Core Python Language Tutorials

This page features all of our “pure Python” tutorials that focus on the core language features.

What is Python?

Python, named after the British comedy group Monty Python, is an interpreted, interactive, object-oriented programming language. Its flexibility allows it to do many things, both big and small. Python can be used to write simple programs, but it also possesses the full power required to create complex, large-scale enterprise solutions. Some of the ways in which Python is used includes:

Desktop graphical application development, including games;
Mathematical and scientific analysis of data; and
Web and internet development.

Python’s presence in the world of computer programming can be found everywhere. For example, Python is used in some of the largest internet sites on earth - like Reddit, Dropbox, and Youtube, to name a few. The popular Python web framework Django powers both Instagram and Pinterest. LucasFilms’s award winning visual effects company, Industrial Light & Magic, uses Python to make help make their magic come to life.

It’s easy to forget just how powerful Python is because it’s so easy to learn.

Free Bonus: Python Cheat Sheet

Get a Python Cheat Sheet (PDF) and learn the basics of Python 3, like working with data types, dictionaries, lists, and Python functions:

Python 3.12 Preview: Static Typing Improvements

Python 3.12 Preview: Static Typing Improvements

Sep 27, 2023 advanced python

Python Basics: Conditional Logic & Control Flow

Python Basics Exercises: Conditional Logic and Control Flow

Sep 26, 2023 basics python

Python 3.12 Preview: Subinterpreters

Python 3.12 Preview: Subinterpreters

Sep 25, 2023 advanced python

Python Basics: File System Operations

Python Basics: File System Operations

Sep 22, 2023 basics python

How to Catch Multiple Exceptions in Python

How to Catch Multiple Exceptions in Python

Sep 20, 2023 intermediate best-practices python

SOLID Principles: Improve Object-Oriented Design in Python

Design and Guidance: Object-Oriented Programming in Python

Sep 19, 2023 intermediate best-practices python

Operators and Expressions in Python

Operators and Expressions in Python

Sep 18, 2023 basics python

Bypassing the GIL for Parallel Processing in Python

Bypassing the GIL for Parallel Processing in Python

Sep 13, 2023 advanced python

Inheritance and Internals: Object-Oriented Programming in Python

Inheritance and Internals: Object-Oriented Programming in Python

Sep 12, 2023 intermediate python

OOP in Python 3

Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) in Python 3

Sep 11, 2023 intermediate python

Python Classes: The Power of Object-Oriented Programming

Class Concepts: Object-Oriented Programming in Python

Sep 05, 2023 intermediate python

OOP in Python 3

Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) in Python 3

Sep 01, 2023 intermediate python

How to Iterate Through a Dictionary in Python

How to Iterate Through a Dictionary in Python

Aug 28, 2023 intermediate python

Click and Python: Build Extensible and Composable CLI Apps

Click and Python: Build Extensible and Composable CLI Apps

Aug 23, 2023 intermediate devops python tools

Python Basics: Building Systems With Classes

Python Basics: Building Systems With Classes

Aug 23, 2023 basics python

Python Basics: Object-Oriented Programming

Python Basics: Object-Oriented Programming

Aug 21, 2023 basics python

What Are Python Asterisk and Slash Special Parameters For?

What Are Python Asterisk and Slash Special Parameters For?

Aug 14, 2023 intermediate python

Working With the Python operator Module

Working With the Python operator Module

Aug 02, 2023 intermediate data-structures python

Reverse Strings in Python: reversed(), Slicing, and More

Reversing Strings in Python

Aug 01, 2023 basics best-practices python

The Ultimate Guide to Python Print

The Python print() Function

Jul 31, 2023 basics python

Python 3.12 Preview: More Intuitive and Consistent F-Strings

Python 3.12 Preview: More Intuitive and Consistent F-Strings

Jul 26, 2023 intermediate python

Socket Programming in Python Part 1: Handling Connections

Socket Programming in Python Part 1: Handling Connections

Jul 25, 2023 advanced python web-dev

Python's list Data Type: A Deep Dive With Examples

Python's list Data Type: A Deep Dive With Examples

Jul 19, 2023 intermediate data-structures python

Python 3.12 Preview: Support For the Linux perf Profiler

Python 3.12 Preview: Support For the Linux perf Profiler

advanced python

Python's filter(): Extract Values From Iterables

Filtering Iterables With Python

intermediate best-practices python

How to Round Numbers in Python

How to Round Numbers in Python

intermediate best-practices python

Python sleep(): How to Add Time Delays to Your Code

Python time.sleep()

Jun 23, 2023 intermediate python

Python's Self Type: How to Annotate Methods That Return self

Python's Self Type: How to Annotate Methods That Return self

intermediate best-practices python

Recursion in Python: An Introduction

Recursion in Python

intermediate python

Python's raise: Effectively Raising Exceptions in Your Code

Python's raise: Effectively Raising Exceptions in Your Code

intermediate python

Python Basics: Reading and Writing Files

Python Basics: Reading and Writing Files

What's the Zen of Python?

What's the Zen of Python?

Using the NumPy Random Number Generator

Using the NumPy Random Number Generator

intermediate data-science numpy python

Python Decorators

Decorators

Jun 05, 2023 advanced python

What Does if __name__ == "__main__" Do in Python?

Python Name-Main Idiom

May 26, 2023 intermediate python

Python's .__call__() Method: Creating Callable Instances

Python's .call() Method: Creating Callable Instances

intermediate python

Python Metaclasses and Metaprogramming

Metaclasses in Python

advanced python

Using and Creating Global Variables in Your Python Functions

Using and Creating Global Variables in Your Python Functions

intermediate best-practices python

Efficient String Concatenation in Python

Efficient String Concatenation in Python

basics best-practices python

SOLID Principles: Improve Object-Oriented Design in Python

SOLID Principles: Improve Object-Oriented Design in Python

intermediate best-practices python

Python Classes: The Power of Object-Oriented Programming

Python Classes: The Power of Object-Oriented Programming

intermediate python

Python's assert: Debug and Test Your Code Like a Pro

Using Python's assert to Debug and Test Your Code

intermediate best-practices python

Python Basics: Installing Packages With pip

Python Basics: Installing Packages With pip

Python 3 "pathlib" Module: Taming The Filesystem

Python's pathlib Module: Taming the File System

intermediate python

OrderedDict vs dict in Python: The Right Tool for the Job

Using OrderedDict in Python

intermediate python

Python 3.12 Preview: Ever Better Error Messages

Python 3.12 Preview: Ever Better Error Messages

intermediate python

Python's del: Remove References From Scopes and Containers

Python's del: Remove References From Scopes and Containers

basics best-practices python

Python's sum(): The Pythonic Way to Sum Values

Summing Values the Pythonic Way With sum()