Reference library

Python Code Samples

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

2 matches
Dictionaries & sets easy

How to Subtract Counters in Python for Bag Differences

Use the Counter class's subtraction operator to compute bag differences, removing items and counts that appear in one multiset but not the other.

collections counter bags
Python
from collections import Counter

def subtract_counters(bag1, bag2):
    """Return the difference of two Counters (bag1 - bag2)."""
    return bag1 - bag2

if __name__ == "__main__":
    inventory = Counter(apples=10, bananas=5, oranges=3)
    sold = Counter(apples=4, bananas=2, grapes=2)
    remaining = subtract_count…
14 0 Open
Dictionaries & sets easy

Multiset with Counter update and elements in Python

Demonstrates using collections.Counter as a multiset: updating counts with update() and iterating elements() to get repeated items.

counter multiset collections
Python
from collections import Counter

multiset = Counter(['apple', 'banana', 'apple'])

multiset.update(['banana', 'cherry', 'apple'])

print("Elements after update:", sorted(multiset.elements()))
print("Counts:", dict(multiset))
print("Most common:", multiset.most_common(2))
13 0 Open

Browse by section

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.