Boolean Operators: Quick Reference 🌶️

This page reviews the three boolean operators you'll use constantly in conditionals, then checks your understanding with a couple of quick questions.

The three operators:

Operator	Meaning	True when
`&&`	AND	both sides are true
\|\|	OR	at least one side is true
`!`	NOT	flips true to false, or false to true

A few things worth remembering:

&& and || always take two operands; ! takes exactly one.
~ also works as NOT in this course's tools, but in real Java ~ means something completely different (bitwise complement) — stick to ! in your own code.
Short-circuit evaluation: in a && b, if a is false, b is never even evaluated.

Common mistake: writing if (x = 5) instead of if (x == 5). A single = is assignment, not comparison — and it compiles without error, which is exactly why it's dangerous.

1. Which expression is true when at least one of a or b is true, but not necessarily both?

Your score for your class is recorded when you click Submit all — checking individual questions doesn't save it. You can submit again to improve your score; your best one counts.