For my mind it only works if a meaning of a return value is “compatible” with an expression. E.g. if a function returns a status, but an expression is an intege

For my mind it only works if a meaning of a return value is “compatible” with an expression. E.g. if a function returns a status, but an expression is an integer comparison, the flow of logic skips an important conversion step. bool is_db_open() { return (db != NULL); } bool is_time_to_report() { if (n_errors >= limit) { return true; } return false; // a little confusing way return n_errors >= limit; } Also, if there’s a chance of an additional condition, they can be easily be added and documented. if (n_errors >= limit) { return true; // too many errors } if (now() >= deadline) { return true; // periodic } return false; For the same reason I often do this: if (x == 0) { return 0; // not `x`