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Practice

Understanding and Using Variable-Length Arguments

Variable-length arguments, also known as varargs, are a feature in functions that allow you to pass an arbitrary number of arguments without having to predefine their number.

To use variable arguments in a function, prefix the parameter with * for positional arguments or** for keyword arguments.

* accepts an arbitrary number of positional arguments, whereas ** accepts an arbitrary number of keyword argument pairs.


*args Syntax​

In Python, *args is used to pass a variable number of positional arguments to a function when the number of arguments isn't predetermined.

By prefixing the parameter with *, the function processes these arguments as a tuple internally.

Example of *args
def print_numbers(*numbers):
    for number in numbers:
        print(number)

print_numbers(1, 2, 3)
# Output: 1, 2, 3

**kwargs Syntax​

**kwargs allows passing a variable number of keyword arguments to a function.

By prefixing the parameter with **, the function processes these arguments as a dictionary internally.

Example of **kwargs
def print_numbers(**numbers):
    for key, value in numbers.items():
        print(f'{key}: {value}')

print_numbers(first=1, second=2, third=3)
# Output: first: 1, second: 2, third: 3

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