What does this weird C++ definition mean?

Question

I have this strange function definition in my homework code and I don't really know what it's supposed to mean.

char *
sh_single_quote (string)
char *string;
{...}

Especially the "char *string;" line, what with the semicolon at the end.

Answer 1

It is K&R style declaration of a function in C language.

In C, you usually write a function as:

size_t strlen(const char *str)
{
    //code
}

In K&R style this will be written as:

size_t strlen(str)  <--- here you write only the param name
const char *str;    <--- here you write the type along with param name!
{
   //code
}