Get Function in Python

Last Updated on February 25, 2023 by Prepbytes

Python is a versatile programming language that can handle a wide range of programming tasks, from simple text processing to complex scientific computations. One of the most powerful features of Python is its ability to work with dictionaries, which are collections of key-value pairs. The get function in Python is an important built-in method that allows you to retrieve a value from a dictionary based on its key.

In this article, we’ll take a detailed look at the get function in Python, including its syntax, parameters, and return value. We’ll also provide some examples to illustrate how the get() function works in practice.

What is the Get Function in Python?

The get function in Python allows you to retrieve a value from a dictionary based on its key. The get() function takes one or two arguments: the key of the value you want to retrieve and an optional default value to return if the key is not found in the dictionary.

The get Function in Python is similar to using dictionary indexing, but it provides an extra level of flexibility. If you try to access a key that does not exist in a dictionary using indexing, you will get a KeyError. However, if you use the get function, you can specify a default value to return instead of raising an error.

Syntax of the get Function in Python

The syntax for using the get Function in Python is as follows:

dictionary.get(key, default)

Here, “dictionary” is the dictionary you want to retrieve a value from, “key” is the key of the value you want to retrieve, and “default” is the optional default value to return if the key is not found in the dictionary.

Parameters of the Get Function in Python

The get() Function in Python takes two parameters:

• key: The key of the value you want to retrieve from the dictionary.
• default (optional): The default value to return if the key is not found in the dictionary.

If you do not provide a default value, the get method function in python will return “None” if the key is not found in the dictionary.

Return Type of the Get Function in Python:

The get Function in Python returns the value associated with the specified key if the key is found in the dictionary. If the key is not found in the dictionary and a default value is specified, the get Function will return the default value. If the key is not found in the dictionary and no default value is specified, the get Function will return None.

Examples of the Get Function in Python

Let’s take a look at some examples to see how the get() method works in practice.

Example 1: Retrieving a value from a dictionary using the get Function in Python
The following code demonstrates how to retrieve a value from the dictionary using the get Function in Python.

person = {"name": "John", "age": 30, "gender": "male"}
name = person.get("name")
print(name)

Output:

John

Explanation:
In this example, we create a dictionary called person with three key-value pairs. We then use the get() method to retrieve the value associated with the key "name" and assign it to a variable called name. We then print the value of the name, which is "John".

Example 2: Retrieving a value from a dictionary using the get Function in Python with a default value
We can also provide a default value to the get Function in Python. The code given below demonstrates the implementation for this.

person = {"name": "John", "age": 30, "gender": "male"}
country = person.get("country", "USA")
print(country)

Output:

USA

Explanation:
In this example, we try to retrieve the value associated with the key "country", which does not exist in the person dictionary. However, instead of raising a KeyError, the get() method returns the default value "USA" that we specified.

Example 3: Retrieving a value from a nested dictionary using the get Function in Python
Let us learn how to use the get Function in Python to retrieve the value from a Nested Dictionary with the help of the code given below

person = {"name": "John",
        "age": 30,
        "gender": "male",
        "address": {"city": "New York", "state": "NY"}}
       
state = person.get("address").get("state")
print(state)

Output:

NY

In this example, we have a nested dictionary called address within the person dictionary. We use the get() method twice to retrieve the value associated with the key "state". First, we use the get() method to retrieve the value associated with the key "address", which is a dictionary itself. Then, we use the get() method again to retrieve the value associated with the key "state" from the address dictionary.

Example 4: Retrieving a value from a dictionary using the get() Function with a None default value
This example will show what will happen if we don’t specify any default value to the get Function in Python and the key doesn’t exist in the dictionary.

person = {"name": "John", "age": 30, "gender": "male"}
country = person.get("country")
print(country)

Output:

None

In this example, we try to retrieve the value associated with the key "country", which does not exist in the person dictionary. Since we did not specify a default value, the get() method returns “None”.

Conclusion
The get() method is a powerful and flexible way to retrieve values from dictionaries in Python. It allows you to retrieve a value based on its key, and it provides an optional default value to return if the key is not found in the dictionary. By using the get() method, you can avoid raising a KeyError when trying to access a key that does not exist in a dictionary.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Ques 1. How is the get() function different from accessing a dictionary value directly?
Ans. Accessing a dictionary value directly using the key can raise a KeyError if the key does not exist in the dictionary. The get() function allows you to specify a default value to return if the key is not found, which can prevent this error from occurring.

Ques 2. Can you use the get() function to set a value in a dictionary?
Ans. No, the get() function is only used to retrieve a value from a dictionary based on its key. To set a value in a dictionary, you can use the syntax dictionary[key] = value.

Ques 3. Can you use the get() function to retrieve a value from a nested dictionary?
Ans. Yes, you can use the get() function to retrieve a value from a nested dictionary by chaining multiple get() calls together.

Ques 4. Is it necessary to provide a default value when using the get() function?
Ans. No, it is not necessary to provide a default value when using the get() function. If a default value is not provided, the function will return None if the key is not found in the dictionary.

Ques 5. Can you use the get() function with other data types besides dictionaries?
Ans. No, the get() function is specifically designed to work with dictionaries in Python. Other data types may have their own methods or functions for retrieving values.

Ques 6. Can you modify a dictionary using the get() function?
Ans. No, the get() function only retrieves values from a dictionary and does not modify the dictionary itself. To modify a dictionary, you can use other methods such as update() or directly assign a new value to a key using the syntax dictionary[key] = value.

Ques 7. Can you use the get() function with dictionaries that have non-string keys?
Ans. Yes, you can use the get() function with dictionaries that have non-string keys. The key can be any hashable data type, including integers, tuples, or even other dictionaries.