What is the difference between break and continue in Python?
Benjamin C
In Python,break andcontinue are control flow statements used within loops to alter the flow of execution. Here's a detailed explanation of the differences betweenbreak andcontinue:
break statement:
Thebreak statement is used to exit the current loop immediately, regardless of whether the loop condition has been fully evaluated. It is typically used to terminate a loop prematurely based on a certain condition.
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for i in range(1, 6):
if i == 3:
break
print(i)
In this example, thefor loop iterates over the range from 1 to 6. Wheni becomes 3, thebreak statement is encountered, and the loop is terminated. As a result, only the numbers 1 and 2 are printed.
continue statement:
Thecontinue statement is used to skip the rest of the code within the loop for the current iteration and move on to the next iteration. It allows you to skip certain iterations based on a specific condition.
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for i in range(1, 6):
if i == 3:
continue
print(i)
In this example, thefor loop iterates over the range from 1 to 6. Wheni becomes 3, thecontinue statement is encountered. It immediately goes to the next iteration, skipping the subsequent code. As a result, the number 3 is not printed, but the remaining numbers are printed.
Differences between break and continue:
The main differences betweenbreak andcontinue are:
1. Effect on the loop: Thebreak statement terminates the loop completely, and the control flow moves to the next statement after the loop. Thecontinue statement skips the remaining code within the loop for the current iteration and moves on to the next iteration.
2. Loop continuation: After encounteringbreak, the loop is completely terminated, and no further iterations are executed. After encounteringcontinue, the loop continues with the next iteration, skipping the remaining code within the loop for the current iteration.
3. Loop condition evaluation:break allows you to exit the loop immediately, even if the loop condition is still true.continue does not affect the loop condition and allows the loop to proceed with the next iteration.
It's important to usebreak andcontinue judiciously within your code, considering the intended behavior and logic flow. They are powerful tools to control the flow of execution within loops and can make your code more efficient and readable when used appropriately.
