Basic C++ problems

Haven't learned indexes yet. In order for ch to always be defined as wordfile[i], can I just define it before the if statement like:

Code:

ch = wordfile[i];
        if (ch == '?' || ch == '.' || ch == ';' || ch == ':'||
            ch == '!' ) {
            ++sentencecount;
            ++i;
        }

And is there a reason why this text is affecting wordcount and lettercount even though they aren't determined by the same variables?

1. Yes. And that's not a definition, that's an assignment. You give it a value.
2. Does your input file have empty lines after the line of text?