Python Syntax - Learn the Basics of this Programming Language

1. Python Programming Syntax

Python programming is one of the most beginner-friendly and versatile coding language, and is popular due to its simple and elegant syntax that makes it easy to read and write. In this tutorial, you will learn the syntax basics of Python language, such as variables, data types, operators, expressions, statements, etc. You will also observe code examples of how to use Python progarmming to create and run simple programs to understand the language basics vividly. By the end of this tutorial, you will have a solid foundation of Python syntax and its basics, and be ready to explore more advanced language topics.

1.1. What is Python Syntax?

To write Python programming code, we need to understand its syntax so that we can communicate with the interpreter. The below example is a simple representation of the syntax of Python language. Feel free to navigate through the tabs to check the output of the provided code example.

age = 35
height = 1.72
name = "John"
bio = name + " is " + str(age) + " years old and his height is " + str(height) + "m."

print(bio)

1.2. Python Syntax Explained

The above instance shows the basic syntax of Python programming. We see various strings, operators, etc. in this example. Let us dig deep and explain this example to understand it deeply.

• At first, we declared some basic variables to store the data about a person.
• The age, height, name, and bio are the variable names.
• The = sign is the equality operator to assign values to the variables in Python programming.
• age: This is the integer type variable to store the age of the person.
• height: To store the person's height, we used the float data type.
• name: This is a string data type that stores the name of the person.
• Importantly, We need to add the strings in double "" or single '' quotation marks.
• bio: Finally, we joined all the variables in a sentence using the concatenation (+) operator.
• Wait! You are cautious about str(age) and str(height).
• The str() is a built-in string function that is applied to the integer and float data types to convert them to strings.
• Lastly, we implemented the Python print() function to the bio variable to display its result on the screen.

2. Python Language Basics

Next in this tutorial, we will learn about the basics or fundamentals of Python programming, which we need to consider while writing programs. These basics of Python serve as a base and the whole coding syntax of this programming lies over these fundamental concepts.

2.1. Python Syntax Basics

1. Interpretation and Versatility:
   • Python is an interpreted, high-level programming language known for its readability and versatility.
2. Dynamic Typing:
   • Unlike statically typed languages like Kotlin and PHP, Python dynamically assigns data types during runtime like SASS and JavaScript, offering flexibility.
3. Indentation for Blocks:
   • Python programming uses indentation to define code blocks, enhancing readability, therefore, consistent indentation is essential in its syntax.
4. Comments:
   • Adding single-line or multi-line comments is also a syntax beauty of Python programming language.
5. Variables:
   • We use variables in Python code to store data and these are extensively used in this programming.
6. Data Types:
   • There are numerous data types which include strings, integers, floats, lists, etc.
7. Operators:
   • For arithmetic, comparison, logical operations, etc. there is a diverse availability of Python operators.
8. Control Flow:
   • Utilize Python conditions, loops, and exception handling for effective control flow in your code.
9. Functions:
   • Include Python functions in syntax basics also, which act as self-contained reusable blocks of code.
10. Classes and Objects:
    • Like PHP language, Python also supports object-oriented programming paradigm.
11. Libraries, Modules, and Frameworks:
    • Leverage the extensive resources of Python libraries, modules, and frameworks to speed up your productivity.
12. File Handling
    • Python also empowers you to handle the files efficiently performing various operations with ease.

3. Python Basics in a NUTSHELL

The previous section of Python tutorial explains the language basics with extreme simplicity. Let us now take a comprehensive code example to deeply analyze the syntax of Python that will cover most of the basics listed above.

3.1. Advanced Example of Python Syntax

Let's create a simple Python program that calculates the area of a rectangle. This example will cover Python variables, data types, operators, control flow, functions, and may other syntax features..

# Function to calculate the area of a rectangle.
def calculate_rectangle_area(length, width):
    """
    This function takes the length and width of a rectangle as parameters
    and returns the calculated area.
    """
    area = length * width
    return area

# Input: Length and width from the user input.
user_length = float(input("Enter the length of the rectangle: "))
user_width = float(input("Enter the width of the rectangle: "))

# Calculate the area using the above function.
result_area = calculate_rectangle_area(user_length, user_width)

# Output: Display the above calculated area.
print(f"The area of the rectangle with length {user_length} and width {user_width} is: {result_area}")

3.2. Example Explained

Let's break down the above Python programming example into slices to digest the basics.

1. Function Definition:
   • We defined a function calculate_rectangle_area() using the def keyword that takes length and width parameters and returns the calculated area of a rectangle.
2. User Input:
   • The built-in input() method is helpful to get user input for the length and width of the rectangle.
   • The values are converted to float using the float() function.
3. Function Call:
   • The calculate_rectangle_area function usese values of user_length and user_width variables to calculate the area and store the result in the result_area variable.
4. Output:
   • Finally, the print() function displays the calculated area.
   • We utilized the f_string literal to include variable values in the output.
5. Comments:
   • We added single-line comments using the # symbol.
   • We also included the docstring documentation of the function using the """ symbol.

4. Conclusion: Final Thoughts on Python Syntax Basics

In this blog tutorial, you have learned the basics of Python programming syntax, such as variables, data types, operators, expressions, statements, etc. You have also seen some basic and advanced examples of how to use Python language to create and run simple programs. Python syntax is simple and elegant, but also powerful and flexible. You can use it to create various types of applications, from web development to data analysis. To learn more about Python syntax and its features, you can check out the official Python documentation or some of the other blog tutorials on this website.