This may be a theoretical question, but please bear with me. Why does this Python code produce this output?
content = ['abc', 'def', 'ghi', 'jkl', '\n.']
print(content[-1])
The output is:
.
Why does the . come? Why isn't there an error?
Asked
Active
Viewed 271 times
-3
Sid
- 2,174
- 1
- 13
- 29
1 Answers
2
Python lists can be indexed by negative numbers, with -1 referring to the last element, -2 referring to the second to last element, and so on.
Specifically for this example, content[-1] refers to '\n.'. The character '\n' is a whitespace character that creates a new line. Thus, your print statement outputs a new line followed by the period.
nmpauls
- 144
- 1
- 9
-
Yes, but there is no ```.``` item in my list. Why is that the output? – Sid Sep 12 '19 at 06:27
-
1The last item in your list is `'\n.'`, this is a newline followed by a dot. – Ammar Askar Sep 12 '19 at 06:29
-
Try adding a print("----") before your print statement. You should see an empty line between ---- and the dot – Kevin Müller Sep 12 '19 at 09:42