both loops (it exits only the inner loop).

AP Exam Strategy

`break` only exits the loop it is directly inside.

Master This Topic

This Cycle 2 HARD question tests break scope. Review Unit 2 concepts to build mastery of selection and iteration.

  • Understanding break scope
  • Tracing code execution accurately
  • Avoiding common pitfalls
View Unit 2 Study Guide

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