Skip to main content
.NET Framework Class Library
Type..::.IsEnum Property

Gets a value indicating whether the current Type represents an enumeration.

Namespace: System
Assembly: mscorlib (in mscorlib.dll)
Syntax
Public Overridable ReadOnly Property IsEnum As Boolean
public virtual bool IsEnum { get; }
public:
virtual property bool IsEnum {
	bool get ();
}
abstract IsEnum : bool
override IsEnum : bool

Property Value

Type: System..::.Boolean
true if the current Type represents an enumeration; otherwise, false.

Implements

_Type..::.IsEnum
Remarks

This property returns true for an enumeration, but not for the Enum type itself.

If the current Type represents a constructed generic type, this property applies to the generic type definition from which the type was constructed. For example, if the current Type represents MyGenericType<int> (MyGenericType(Of Integer) in Visual Basic), the value of this property is determined by MyGenericType<T>.

If the current Type represents a type parameter in the definition of a generic type or generic method, this property always returns false.

This property is read-only.

Examples

The following example demonstrates how to use the IsEnum property.


Imports System

Public Enum Color
    Red
    Blue
    Green
End Enum 'Color
Class TestIsEnum
   Public Shared Sub Main()
        Dim colorType As Type = GetType(Color)
        Dim enumType As Type = GetType([Enum])
        Console.WriteLine("Is Color an enum? {0}.", colorType.IsEnum)
        Console.WriteLine("Is Color a value type? {0}.", colorType.IsValueType)
        Console.WriteLine("Is Enum an enum type? {0}.", enumType.IsEnum)
        Console.WriteLine("Is Enum a value type? {0}.", enumType.IsValueType)
    End Sub 'Main
End Class 'TestType


using System;
public enum Color 
{
Red, Blue, Green
}
class TestIsEnum 
{
    public static void Main() 
    {
       Type colorType = typeof(Color);
       Type enumType = typeof(Enum);
       Console.WriteLine("Is Color an enum? {0}.", colorType.IsEnum);
       Console.WriteLine("Is Color a value type? {0}.", colorType.IsValueType);
       Console.WriteLine("Is Enum an enum Type? {0}.", enumType.IsEnum);
       Console.WriteLine("Is Enum a value type? {0}.", enumType.IsValueType);
   }
}


using namespace System;
enum class Color
{
   Red, Blue, Green
};

int main()
{
   Type^ colorType = Color::typeid;
   Type^ enumType = Enum::typeid;
   Console::WriteLine( "Is Color an enum? {0}.", colorType->IsEnum );
   Console::WriteLine( "Is Color a value type? {0}.", colorType->IsValueType );
   Console::WriteLine( "Is Enum an enum Type? {0}.", enumType->IsEnum );
   Console::WriteLine( "Is Enum a value type? {0}.", enumType->IsValueType );
}


This code produces the following output:

Is Color an enum? True.
Is Color a value type? True.
Is Enum an enum type? False.
Is Enum a value type? False.
Version Information

.NET Framework

Supported in: 4, 3.5, 3.0, 2.0, 1.1, 1.0

.NET Framework Client Profile

Supported in: 4, 3.5 SP1

Portable Class Library

Supported in: Portable Class Library
Platforms

Windows 7, Windows Vista SP1 or later, Windows XP SP3, Windows XP SP2 x64 Edition, Windows Server 2008 (Server Core not supported), Windows Server 2008 R2 (Server Core supported with SP1 or later), Windows Server 2003 SP2

The .NET Framework does not support all versions of every platform. For a list of the supported versions, see .NET Framework System Requirements.
Microsoft is conducting an online survey to understand your opinion of the MSDN Web site. If you choose to participate, the online survey will be presented to you when you leave the MSDN Web site.

Would you like to participate?