Looping Through Ranges, Lists, and Other Iterables in Python

Introduction

In Python, loops are used to iterate over various data structures such as ranges, lists, and other iterables. Iterables include objects that can return their elements one at a time, such as strings, tuples, dictionaries, and sets. This article provides examples of looping through ranges, lists, and other iterables.

Looping Through Ranges

The range() function is commonly used with loops to generate a sequence of numbers. It takes up to three arguments: start, stop, and step.

Example

The following example demonstrates looping through a range of numbers:

    # Looping through a range
    for i in range(1, 6):
        print(i)
        

Output:

    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
        

Looping Through Lists

Lists are one of the most commonly used data structures in Python. You can loop through each element in a list using a for loop.

Example

The following example iterates through a list of fruits:

    # Looping through a list
    fruits = ["apple", "banana", "cherry"]
    for fruit in fruits:
        print(fruit)
        

Output:

    apple
    banana
    cherry
        

Looping Through Strings

Strings are iterable, meaning you can loop through each character in a string.

Example

The following example prints each character of a string:

    # Looping through a string
    word = "Python"
    for char in word:
        print(char)
        

Output:

    P
    y
    t
    h
    o
    n
        

Looping Through Tuples

Tuples, like lists, are iterable. You can loop through their elements just like you would with a list.

Example

The following example iterates through a tuple:

    # Looping through a tuple
    colors = ("red", "green", "blue")
    for color in colors:
        print(color)
        

Output:

    red
    green
    blue
        

Looping Through Dictionaries

When looping through dictionaries, you can iterate over keys, values, or both using methods like .keys(), .values(), and .items().

Example

The following example demonstrates looping through the keys and values of a dictionary:

    # Looping through a dictionary
    person = {"name": "Alice", "age": 25, "city": "New York"}
    for key, value in person.items():
        print(key, ":", value)
        

Output:

    name : Alice
    age : 25
    city : New York
        

Looping Through Sets

Sets are unordered collections of unique elements. You can loop through their elements using a for loop.

Example

The following example iterates through a set:

    # Looping through a set
    unique_numbers = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5}
    for num in unique_numbers:
        print(num)
        

Output:

    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
        

Conclusion

Python makes it easy to loop through ranges, lists, and other iterables. Understanding how to iterate over different types of data structures is a key skill in Python programming. Experiment with these examples to explore the versatility of loops in Python.