Python Tuples:

Tuples are used to store multiple items in a single variable.

Tuple is one of 4 built-in data types in Python used to store collections of data, the other 3 are
List, Set, and Dictionary, all with different qualities and usage.

A tuple is a collection which is ordered and unchangeable.

Tuples are written with round brackets.

Example

Create a Tuple:

thistuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry")

print(thistuple)
O/p: ('apple', 'banana', 'cherry')

Tuple Items

Tuple items are ordered, unchangeable, and allow duplicate values.

Tuple items are indexed, the first item has index [0], the second item has index [1] etc.

Ordered

When we say that tuples are ordered, it means that the items have a defined order, and that
order will not change.

Unchangeable

Tuples are unchangeable, meaning that we cannot change, add or remove items after the tuple
has been created.

Allow Duplicates

Since tuples are indexed, they can have items with the same value:

Example

Tuples allow duplicate values:

thistuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry", "apple", "cherry")

print(thistuple)
O/p: ('apple', 'banana', 'cherry', 'apple', 'cherry')

Tuple Length

To determine how many items a tuple has, use the len() function:

Example

Print the number of items in the tuple:

thistuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry")

print(len(thistuple))

O/p: 3

Create Tuple With One Item

To create a tuple with only one item, you have to add a comma after the item, otherwise
Python will not recognize it as a tuple.

Example

One item tuple, remember the comma:

thistuple = ("apple",)
print(type(thistuple))

#NOT a tuple
thistuple = ("apple")
print(type(thistuple))

O/p: <class 'tuple'>

<class 'str'>

Tuple Items - Data Types

Tuple items can be of any data type:

Example

String, int and boolean data types:

tuple1 = ("apple", "banana", "cherry")

tuple2 = (1, 5, 7, 9, 3)
tuple3 = (True, False, False)
O/p: ('apple', 'banana', 'cherry')
(1, 5, 7, 9, 3)
(True, False, False)

A tuple can contain different data types:

Example

A tuple with strings, integers and boolean values:

tuple1 = ("abc", 34, True, 40, "male")

type()

From Python's perspective, tuples are defined as objects with the data type 'tuple':

<class 'tuple'>

Example

What is the data type of a tuple?

mytuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry")

print(type(mytuple))

Python - Access Tuple Items

Access Tuple Items

You can access tuple items by referring to the index number, inside square brackets:

Example

Print the second item in the tuple:

thistuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry")

print(thistuple[1])

O/p:
banana

Negative Indexing

Negative indexing means start from the end.

-1 refers to the last item, -2 refers to the second last item etc.

Example

Print the last item of the tuple:

thistuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry")

print(thistuple[-1])

O/p: cherry
Range of Indexes

You can specify a range of indexes by specifying where to start and where to end the range.

When specifying a range, the return value will be a new tuple with the specified items.

Example

Return the third, fourth, and fifth item:

thistuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry", "orange", "kiwi", "melon", "mango")

print(thistuple[2:5])

O/p: ('cherry', 'orange', 'kiwi')

Note: The search will start at index 2 (included) and end at index 5 (not included).

Remember that the first item has index 0.

By leaving out the start value, the range will start at the first item:

Example

This example returns the items from the beginning to, but NOT included, "kiwi":

thistuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry", "orange", "kiwi", "melon", "mango")

print(thistuple[:4])

O/p: ('apple', 'banana', 'cherry', 'orange')

By leaving out the end value, the range will go on to the end of the tuple:

Example

This example returns the items from "cherry" and to the end:

thistuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry", "orange", "kiwi", "melon", "mango")

print(thistuple[2:])

O/p: ('cherry', 'orange', 'kiwi', 'melon', 'mango')

Range of Negative Indexes

Specify negative indexes if you want to start the search from the end of the tuple:

Example

This example returns the items from index -4 (included) to index -1 (excluded)
thistuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry", "orange", "kiwi", "melon", "mango")
print(thistuple[-4:-1])

O/p: ('orange', 'kiwi', 'melon')

Check if Item Exists

To determine if a specified item is present in a tuple use the in keyword:

Example

Check if "apple" is present in the tuple:

thistuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry")

if "apple" in thistuple:
print("Yes, 'apple' is in the fruits tuple")

O/p: Yes, 'apple' is in the fruits tuple

Python - Update Tuples

uples are unchangeable, meaning that you cannot change, add, or remove items once the tuple
is created.

But there are some workarounds.

Add Items

Since tuples are immutable, they do not have a built-in append() method, but there are other
ways to add items to a tuple.

1. Convert into a list: Just like the workaround for changing a tuple, you can convert it into a
list, add your item(s), and convert it back into a tuple.

Example

Convert the tuple into a list, add "orange", and convert it back into a tuple:

thistuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry")

y = list(thistuple)
y.append("orange")
thistuple = tuple(y)

O/p: ('apple', 'banana', 'cherry', 'orange')

2. Add tuple to a tuple. You are allowed to add tuples to tuples, so if you want to add one
item, (or many), create a new tuple with the item(s), and add it to the existing tuple:
Example

Create a new tuple with the value "orange", and add that tuple:

thistuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry")

y = ("orange",)
thistuple += y

print(thistuple)

O/p: ('apple', 'banana', 'cherry', 'orange')

Remove Items

Note: You cannot remove items in a tuple.

Tuples are unchangeable, so you cannot remove items from it, but you can use the same
workaround as we used for changing and adding tuple items:

Example

Convert the tuple into a list, remove "apple", and convert it back into a tuple:

thistuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry")

y = list(thistuple)
y.remove("apple")
thistuple = tuple(y)

O/p: ('banana', 'cherry')

Or you can delete the tuple completely:

Example

The del keyword can delete the tuple completely:

thistuple = ("apple", "banana", "cherry")

del thistuple
print(thistuple) #this will raise an error because the tuple no longer exists