Does anyone know the best way to return a rule from a function by value? I know that the following does not work, but what's the best workaround? struct calculator : grammar<calculator> { template <typename ScannerT> struct definition { definition(const calculator&) { r = make_complex_rule('A') | make_complex_rule('B'); } typedef rule<ScannerT> rule_type; rule_type const& start() { return r;} private: rule_type make_complex_rule(char c) { return c >> real_p; //boom } rule_type r; }; }; my current workaround is the following nastiness: //inside struct calculator::definition<> rule_type& anonymous_rule() { anonymous_rules.push_back( boost::shared_ptr<rule_type>(new rule_type)); return *anonymous_rules.back(); } rule_type& make_complex_rule(char c) { return anonymous_rule() = c >> real_p; } std::vector<boost::shared_ptr<rule_type> > anonymous_rules; Is there a better way? Also, I've got an easy one... Why is a grammar passed by const reference to its definition? Does Spirit make copies of the grammars internally? I ask because otherwise the grammar class seems like the ideal place to store state information (like numbers on a calculator's stack). Thanks ahead of time! Brock Peabody brock.peabody@npcinternational.com