The GetOrCreate method is an extension method for IDictionary<TKey, TValue> that retrieves the value associated with the specified key. If the key does not exist in the dictionary, it creates a new entry with the default value for TValue and returns it.
Use this method when you want to ensure that a key exists in a dictionary and retrieve its value. If the key is not present, the method will add the key with a default value and return that value.
// Example usage of GetOrCreate method var dictionary = new Dictionary<int, string>(); // Attempt to get the value for key 1, or create it if it doesn't exist string value = dictionary.GetOrCreate(1); // Output: "" // Since the key 1 didn't exist, it was created with the default value for string, which is an empty string. Console.WriteLine(value);