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Understanding Operator Precedence in Python

Q: What is operator precedence?

Operator precedence refers to the rules determining how different operators are evaluated in an expression. Operators with higher precedence are executed before those with lower precedence.

Q: What is associativity?

The associativity determines the order in which operations of the same precedence level are evaluated. Most operators in Python are left-associative, meaning they are evaluated from left to right. However, exponentiation (‘**’) is right-associative and is evaluated from right to left.

Q: What is the precedence of comparison operators?

The comparison operators in Python (eg ‘==’, ‘!=’ ‘ ’, ‘ =’) have lower precedence than arithmetic operators. They are evaluated after arithmetic operations and before logical operators.

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In Python, the operator precedence determines the order in which operators are evaluated in an expression. Ensuring that your source code performs the intended calculations is crucial. Misunderstanding the operator precedence can lead to subtle bugs and unexpected behaviour in your programs. This article explained everything about the operator Precedence in Python and its examples.

Operators Precedence in Python

The Operator’s precedence in Python determines the order in which different operators in an expression are evaluated. Operators with higher precedence are evaluated before those with lower precedence. This hierarchy of precedence ensures that expressions are evaluated consistently.

The following program demonstrates the Python Operator Precedence:

Program

def demonstrate_precedence():
arithmetic_result = 2 + 3 * 4

print(f"Example 1: 2 + 3 * 4 = {arithmetic_result}")

 

exponentiation_result = 2 ** 3 * 4

print(f"Example 2: 2 ** 3 * 4 = {exponentiation_result}")

 

parentheses_result = (2 + 3) * 4

print(f"Example 3: (2 + 3) * 4 = {parentheses_result}")

 

unary_result = -2 ** 3

print(f"Example 4: -2 ** 3 = {unary_result}")

 

logical_result = True or False and False

print(f"Example 5: True or False and False = {logical_result}")

 

comparison_result = 5 < 10 == 10

print(f"Example 6: 5 < 10 == 10 = {comparison_result}")

 

bitwise_result = 4 & 3 | 2

print(f"Example 7: 4 & 3 | 2 = {bitwise_result}")

 

x = 5

conditional_result = x if x > 0 else -x

print(f"Example 8: x if x > 0 else -x = {conditional_result}")

 

if __name__ == "__main__":

demonstrate_precedence()

Output

Example 1: 2 + 3 * 4 = 14

Example 2: 2 ** 3 * 4 = 32

Example 3: (2 + 3) * 4 = 20

Example 4: -2 ** 3 = -8

Example 5: True or False and False = True

Example 6: 5 < 10 == 10 = True

Example 7: 4 & 3 | 2 = 2

Example 8: x if x > 0 else -x = 5

Python Operators Precedence Table

The following table describes the Operator’s Precedence:

Operators	Description
()	Parentheses for grouping
‘”**	Exponentiation (right associative)
‘+x’, ‘-x’ , ‘~x’	Unary plus, unary minus, bitwise NOT
*‘’ , ‘/’, ‘%’, ‘//’**	Multiplication, division, modulo, floor division
‘+’, ‘-’	Addition, Subtraction
‘<<’, “>>”	Bitwise left shift, bitwise right shift
‘&’	Bitwise AND
‘^’	Bitwise XOR
‘	‘
‘==”, ‘!=’ ,’ >’ ‘<’ , ‘>=’ , ‘<=’	Equality, inequality, comparison
‘not’	Logical Not
‘or’	Logical OR
‘if-else’	Conditional expression (ternary operator)
*‘=’, ‘+=’, ‘-=’ , ‘=’ , ‘/=’, etc**	Assignment operators and augmented assignments
‘,’	The comma (used for tuple packing and function arguments)
‘:’	It is used in slices, annotations, and dictionary key-value pairs

Python Operators Precedence Rule – PEMDAS

Python operator precedence follows the PEMDAS rule for arithmetic expression. The precedence of operators is listed below in a high-to-low manner.

P – Parentheses
E – Exponentiation
M – Multiplication
D – Division
A – Addition
S – Subtraction

Associativity Rule

In Python, All the operators follow the left-to-right pattern except the exponentiation (**) operator. In other words, the evaluation will proceed from left to right.

For Example : (99 + 55 – 9 /3 * 5)

In this example, the multiplication and division operators have equal precedence. However, they are evaluated according to the left-to-right associativity.

The following program demonstrates the Associativity Rule :

Program

a = (24 ** 2 // 5 % 34 / 30 * 8)

b = (9 << 10 >> 5)

c = (3 ** 2 ** 2)

print (a)

print (b)

print (c)

<strong>Output</strong>

3.466666666666667

288

81

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Comparison Operators

All the comparison operations in Python, such as <,>,==, >=, <=, != have the same priority. The lower arithmetic, shifting and bitwise operations. Unlike in C, Python always follows the conventional mathematical interpretation for expressions like a < b < c.

The following program demonstrates the comparison Operation in Java:

Program

a = 10

b = 20

 

print("{a} > {b}: {a > b}")

print("{a} < {b}: {a < b}")

print("{a} == {b}: {a == b}")

print("{a} != {b}: {a != b}")

print("{a} >= {b}: {a >= b}")

print("{a} <= {b}: {a <= b}")

 

x = "Harry"

y = "Potter"

 

print('"{x}" > "{y}": {x > y}')

print('"{x}" < "{y}": {x < y}')<strong> </strong>

Output

{a} > {b}: {a > b}

{a} < {b}: {a < b}

{a} == {b}: {a == b}

{a} != {b}: {a != b}

{a} >= {b}: {a >= b}

{a} <= {b}: {a <= b}

"{x}" > "{y}": {x > y}

"{x}" < "{y}": {x < y}

Examples of Comparison Operators

In this section, we will see some operator precedence in Python to get a good idea of how these things work internally.

Precedence of Operators

The following program demonstrates the Precedence of Operators:

Program

a = (105+ 12 * 35% 30 / 2)

b = (3 ^ 2 << 9 + 48 // 24)

print (a)

print (b)

Output

105.0

4099

Also Visit: Python Tutorial for Beginners

Conclusion

In Python, operator precedence refers to the order in which Python evaluates or performs operators in an expression. It defines how more than one operator is applied within proximity. Keeping things clear and accurate in the code is always better from right to left.

To be certain of the clarity and correctness of source code, parentheses should be used explicitly to define the intended order of operations in all situations where there might be a mixing of operators with different precedence levels.

We know the rules of precedence and apply them by writing expressions evaluated as intended, which may then be used to maintain readable and reliable source code.

FAQs

What is operator precedence?

Operator precedence refers to the rules determining how different operators are evaluated in an expression. Operators with higher precedence are executed before those with lower precedence.

What is associativity?

The associativity determines the order in which operations of the same precedence level are evaluated. Most operators in Python are left-associative, meaning they are evaluated from left to right. However, exponentiation (‘**’) is right-associative and is evaluated from right to left.

What is the precedence of comparison operators?

The comparison operators in Python (eg ‘==’, ‘!=’ ‘<’, ‘>’, ‘<=’, ‘>=’) have lower precedence than arithmetic operators. They are evaluated after arithmetic operations and before logical operators.

How does Python handle the precedence of ‘is’ and ‘is not’ operators?

The ‘is’ and ‘is not’ operators, used for identity comparisons, have the same precedence level as comparison operators. They are evaluated after arithmetic operators and before logical operations.

How does precedence affect the use of the ‘del’ keyword?

The ‘del’ keyword has a lower precedence than most other operators. For example, in ‘del a[1+2]’, the addition is evaluated first before the deletion.

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