Python Variables

Difficulty Level : Basic
Last Updated : 19 Feb, 2021

Python is not “statically typed”. We do not need to declare variables before using them or declare their type. A variable is created the moment we first assign a value to it. A variable is a name given to a memory location. It is the basic unit of storage in a program.

The value stored in a variable can be changed during program execution.
A variable is only a name given to a memory location, all the operations done on the variable effects that memory location.

Rules for creating variables in Python:

A variable name must start with a letter or the underscore character.
A variable name cannot start with a number.
A variable name can only contain alpha-numeric characters and underscores (A-z, 0-9, and _ ).
Variable names are case-sensitive (name, Name and NAME are three different variables).
The reserved words(keywords) cannot be used naming the variable.

Let’s see the simple variable creation:

Python3

#!/usr / bin / python
  
# An integer assignment
age = 45
  
# A floating point
salary = 1456.8
  
# A string
name = "John"
  
print(age)
print(salary)
print(name)

Output:

45
1456.8
John

Declare the Variable:

Let’s see how to declare the variable and print the variable.

Python3

# declaring the var
Number = 100
  
# display
print( Number)

Output:

Re-declare the Variable:

We can re-declare the python variable once we have declared the variable already.

Python3

# declaring the var
Number = 100
  
# display
print("Before declare: ", Number)
  
# re-declare the var
Number = 120.3
    
print("After re-declare:", Number)

Output:

Before declare:  100
After re-declare: 120.3

Assigning a single value to multiple variables:

Also, Python allows assigning a single value to several variables simultaneously with “=” operators.
For example:

Python3

#!/usr / bin / python
  
a = b = c = 10
  
print(a)
print(b)
print(c)

Output:

10
10
10

Assigning different values to multiple variables:

Python allows adding different values in a single line with “,”operators.

Python3

#!/usr / bin / python
  
a, b, c = 1, 20.2, "GeeksforGeeks"
  
print(a)
print(b)
print(c)

Output:

1
20.2
GeeksforGeeks

Can we use the same name for different types?

If we use the same name, the variable starts referring to a new value and type.

Python3

#!/usr / bin / python
  
a = 10
a = "GeeksforGeeks"
  
print(a)

Output:

GeeksforGeeks

How does + operator work with variables?

Python3

#!/usr / bin / python
  
a = 10
b = 20
print(a+b)
  
a = "Geeksfor"
b = "Geeks"
print(a+b)

Output

30
GeeksforGeeks

Can we use + for different types also?

No using for different types would produce error.

Python3

#!/usr / bin / python
  
a = 10
b = "Geeks"
print(a+b)

Output :

TypeError: unsupported operand type(s) for +: 'int' and 'str'

Global and Local Variables in Python:

Local variables are the ones that are defined and declared inside a function. We can not call this variable outside the function.

Python3

# This function uses global variable s
def f():
    s = "Welcome geeks"
    print(s)
  
  
f()

Output:

Welcome geeks

Global variables are the ones that are defined and declared outside a function, and we need to use them inside a function.

Python3

# This function has a variable with
# name same as s.
def f():
    print(s)
  
  
# Global scope
s = "I love Geeksforgeeks"
f()

Output:

I love Geeksforgeeks

Global keyword in Python:

Global keyword is a keyword that allows a user to modify a variable outside of the current scope. It is used to create global variables from a non-global scope i.e inside a function. Global keyword is used inside a function only when we want to do assignments or when we want to change a variable. Global is not needed for printing and accessing.

Rules of global keyword:

If a variable is assigned a value anywhere within the function’s body, it’s assumed to be a local unless explicitly declared as global.
Variables that are only referenced inside a function are implicitly global.
We Use global keyword to use a global variable inside a function.
There is no need to use global keyword outside a function.

Example:

Python3

# Python program to modify a global
# value inside a function
  
x = 15
  
  
def change():
  
    # using a global keyword
    global x
  
    # increment value of a by 5
    x = x + 5
    print("Value of x inside a function :", x)
  
  
change()
print("Value of x outside a function :", x)

Output:

Value of x inside a function : 20
Value of x outside a function : 20

Variable type in Python:

Data types are the classification or categorization of data items. It represents the kind of value that tells what operations can be performed on a particular data. Since everything is an object in Python programming, data types are actually classes and variables are instance (object) of these classes.

Following are the standard or built-in data type of Python:

Numeric
Sequence Type
Boolean
Set
Dictionary

Example:

Python3

# numberic
var = 123
print("Numbric data : ", var)
  
# Sequence Type
String1 = 'Welcome to the Geeks World'
print("String with the use of Single Quotes: ")
print(String1)
  
# Boolean
print(type(True))
print(type(False))
  
# Creating a Set with
# the use of a String
set1 = set("GeeksForGeeks")
print("\nSet with the use of String: ")
print(set1)
  
# Creating a Dictionary
# with Integer Keys
Dict = {1: 'Geeks', 2: 'For', 3: 'Geeks'}
print("\nDictionary with the use of Integer Keys: ")
print(Dict)

Output:

Numbric data :  123
String with the use of Single Quotes: 
Welcome to the Geeks World
<class 'bool'>
<class 'bool'>

Set with the use of String: 
{'r', 'G', 'e', 'k', 'o', 's', 'F'}

Dictionary with the use of Integer Keys: 
{1: 'Geeks', 2: 'For', 3: 'Geeks'}

Object References:

Let, we assign a variable x to value 5, and another variable y to the variable x.

Python3

x = 5
y = x

When Python looks at the first statement, what it does is that, first, it creates an object to represent the value 5. Then, it creates the variable x if it doesn’t exist and made it a reference to this new object 5. The second line causes Python to create the variable y, and it is not assigned with x, rather it is made to reference that object that x does. The net effect is that the variables x and y wind up referencing the same object. This situation, with multiple names referencing the same object, is called a Shared Reference in Python.
Now, if we write:

Python3

x = 'Geeks'

This statement makes a new object to represent ‘Geeks’ and makes x to reference this new object.

Creating objects (or variables of a class type):

Please refer Class, Object and Members for more details.

Python3

# Python program to show that the variables with a value 
# assigned in class declaration, are class variables and
# variables inside methods and constructors are instance
# variables.
    
# Class for Computer Science Student
class CSStudent:
   
    # Class Variable
    stream = 'cse'            
   
    # The init method or constructor
    def __init__(self, roll):
     
        # Instance Variable    
        self.roll = roll       
    
# Objects of CSStudent class
a = CSStudent(101)
b = CSStudent(102)
    
print(a.stream)  # prints "cse"
print(b.stream)  # prints "cse"
print(a.roll)    # prints 101
    
# Class variables can be accessed using class
# name also
print(CSStudent.stream) # prints "cse"    

Output

cse
cse
101
cse

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Python Variables

Rules for creating variables in Python:

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Declare the Variable:

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Re-declare the Variable:

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Assigning a single value to multiple variables:

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Assigning different values to multiple variables:

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Can we use the same name for different types?

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How does + operator work with variables?

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Can we use + for different types also?

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Global and Local Variables in Python:

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Global keyword in Python:

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Variable type in Python:

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Object References:

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Creating objects (or variables of a class type):

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