Reference library

Python Code Samples

Copy-ready Python snippets by topic and difficulty — short, focused, and runnable in the browser editor.

382 matches
Algorithms & data structures easy

Insert an Element Every n Positions in Python

Insert a given element before or after every n-th position in a Python list, returning a new list with the placements applied.

list-manipulation insertion algorithms
Python
def insert_every_n(seq, element, n, position="after"):
    """Insert an element before or after every n-th position in a list.

    Args:
        seq: Input list
        element: Element to insert
        n: Insert every n positions (n > 0)
        position: 'before' or 'after' (default: 'after')
    Returns:
        …
13 0 Open
Algorithms & data structures easy

Sort list by multiple keys with tuple ordering in Python

Sort a list of dictionaries by multiple criteria — surname, age, then score descending — using a tuple key and negation.

sorting tuples lambda
Python
def sort_multi_key(data):
    # Sorts by surname, then age, then score descending
    return sorted(
        data,
        key=lambda person: (
            person['surname'].lower(),
            person['age'],
            -person['score']  # negative to reverse sort by score
        )
    )


if __name__ == "__main__"…
14 0 Open
Algorithms & data structures easy

Split a String into Multiple Lines by Width in Python

Demonstrates a word-wrap algorithm that splits a message into rows without exceeding a maximum width.

strings word-wrap algorithm
Python
def split_message(text, max_width):
    words = text.split()
    rows = []
    current_row = []

    for word in words:
        if len(" ".join(current_row + [word])) > max_width:
            rows.append(" ".join(current_row))
            current_row = [word]
        else:
            current_row.append(word)

    if …
14 0 Open
Comprehensions & generators medium

Build a Generator Pipeline in Python: Filter Then Map

Create a lazy data pipeline by chaining generator functions that read, filter, map, and write data step by step.

generators pipeline lazy-evaluation
Python
def read_data():
    return ["a", "bb", "ccc", "dd", "eeeee", "f"]


def filter_short(words):
    return (word for word in words if len(word) >= 2)


def map_to_upper(words):
    return (word.upper() for word in words)


def write_data(words):
    for word in words:
        print(word)


if __name__ == "__main__":
   …
14 0 Open
Comprehensions & generators easy

Drop n items then yield rest generator

A generator that skips the first n items of an iterable and then yields the remaining items one by one.

generators iterators drop
Python
def drop(n, items):
    """Yield every item except the first n from items."""
    it = iter(items)
    for _ in range(n):
        next(it, None)  # skip first n items
    yield from it


if __name__ == "__main__":
    numbers = [10, 20, 30, 40, 50]
    result = list(drop(2, numbers))
    print(result)
11 0 Open
Comprehensions & generators easy

How to Compress a Generator with a Boolean Mask in Python

Filters items from a generator based on a parallel boolean mask, yielding only the items where the mask is True.

generators zip filter
Python
def compress(generator, mask):
    for item, keep in zip(generator, mask):
        if keep:
            yield item


if __name__ == "__main__":
    data = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
    mask = [True, False, True, False, True]
    result = list(compress(iter(data), mask))
    print(result)
14 0 Open
Comprehensions & generators easy

How to Create a Pairwise Generator with zip and tee in Python

Build a memory-efficient generator that yields successive overlapping pairs from any iterable using zip and tee.

itertools generators zip
Python
from itertools import tee


def pairwise(iterable):
    """Yield successive overlapping pairs from iterable."""
    a, b = tee(iterable)
    next(b, None)
    return zip(a, b)


if __name__ == "__main__":
    values = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
    print(list(pairwise(values)))
    print(list(pairwise("hello")))
15 0 Open
Comprehensions & generators easy

How to Generate Cartesian Product Combinations in Python

Use itertools.product to generate every combination across multiple iterables, a pattern common for product variant generation.

itertools cartesian product combinations
Python
from itertools import product

def generate_cartesian_combinations(*iterables):
    """Generate all Cartesian product combinations of given iterables."""
    return list(product(*iterables))

if __name__ == "__main__":
    colors = ["red", "green", "blue"]
    sizes = ["S", "M", "L"]
    styles = ["t-shirt", "hoodie"]…
13 0 Open
Comprehensions & generators easy

How to Merge Multiple Iterables with a Generator in Python

This code defines a generator function that 'chains' or merges multiple iterables into a single iterator, which is then converted to a list.

generators yield-from iterables
Python
def chain(*iterables):
    for iterable in iterables:
        yield from iterable

def main():
    list1 = [1, 2, 3]
    tuple1 = (4, 5)
    set1 = {6, 7}
    string1 = "89"

    result = list(chain(list1, tuple1, set1, string1))
    print(result)

if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()
12 0 Open
Comprehensions & generators easy

How to Repeat a Generator Cycle Single Value in Python

Build a generator that repeats a single value across multiple cycles, each cycle adding an extra repetition to mark its completion.

generators loops repeat
Python
def repeat_with_cycle(value, cycle_limit, repetitions):
    """
    Repeats a single value until reaching a cycle limit,
    then yields the value one more time to demonstrate a full cycle.
    
    Args:
        value: The single value to repeat.
        cycle_limit: Number of repetitions per cycle.
        repetitio…
13 0 Open
Comprehensions & generators easy

How to Use Comprehensions and Generators in Python

Demonstrate list, set, and dictionary comprehensions plus generator expressions and generator functions in one beginner-friendly script.

comprehensions generators yield
Python
def demonstrate_comprehensions_generators():
    # List comprehension: transform and filter in one line
    numbers = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]
    squares = [num ** 2 for num in numbers if num % 2 == 0]
    print(f"Square of even numbers (list comprehension): {squares}")

    # Set comprehension: unique values
…
15 0 Open
Comprehensions & generators easy

How to skip items until a condition is met in Python

Use itertools.dropwhile to skip leading elements while a predicate returns true, then yield the rest of the sequence unchanged.

itertools generators dropwhile
Python
def is_negative(x):
    return x < 0

numbers = [-3, -1, 0, 5, 2, -8, 7]
result = list(itertools.dropwhile(is_negative, numbers))
print(f"Original: {numbers}")
print(f"After dropwhile: {result}")
13 0 Open
Comprehensions & generators medium

Merge Sorted Iterators with a Heap Generator in Python

Merge multiple sorted iterators into a single sorted stream using a heap and generator, yielding values lazily in order.

heapq generator merge
Python
import heapq

def merge_sorted_iterators(*iterators):
    heap = []
    for idx, iterator in enumerate(iterators):
        try:
            value = next(iterator)
            heapq.heappush(heap, (value, idx, iterator))
        except StopIteration:
            continue

    while heap:
        value, idx, iterator = …
15 0 Open
AI & LLM integration patterns medium

How to Build a Data Helper for LLM Prompts in Python

A beginner-friendly helper class that flattens nested dictionaries, formats prompt templates, and safely parses JSON for AI/LLM pipelines.

llm prompt-engineering data-prep
Python
import json
from typing import Any, Dict, List, Optional


class DataHelper:
    """Simple helper class for working with data in AI/LLM pipelines."""
    
    def __init__(self, data: Optional[Dict[str, Any]] = None) -> None:
        self.data = data or {}
    
    def flatten(self, prefix: str = "") -> Dict[str, Any]…
18 0 Open
AI & LLM integration patterns easy

How to Chunk a Long Document for RAG Retrieval in Python

Split text into overlapping chunks at sentence boundaries using a custom Python function suitable for RAG retrieval pipelines.

rag text-chunking nlp
Python
import re
from pathlib import Path

def chunk_document(text, chunk_size=500, overlap=100):
    """Split text into overlapping chunks suitable for RAG retrieval."""
    # Normalize whitespace
    text = re.sub(r'\s+', ' ', text).strip()
    
    chunks = []
    start = 0
    while start < len(text):
        end = min(s…
15 0 Open
AI & LLM integration patterns easy

How to Convert Data to JSON and Back in Python

Convert a Python dict into a JSON string with indentation, then parse it back into a dict, demonstrating a common round-trip conversion for beginners.

json serialization conversion
Python
import json
from datetime import datetime

def convert_data(data):
    """Convert a dict into a JSON string and back to dict."""
    json_str = json.dumps(data, indent=2)
    parsed = json.loads(json_str)
    return json_str, parsed

def main():
    sample_data = {
        "user": "alice",
        "message": "hello",
…
12 0 Open
AI & LLM integration patterns easy

How to Filter Toxic Keywords in Python

Filter toxic keywords from text by replacing each occurrence with asterisks, useful as a basic guardrail for LLM inputs.

guardrails text-filtering llm-safety
Python
TOXIC_KEYWORDS = ["insult", "threat", "hate", "violence", "spam"]


def guardrails_filter(text: str, keywords: list[str] | None = None) -> str:
    """Filter out toxic keywords from the given text.

    Args:
        text: The input text to filter.
        keywords: Optional keyword list. Defaults to TOXIC_KEYWORDS.

…
12 0 Open
AI & LLM integration patterns easy

How to Parse JSON from LLM Model Output Fence in Python

Extract and parse a JSON object from a language model's output that may be wrapped in triple-backtick fences with an optional language tag.

json llm parsing
Python
import json
import re

def parse_json_from_fence(text):
    """
    Extract JSON object from a model output that may be wrapped in
    triple-backtick fences with optional language tag.
    """
    # Match content inside
12 0 Open
AI & LLM integration patterns easy

How to Parse an LLM Response in Python

This code parses a JSON string from an LLM response, stripping code fences and handling common issues like whitespace, returning a Python dictionary.

llm json parsing
Python
import json
from typing import Any, Dict, List


def parse_llm_response(response: str) -> Dict[str, Any]:
    """Parse a JSON string from an LLM response, handling common edge cases."""
    # Remove code fences if present
    cleaned = response.strip()
    if cleaned.startswith("
14 0 Open
AI & LLM integration patterns easy

How to Validate JSON Output Against a Dict Schema in Python

Validate JSON-like data against a simple dict schema with type checking and descriptive error messages using only the Python standard library.

json validation schema
Python
from typing import Dict, Any, List, Union

def validate_json(data: Any, schema: Dict[str, str]) -> List[str]:
    """
    Validate JSON-like data against a simple dict schema.
    Schema format: {field_name: expected_type} where type is one of:
    'str', 'int', 'float', 'bool', 'list', 'dict', 'any'
    Returns list …
13 0 Open
AI & LLM integration patterns easy

How to build a function calling schema dict in Python

Build an OpenAI-compatible function calling schema dictionary with a helper function that takes name, description, parameters, and required fields.

llm-api function-calling schema
Python
import json
from typing import Dict, Any, List, Optional


def build_function_schema(
    name: str,
    description: str,
    parameters: Optional[Dict[str, Any]] = None,
    required: Optional[List[str]] = None
) -> Dict[str, Any]:
    """Build an OpenAI-compatible function calling schema dictionary."""
    schema: …
15 0 Open
AI & LLM integration patterns easy

How to build a mock RAG pipeline in Python

Build a minimal Retrieval-Augmented Generation pipeline that retrieves the best-matching document by keyword overlap and generates a template-based answer.

rag llm retrieval
Python
def simple_rag_pipeline(question, documents):
    """
    A minimal mock RAG pipeline: retrieve relevant context, then generate an answer.
    """
    # Step 1: Retrieve — mock retrieval by simple keyword scoring
    scores = []
    for doc in documents:
        doc_words = set(doc.lower().split())
        question_wo…
14 0 Open
Automation & scripting easy

Automate Tweeting New Blog Posts in Python

A mock script that fetches new blog posts from a CMS and tweets them via a simulated Twitter API, outputting JSON results.

automation tweeting blog
Python
import json
import time
from datetime import datetime


def fetch_new_blog_posts():
    """Mock function to simulate fetching latest blog posts from a CMS."""
    return [
        {
            "id": 1,
            "title": "Getting Started with Python",
            "url": "https://blog.example.com/python-start",
    …
17 0 Open
Automation & scripting medium

Automatically Clean Temporary Files from Applications Using Python

A Python script that safely deletes temporary files from common application temp directories across Windows, Linux, and macOS, tracking cleaned count and disk space.

temporary-files cleanup automation
Python
import os
import shutil
import tempfile
import platform

def clean_application_temp_files():
    """Delete common temporary file locations safely."""
    system = platform.system()
    temp_dirs = []

    if system == "Windows":
        temp_dirs.extend([
            os.path.join(os.getenv("LOCALAPPDATA"), "Temp"),
  …
58 0 Open

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Each section groups closely related Python snippets.

Guide: free Python code samples library

Copy-ready Python snippets for learners and developers

PythonSkillset code samples are short, focused examples organised by topic and difficulty. Every snippet is server-rendered HTML — readable by search engines and easy to copy. Open any sample, read the notes, copy the code, then press Try in editor to run it in the browser with Pyodide.

How to use this library

  1. Pick a topic section — strings, lists, files, functions, and more
  2. Open a sample, read How it works, and copy the code block
  3. Run it in the IDE, tweak values, then take a related quiz or tutorial lesson

Samples vs tutorials and challenges

Samples are quick reference — one concept per page. For step-by-step teaching, use our Python tutorials. To test yourself, try quizzes or coding challenges. Clean up style with the Python formatter.