Dictionaries

Python Dictionaries

Dictionary is a built-in data type that stores data in key:value pairs. It is mutable and with fast efficient data retrieval.

Dictionary has the following features:

1. Mutable: Dictionaries are mutable, you can change, remove, and update key:pair items.

2. Key:Value pairs: Each key is mapped to a value, keys should be of immutable data type, keys should also be unique.

Creating a dictionary

Dictionaries can be created in several ways such as using a comma-separated key:value pairs, let’s cover each method.

Using a comma-separated key:value pairs

A dictionary can be created using placing comma-separated key:value pair in a curly braces {}

an example of creating a dictionary

  book = {"title": "Python", "author": "Guido Von rossum"}

  print(book) #output: {"title": "Python", "author": "Guido Von rossum"}

Using a dict() built-in function

Example 1: using a list of tuples

creating a dictionary using a list of tuples

  my_dict = dict([("one": 1), ("two", 2), ("three": 3)])

  print(my_dict) # outputs: {"one": 1, "two": 2}

Example 2: using keyword arguments

example of creating a dict using keyword arguments

  my_dict = dict(name="kevin", age=11)

  print(my_dict) # outputs: {"name": "kevin", "age": 11}