Pass Statement in Python – What Is It and How to Use It

The ‘pass’ statement in Python is a simple yet powerful tool that allows you to handle scenarios where a statement is required syntactically, and you don’t want to execute the code.. The ‘pass’ statement acts as a placeholder, enabling you to maintain the structure of your code while you plan out or defer certain parts of your implementation.

In this article, we’ll explore the ‘pass’ statement, understand its usage, and look at some practical examples of pass statements.

What is pass Statement in Python?

The ‘pass’ statement in Python is a null operation. It does nothing when executed.  It is used as a placeholder in Python, a language in situations where a statement is syntactically required but you don’t want to execute any code in Python language.

The pass statement can be used in various situations:

• Classes and methods
• Functions
• Loops
• conditional statements

Pass statement has very simple syntax. In any line or indentations where you want to skip the execution. Python developers can type the pass statement.

pass

Let’s understand the pass statement using the various situations in the Python language.

Using pass Statement in Empty Function

In this section, we will define the pass statement in the Python function. In this function, You don’t need to define the body of the function. Let’ see the example

Example

This function also similar like this function

The following program demonstrates the whole program.

Program

Output

Using pass Statement in an Empty Class

We can also use the pass statement with Empty Class in Python language.  It is very similar to a function. When you are defining a class but don’t have the details yet. Then you can use the ‘pass’ statement.

Example: Let’s see the error we get when we leave a class body empty.

Output

The interpreter was expecting some executable code  within the class body. But it showed the error because the interpreter did not find anything in the class body.

Example:  The following program corrects the previous error by passing the pass statement in the Python program.

Program

Output

Using pass Statement in Loop

We can also use the pass statement in the Python loop. We are also not allowed to leave an empty body in a loop. If we want to implement the loop later., or just leave it for someone else to implement. We need to write a pass statement in the loop’s body. Let us understand it through some examples of loops.

Example : The following program demonstrates the while loop with pass statement.

Program

Output

The previous code will not print anything. Since there is a pass statement inside the while loop, The value of i is never changed. The condition i==1 will remain true. So the loop will be stuck in an infinite loop.

Syntax of for loop is also quite similar to what we discussed in the above code.

Example: The following program demonstrates the pass statement with a loop.

Program

Output

Notice that in the previous program we did not enter an infinite loop. It is because the for loop iterates until the iterable which lists a in the program. It can be done using the iter() function as shown in code below.

Using pass Statement in Conditional Statement

In this section, we will use the pass statement in conditional statements (if,else and elif) to make the code more readable.  In the skip conditional we have always choice to skip the conditional cases where our code would be doing nothing, I

Example: The following demonstrates the Conditional Statement in Python.

Output

Conclusion

In this article, we learned about the pass statement in Python. The pass statement is a null statement that can be used as a placeholder for future code. Using a ‘pass’ statement in the program, developers can plan and outline their code without causing runtime errors, enhancing readability and maintainability. While it should not replace the actual implementation of logic, ‘pass’ is invaluable during the initial stages of coding. That allows for a clear and organized workflow.