Functions & basics
Reusable building blocks — parameters, returns, scope, and clear function design.
How to Pipe Data Through a List of Transform Functions in Python
Applies a sequence of functions to an initial value using functools.reduce, creating a reusable pipe utility.
from functools import reduce
def pipe(data, *transforms):
return reduce(lambda value, func: func(value), transforms, data)
def double(x):
return x * 2
def add_one(x):
return x + 1
def to_string(x):
return f"Result: {x}"
if __name__ == "__main__":
initial = 5
result = pipe(initial, double, …How to Print Colored Text in Python with ANSI Codes
Define a small Colors class and a colored() helper to print styled terminal text using ANSI escape codes.
class Colors:
RESET = "\033[0m"
RED = "\033[31m"
GREEN = "\033[32m"
YELLOW = "\033[33m"
BLUE = "\033[34m"
MAGENTA = "\033[35m"
CYAN = "\033[36m"
WHITE = "\033[37m"
BOLD = "\033[1m"
UNDERLINE = "\033[4m"
def colored(text, color):
return f"{color}{text}{Colors.RESET}"
if _…How to Read Environment Variables in Python with Default Values
Retrieve an environment variable safely using os.getenv() with a fallback default when the variable is missing.
import os
database_url = os.getenv("DATABASE_URL", "postgresql://localhost:5432/mydb")
print(f"Database URL: {database_url}")How to Return Multiple Values from a Python Function
This code demonstrates how a Python function can return multiple values as a tuple, and how to unpack that tuple into individual variables.
def get_user_stats(name, score, level):
"""Return multiple values as a tuple."""
return name, score, level
if __name__ == "__main__":
result = get_user_stats("Alice", 95, 3)
print(result)
print(type(result))
# Unpacking into individual variables
player_name, player_score, player_level…How to Sort a List of Numbers in Python with Default Parameters
Define a reusable sort function that uses a default parameter to sort a list of numbers in ascending or descending order.
def sort_numbers(numbers, reverse=False):
"""Sort a list of numbers in ascending or descending order."""
return sorted(numbers, reverse=reverse)
def main():
numbers = [5, 2, 9, 1, 7, 3]
# Default sort (ascending)
ascending = sort_numbers(numbers)
print(f"Ascending: {ascending}")
…How to Use Default Parameters in Python Functions
A beginner-friendly Python function that uses default parameters to compare two numbers with equal, greater, or less operations.
def compare(a, b, operation="equal"):
if operation == "equal":
return a == b
elif operation == "greater":
return a > b
elif operation == "less":
return a < b
else:
return f"Unknown operation: {operation}"
if __name__ == "__main__":
print(compare(5, 5))
print(com…How to Use Default Parameters in Python Functions
Create a simple function with default parameters to build flexible, reusable greetings in Python.
def greet(name, greeting="Hello", punctuation="!"):
"""Return a personalized greeting message."""
return f"{greeting}, {name}{punctuation}"
if __name__ == "__main__":
print(greet("Alice"))
print(greet("Bob", "Hi"))
print(greet("Charlie", greeting="Hey", punctuation="?"))…How to Use Default Parameters with Python's Split Function
Create a reusable Python wrapper around str.split with sensible default parameters for delimiter and maxsplit, showing beginners how default arguments work.
def split_with_defaults(text, delimiter=" ", maxsplit=-1):
"""
Split a string into parts using a delimiter.
Default behavior: split on spaces, unlimited splits.
"""
parts = text.split(delimiter, maxsplit)
return parts
if __name__ == "__main__":
# Example usage with defaults and custom par…How to Use Keyword-Only Arguments in Python Functions
Define Python functions with keyword-only arguments using the * separator to enforce clarity and prevent positional misuse.
def greet(name, *, greeting="Hello", punctuation="!"):
"""Greet someone with a customizable message using keyword-only arguments."""
message = f"{greeting}, {name}{punctuation}"
return message
if __name__ == "__main__":
# Basic call with only the positional argument
print(greet("Alice"))
# Al…How to Use Python's next() Builtin with a Default Sentinel Value
A wrapper function that returns the next item from an iterator, or a default sentinel value when the iterator is exhausted.
def get_next_or_default(iterator, default=None):
"""Return the next item from an iterator, or default if exhausted."""
return next(iterator, default)
if __name__ == "__main__":
fruits = iter(["apple", "banana", "cherry"])
print(get_next_or_default(fruits)) # apple
print(get_next_or…How to Use functools.reduce in Python
Apply functools.reduce with operator functions and lambda expressions to aggregate lists into sums, products, maximums, and concatenated strings.
from functools import reduce
import operator
# Sum all numbers in a list using reduce
numbers = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
sum_result = reduce(operator.add, numbers)
# Find the maximum value using reduce
max_result = reduce(lambda a, b: a if a > b else b, numbers)
# Multiply all numbers using reduce
product_result = reduce(la…How to Use singledispatch for Type-Based Overloading in Python
This code demonstrates Python's functools.singledispatch decorator to create functions that behave differently based on the type of their first argument.
from functools import singledispatch
@singledispatch
def process(value):
return f"Unknown type: {type(value).__name__}"
@process.register(int)
def _(value):
return f"Integer: {value * 2}"
@process.register(str)
def _(value):
return f"String: {value.upper()}"
@process.register(list)
def _(value):
re…How to Use the if __name__ == '__main__' Guard in Python
This code defines reusable functions and uses the standard main guard to run them only when the script is executed directly, not when imported.
def greet(name: str) -> str:
"""Return a friendly greeting."""
return f"Hello, {name}!"
def get_planet() -> str:
"""Return the name of our planet."""
return "Earth"
if __name__ == "__main__":
user = "Dorothy"
print(greet(user))
print(f"We live on {get_planet()}.")How to Write a Context Manager Class in Python
Define a class with __enter__ and __exit__ to manage file resources safely using the with statement.
class FileReader:
def __init__(self, filename, mode="r"):
self.filename = filename
self.mode = mode
self.file = None
def __enter__(self):
self.file = open(self.filename, self.mode)
return self.file
def __exit__(self, exc_type, exc_val, exc_tb):
if self.file…How to Write a Normalize Function with Default Parameters in Python
Define a reusable normalize function with configurable default parameters for lowercase conversion, whitespace stripping, and punctuation removal.
def normalize(text, lowercase=True, strip_whitespace=True, remove_punctuation=False):
"""Normalize a string based on configurable options."""
if lowercase:
text = text.lower()
if strip_whitespace:
text = text.strip()
if remove_punctuation:
text = ''.join(char for char in text if…How to Write a Python Decorator with functools.wraps
Create a decorator that wraps a function while preserving its metadata using functools.wraps.
from functools import wraps
def logger(func):
@wraps(func)
def wrapper(*args, **kwargs):
print(f"Calling {func.__name__}")
return func(*args, **kwargs)
return wrapper
@logger
def greet(name):
"""Return a friendly greeting."""
return f"Hello, {name}!"
if __name__ == "__main__":…How to implement binary search in Python
Standalone binary search function that returns the index of a target in a sorted list, or -1 if not found.
def binary_search(arr, target):
left, right = 0, len(arr) - 1
while left <= right:
mid = (left + right) // 2
if arr[mid] == target:
return mid
elif arr[mid] < target:
left = mid + 1
else:
right = mid - 1
return -1
if __name__ ==…How to measure function memory with sys.getsizeof in Python
Measure the memory footprint of Python functions (user-defined and built-in) using sys.getsizeof.
import sys
def sample_function(a, b, c):
return a + b - c
def measure_function_memory(func):
size = sys.getsizeof(func)
print(f"Memory size of {func.__name__}: {size} bytes")
if __name__ == "__main__":
measure_function_memory(sample_function)
measure_function_memory(print)
measure_function_m…Mutual Recursion for Even/Odd Check in Python
Implements even and odd checks using two functions that call each other recursively, demonstrating base cases and alternating calls.
def is_even(n):
if n == 0:
return True
return is_odd(n - 1)
def is_odd(n):
if n == 0:
return False
return is_even(n - 1)
if __name__ == "__main__":
for num in range(0, 11):
print(f"{num}: even={is_even(num)}, odd={is_odd(num)}")Profile Python functions with cProfile
Profile a Python program with cProfile, capture the stats in memory, and print a sorted performance report.
import cProfile
import pstats
import io
def slow_function():
total = 0
for i in range(100000):
total += i ** 2
return total
def medium_function():
return sum(range(10000))
def fast_function():
return sum(range(100))
def main():
result1 = slow_function()
result2 = medium_func…Python Filter Function with Default Parameters for Beginners
Create a reusable filter function with default parameters to keep or exclude numbers above or below a threshold.
def filter_numbers(numbers, threshold=0, reverse=False):
"""Return numbers that pass the threshold filter.
Args:
numbers: list of numbers to filter
threshold: minimum value to keep (default 0)
reverse: if True, keep numbers below threshold (default False)
"""
if reverse:
…Python Function Default Parameters Explained with Examples
Learn how to define Python functions with default parameter values and call them with fewer arguments than declared.
def greet(name, greeting="Hello", punctuation="!"):
return f"{greeting}, {name}{punctuation}"
def calculate_area(length, width=1, unit="sq units"):
area = length * width
return f"Area: {area} {unit}"
if __name__ == "__main__":
print(greet("Alice"))
print(greet("Bob", "Hi"))
print(greet("Charl…Write a Pure Function Without Side Effects in Python
Defines a pure function that adds one to a number without modifying external state.
def add_one(x: int) -> int:
"""Adds 1 to the input without modifying any external state."""
return x + 1
if __name__ == "__main__":
original = 5
result = add_one(original)
print(f"Original: {original}")
print(f"Result: {result}")
print(f"Original unchanged: {original}")Write a Recursive Factorial Function in Python
Define a recursive factorial function that handles edge cases and returns the product of all positive integers up to n.
def factorial(n):
"""Return the factorial of n using recursion."""
if n < 0:
raise ValueError("Factorial is not defined for negative numbers")
if n == 0 or n == 1:
return 1
return n * factorial(n - 1)
if __name__ == "__main__":
print(factorial(5))Browse by section
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