What does %s mean in a Python format string? - GeeksforGeeks (2024)

The % symbol is used in Python with a large variety of data types and configurations. %s specifically is used to perform concatenation of strings together. It allows us to format a value inside a string. It is used to incorporate another string within a string. It automatically provides type conversion from value to string.

The %s operator is put where the string is to be specified. The number of values you want to append to a string should be equivalent to the number specified in parentheses after the % operator at the end of the string value.

The following Python code illustrates the way of performing string formatting.

Simple use of %s

Python3

# declaring a string variable

name = "Geek"

# append a string within a string

print("Hey, %s!" % name)

Output

Hey, Geek!

Multiple %s

Multiple strings can also be appended within a single string using the %s operator. The strings are replaced in the order of their position in the brackets, wherever there is an %s sign. This is illustrated using the following code snippet :

Python3

# declaring a string variable

var1 = "Geek!"

var2 = "Geeks for Geeks"

# append multiple strings within a string

print("Hello %s Are you enjoying being at %s for preparations." % (var1, var2))

Output

Hello Geek! Are you enjoying being at Geeks for Geeks for preparations.

Mapping strings to %s

However, the number of occurrences of this operator must be equal to the number of strings to replace with after the % sign. Otherwise, an error of the type “TypeError: not enough arguments for format string” is thrown.

Python3

# declaring string variables

str1 = 'Understanding'

str2 = '%s'

str3 = 'at'

str4 = 'GeeksforGeeks'

# concatenating strings but %s not equal to string variables

final_str = "%s %s %s %s" % (str1, str3, str4)

# printing the final string

print("Concatenating multiple strings using Python '%s' operator:\n")

print(final_str)

Error

Traceback (most recent call last):

File “/home/c7b65fabd2ad00163eba70bbc39685d3.py”, line 8, in <module>

final_str = “%s %s %s %s” % (str1, str3, str4)

TypeError: not enough arguments for format string

Correct Code

Python3

# declaring string variables

str1 = 'Understanding'

str2 = '%s'

str3 = 'at'

str4 = 'GeeksforGeeks'

# concatenating strings

final_str = "%s %s %s %s" % (str1, str2, str3, str4)

# printing the final string

print("Concatenating multiple strings using Python '%s' operator:\n")

print(final_str)

Output

Concatenating multiple strings using Python '%s' operator:Understanding %s at GeeksforGeeks

Order %s using dictionary

The strings are printed in whatever order they are appended using the dictionary key in output.

Python3

# declaring string variables with dictionary

dct = {'str1': 'at',

'str2': 'GeeksforGeeks',

'str3': 'Understanding',

'str4': '%s'}

# concatenating strings

final_str = "%(str3)s %(str4)s %(str1)s %(str2)s" % dct

# printing the final string

print("Concatenating multiple strings using Python '%s' operator:\n")

print(final_str)

Output

Concatenating multiple strings using Python '%s' operator:Understanding %s at GeeksforGeeks

List as a string for %s

A non-string operator can also be formatted using the %s symbol in Python. Tuples can also be both inserted and formatted using this operator.

Python3

# declaring string variables

str1 = 'Understanding'

str2 = 'integers'

str3 = 'at'

str4 = 'GeeksforGeeks = '

# declaring list variables

lst = [1, 2, 3]

# concatenating strings as well as list

final_str = "%s %s %s %s %s" % (str1, str2, str3, str4, lst)

# printing the final string

print("Concatenating multiple values using Python '%s' operator:\n")

print(final_str)

Output

Concatenating multiple values using Python '%s' operator:Understanding integers at GeeksforGeeks = [1, 2, 3]

My Personal Notesarrow_drop_up

What does %s mean in a Python format string? - GeeksforGeeks (2024)

FAQs

What does %s mean in Python? ›

The % symbol is used in Python with a large variety of data types and configurations. %s specifically is used to perform concatenation of strings together. It allows us to format a value inside a string.

What is %s %d in Python? ›

%s is used as a placeholder for string values you want to inject into a formatted string. %d is used as a placeholder for numeric or decimal values. For example (for python 3) print ('%s is %d years old' % ('Joe', 42))

How do you print a string in %s in Python? ›

One of the older ways to format strings in Python was to use the % operator. You can create strings and use %s inside that string which acts like a placeholder. Then you can write % followed be the actual string value you want to use. Here is a basic example using % string formatting.

What is %d and %i in Python? ›

Here's what python.org has to say about %i: Signed integer decimal. And %d: Signed integer decimal. %d stands for decimal and %i for integer. but both are same, you can use both.

What is %s and %r in Python? ›

The difference between %s and %r is that %s uses the str function and %r uses the repr function. You can read about the differences between str and repr in this answer, but for built-in types, the biggest difference in practice is that repr for strings includes quotes and all special characters are escaped.

What does [% s mean in Python? ›

It is a string formatting syntax (which it borrows from C). Please see "PyFormat": Python supports formatting values into strings. Although this can include very complicated expressions, the most basic usage is to insert values into a string with the %s placeholder.

What is %R format string in Python? ›

%r is not a valid placeholder in the str. format() formatting operations; it only works in old-style % string formatting. It indeed converts the object to a representation through the repr() function.

What does %s mean in code? ›

%s is for string %d is for decimal (or int) %c is for character.

What is %s and %d in Java? ›

%d means number. %0nd means zero-padded number with a length. You build n by subtraction in your example. %s is a string. Your format string ends up being this: "%03d%s", 0, "Apple"

How to use %s in Python? ›

The %s operator lets you add a value into a Python string. The %s signifies that you want to add a string value into a string. The % operator can be used with other configurations, such as %d, to format different types of values.

What does %F mean in Python? ›

The %f formatter is used to input float values, or numbers with values after the decimal place. This formatter allows us to specify a number of decimal places to round the values by.

How do you use two %s in Python? ›

Multiple %s in a string:

We can use the %s operator to append the given string variable inside a string by putting it where we want to add the value. Python will simply add the string variables where we have used the %s operator in the string.

What does %C mean in Python? ›

The %c is a format character gives the character representation.

Why we are using '_' in Python? ›

In Python underscore (_) is often used to ignore a value. If one doesn't use some values when unpacking, just set the value to underscore (_).

What is %R in Python print? ›

The difference between %r and %s is, %r calls the repr() method and %s calls the str() method. Both of these are built-in Python functions. The repr() method returns a printable representation of the given object. The str() method returns the "informal" or nicely printable representation of a given object.

How to use %s in C? ›

You need to use format specifiers whether you're printing formatted output with printf() or accepting input with scanf() .
...
Format Specifiers in C.
SpecifierUsed For
%ca single character
%sa string
%hishort (signed)
%hushort (unsigned)
12 more rows
22 Jan 2020

What is format specifier in Python? ›

Python uses C-style string formatting to create new, formatted strings. The "%" operator is used to format a set of variables enclosed in a "tuple" (a fixed size list), together with a format string, which contains normal text together with "argument specifiers", special symbols like "%s" and "%d".

What does '$' mean in r? ›

Generally speaking, the $ operator is used to extract or subset a specific part of a data object in R. For instance, this can be a data frame object or a list. In this example, I'll explain how to extract the values in a data frame columns using the $ operator.

What is %s stands for in Java? ›

the %s is a 'format character', indicating "insert a string here". The extra parameters after the string in your two function calls are the values to fill into the format character placeholders: In the first example, %s will be replaced with the contents of the command variable.

What is %s and %c in C? ›

"%s" expects a pointer to a null-terminated string ( char* ). "%c" expects a character ( int ).

What does mean by %S in Java? ›

%s means interpret as string, %d is for digit, %x is digit in hexadecimal, %f is for float, etc....

What is the purpose of %s and %d in the Java printf method? ›

s formats strings. d formats decimal integers. f formats floating-point numbers.

What does %F mean in Java? ›

To use Java printf to format double and float values with decimal place precision, follow these two rules: Use %f as the double specifier in the text string. Precede the letter f with a decimal and number to specify precision.

What does %F do Java? ›

That explains the 6.2 in the format specifier %6.2f. The f means the output is a floating-point number, that is, a number with a decimal point.

What is S replace in Python? ›

Python String replace() Method

The replace() method replaces a specified phrase with another specified phrase. Note: All occurrences of the specified phrase will be replaced, if nothing else is specified.

What does 8.2 F mean in Python? ›

The second one "%8.2f" is a format description for a float number. Like other placeholders, it is introduced with the "%" character. This is followed by the total number of digits the string should contain. This number includes the decimal point and all the digits, i.e. before and after the decimal point.

What does 6.2 F mean in Python? ›

We can control the width and precision of values too: in this example, '%6.2f' means "floating point number, six characters wide, two digits after the decimal point".

What is the meaning of 3.2 F in Python? ›

It means print as a floating point at least 3 wide and a precision of 2. This is a format specifier of a floating point number with 2 decimals and at least one digit left of the decimal point.

What does [:: 2 do in Python? ›

string[::2] reads “default start index, default stop index, step size is two—take every second element”.

How does == work in Python? ›

The == operator compares the value or equality of two objects, whereas the Python is operator checks whether two variables point to the same object in memory. In the vast majority of cases, this means you should use the equality operators == and != , except when you're comparing to None .

Which is faster Java or Python? ›

Java and Python are two of the most popular programming languages. Of the two, Java is the faster language, but Python is simpler and easier to learn. Each is well-established, platform-independent, and part of a large, supportive community.

Is C harder than Python? ›

The syntax of a C program is harder than Python. Syntax of Python programs is easy to learn, write and read. In C, the Programmer has to do memory management on their own. Python uses an automatic garbage collector for memory management.

Which language is easy C or Python? ›

Ease of development – Python has fewer keywords and more free English language syntax whereas C is more difficult to write. Hence, if you want an easy development process go for Python. Performance – Python is slower than C as it takes significant CPU time for interpretation. So, speed-wise C is a better option.

What is _() in Python? ›

[...] The underscore character ( _ ) is used to represent “the previous result” in Python's interactive shell and doctest tests. Installing a global _() function causes interference. Explicitly importing gettext() as _() avoids this problem. Even if it's a convention, it may not be the case in your code.

How do you write += in Python? ›

+= Addition Assignment
  1. Description. Adds a value and the variable and assigns the result to that variable.
  2. Syntax. A += B A. Any valid object. B. Any valid object.
  3. Return Value. According to coercion rules.
  4. Time Complexity. #TODO.
  5. Remarks. Equivalent to A = A + B.
  6. Example. >>> a = 10 >>> a += 5 >>> a 15.
  7. See Also. #TODO.

What is __ in Python called? ›

Single standalone underscore _ is a valid character for a Python identifier, so it can be used as a variable name. According to Python doc, the special identifier _ is used in the interactive interpreter to store the result of the last evaluation. It is stored in the builtin module. Here is an example.

How to use s in Python? ›

We can use the %s operator to append the given string variable inside a string by putting it where we want to add the value. Python will simply add the string variables where we have used the %s operator in the string.

What does S mean in coding? ›

%s is for string %d is for decimal (or int) %c is for character.

What is s float in Python? ›

Float is a function or reusable code in the Python programming language that converts values into floating point numbers. Floating point numbers are decimal values or fractional numbers like 133.5, 2897.11, and 3571.213, whereas real numbers like 56, 2, and 33 are called integers.

What does %s mean in CS? ›

%s means its a string, %d is an integer, %f is floating point number. cheers!

Is %f used for float? ›

Float Format Specifier

Here, %f :- is format specifier for float types.

What is S1 and S2 in Python? ›

The |S1 and |S2 strings are data type descriptors; the first means the array holds strings of length 1, the second of length 2. The | pipe symbol is the byteorder flag; in this case there is no byte order flag needed, so it's set to | , meaning not applicable.

What is decimal () in Python? ›

In Python, there is a module called Decimal, which is used to do some decimal floating point related tasks. This module provides correctly-rounded floating point arithmetic. To use it at first we need to import it the Decimal standard library module. import decimal.

What does S substring do? ›

The substring() method returns the part of the string from the start index up to and excluding the end index, or to the end of the string if no end index is supplied.

How do you replace a specific character in a string in Python? ›

The Python replace() method is used to find and replace characters in a string. It requires a substring to be passed as an argument; the function finds and replaces it. The replace() method is commonly used in data cleaning.

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