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List<T>::Clear Method ()

.NET Framework (current version)
 

Removes all elements from the List<T>.

Namespace:   System.Collections.Generic
Assembly:  mscorlib (in mscorlib.dll)

C#
C++
F#
VB
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public:
virtual void Clear() sealed

Implements

ICollection<T>::Clear() IList::Clear()

Count is set to 0, and references to other objects from elements of the collection are also released.

Capacity remains unchanged. To reset the capacity of the List<T>, call the TrimExcess method or set the Capacity property directly. Decreasing the capacity reallocates memory and copies all the elements in the List<T>. Trimming an empty List<T> sets the capacity of the List<T> to the default capacity.

This method is an O(n) operation, where n is Count.

The following example demonstrates the Clear method and various other properties and methods of the List<T> generic class. The Clear method is used at the end of the program, to remove all items from the list, and the Capacity and Count properties are then displayed.

C#
C++
F#
VB
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using namespace System;
using namespace System::Collections::Generic;

void main()
{
    List<String^>^ dinosaurs = gcnew List<String^>();

    Console::WriteLine("\nCapacity: {0}", dinosaurs->Capacity);

    dinosaurs->Add("Tyrannosaurus");
    dinosaurs->Add("Amargasaurus");
    dinosaurs->Add("Mamenchisaurus");
    dinosaurs->Add("Deinonychus");
    dinosaurs->Add("Compsognathus");

    Console::WriteLine();
    for each(String^ dinosaur in dinosaurs )
    {
        Console::WriteLine(dinosaur);
    }

    Console::WriteLine("\nCapacity: {0}", dinosaurs->Capacity);
    Console::WriteLine("Count: {0}", dinosaurs->Count);

    Console::WriteLine("\nContains(\"Deinonychus\"): {0}",
        dinosaurs->Contains("Deinonychus"));

    Console::WriteLine("\nInsert(2, \"Compsognathus\")");
    dinosaurs->Insert(2, "Compsognathus");

    Console::WriteLine();
    for each(String^ dinosaur in dinosaurs )
    {
        Console::WriteLine(dinosaur);
    }

    Console::WriteLine("\ndinosaurs[3]: {0}", dinosaurs[3]);

    Console::WriteLine("\nRemove(\"Compsognathus\")");
    dinosaurs->Remove("Compsognathus");

    Console::WriteLine();
    for each(String^ dinosaur in dinosaurs )
    {
        Console::WriteLine(dinosaur);
    }

    dinosaurs->TrimExcess();
    Console::WriteLine("\nTrimExcess()");
    Console::WriteLine("Capacity: {0}", dinosaurs->Capacity);
    Console::WriteLine("Count: {0}", dinosaurs->Count);

    dinosaurs->Clear();
    Console::WriteLine("\nClear()");
    Console::WriteLine("Capacity: {0}", dinosaurs->Capacity);
    Console::WriteLine("Count: {0}", dinosaurs->Count);
}

/* This code example produces the following output:

Capacity: 0

Tyrannosaurus
Amargasaurus
Mamenchisaurus
Deinonychus
Compsognathus

Capacity: 8
Count: 5

Contains("Deinonychus"): True

Insert(2, "Compsognathus")

Tyrannosaurus
Amargasaurus
Compsognathus
Mamenchisaurus
Deinonychus
Compsognathus

dinosaurs[3]: Mamenchisaurus

Remove("Compsognathus")

Tyrannosaurus
Amargasaurus
Mamenchisaurus
Deinonychus
Compsognathus

TrimExcess()
Capacity: 5
Count: 5

Clear()
Capacity: 5
Count: 0
 */

Universal Windows Platform
Available since 8
.NET Framework
Available since 2.0
Portable Class Library
Supported in: portable .NET platforms
Silverlight
Available since 2.0
Windows Phone Silverlight
Available since 7.0
Windows Phone
Available since 8.1
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