Python Dictionaries
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964
}
Dictionary
Dictionaries are used to store data values in key:value
pairs.
A dictionary is a collection which is ordered*,
changeable and do not allow duplicates.
As of Python version 3.7, dictionaries are ordered. In
Python 3.6 and earlier, dictionaries are unordered.
Dictionaries are written with curly brackets, and have
keys and values:
Example
Create and print a dictionary:
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964
}
print(thisdict)
output
{'brand': 'Ford', 'model': 'Mustang', 'year': 1964}
Ordered or Unordered?
As of Python version 3.7, dictionaries are ordered. In
Python 3.6 and earlier, dictionaries are unordered.
When we say that dictionaries are ordered, it means
that the items have a defined order, and that order will
not change.
Unordered means that the items does not have a
defined order, you cannot refer to an item by using an
index.
Changeable
Dictionaries are changeable, meaning that we can
change, add or remove items after the dictionary has
been created.
Duplicates Not Allowed
Dictionaries cannot have two items with the same key:
Example
Duplicate values will overwrite existing values:
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964,
"year": 2020
}
print(thisdict)
output
{'brand': 'Ford', 'model': 'Mustang', 'year': 2020}
Dictionary Length
To determine how many items a dictionary has, use
the len() function:
Example
Print the number of items in the dictionary:
print(len(thisdict))
Dictionary Items - Data Types
The values in dictionary items can be of any data type:
Example
String, int, boolean, and list data types:
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"electric": False,
"year": 1964,
"colors": ["red", "white", "blue"]
}
type()
From Python's perspective, dictionaries are defined as
objects with the data type 'dict':
<class 'dict'>
Example
Print the data type of a dictionary:
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964
}
print(type(thisdict))
Accessing Items
You can access the items of a dictionary by referring to
its key name, inside square brackets:
Example
Get the value of the "model" key:
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964
}
x = thisdict["model"]
Output
Mustang
There is also a method called get() that will give you
the same result:
Example
Get the value of the "model" key:
x = thisdict.get("year")
Get Keys
The keys() method will return a list of all the keys in
the dictionary.
Example
Get a list of the keys:
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964
}
x = thisdict.keys()
Output
dict_keys(['brand', 'model', 'year'])
Get Values
The values() method will return a list of all the values
in the dictionary.
Example
Get a list of the values:
x = thisdict.values()
The list of the values is a view of the dictionary,
meaning that any changes done to the dictionary will
be reflected in the values list.
Example
Make a change in the original dictionary, and see that
the values list gets updated as well:
car = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964
}
x = car.values()
print(x) #before the change
car["year"] = 2020
print(x) #after the change
Output
dict_values(['Ford', 'Mustang', 1964])
dict_values(['Ford', 'Mustang', 2020])
Get Items
The items() method will return each item in a
dictionary, as tuples in a list.
Example
Get a list of the key:value pairs
x = thisdict.items()
Output
dict_items([('brand', 'Ford'), ('model',
'Mustang'), ('year', 1964)])
Python - Change Dictionary Items
Change Values
You can change the value of a specific item by referring
to its key name:
Example
Change the "year" to 2018:
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964
}
thisdict["year"] = 2018
Output
{'brand': 'Ford', 'model': 'Mustang', 'year': 2018}
Update Dictionary
The update() method will update the dictionary with
the items from the given argument.
The argument must be a dictionary, or an iterable
object with key:value pairs.
Example
Update the "year" of the car by using
the update() method:
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964
}
thisdict.update({"year": 2020})
output
{'brand': 'Ford', 'model': 'Mustang', 'year': 2020}
Python - Add Dictionary Items
Adding Items
Adding an item to the dictionary is done by using a new
index key and assigning a value to it:
Example
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964
}
thisdict["color"] = "red"
print(thisdict)
Output
{'brand': 'Ford', 'model': 'Mustang', 'year': 1964,
'color': 'red'}
Update Dictionary
The update() method will update the dictionary with
the items from a given argument. If the item does not
exist, the item will be added.
The argument must be a dictionary, or an iterable
object with key:value pairs.
Example
Add a color item to the dictionary by using
the update() method:
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964
}
thisdict.update({"color": "red"})
Python - Remove Dictionary Items
Removing Items
There are several methods to remove items from a
dictionary:
Example
The pop() method removes the item with the specified
key name:
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964
}
thisdict.pop("model")
print(thisdict)
Output
{'brand': 'Ford', 'year': 1964}
Example
The popitem() method removes the last inserted item
(in versions before 3.7, a random item is removed
instead):
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964
}
thisdict.popitem()
print(thisdict)
output
{'brand': 'Ford', 'model': 'Mustang'}
Example
The del keyword removes the item with the specified
key name:
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964
}
del thisdict["model"]
print(thisdict)
Output
{'brand': 'Ford', 'year': 1964}
Example
The del keyword can also delete the dictionary
completely:
thisdict = {
"brand": "Ford",
"model": "Mustang",
"year": 1964
}
del thisdict
print(thisdict) #this will cause an error because
"thisdict" no longer exists.
