Master 14 Python Dict Methods

#python #tutorial #beginners #cheatsheet

Python Dictionary Methods Cheatsheet

Everything you need to know about Python dictionaries in one place.

Dictionary Methods

Method	Description	Example
`get(key, default)`	Safe key access	`d.get("x", 0)`
`keys()`	Get all keys	`d.keys()`
`values()`	Get all values	`d.values()`
`items()`	Get key-value pairs	`d.items()`
`update(other)`	Merge dicts	`d.update({"b": 2})`
`pop(key)`	Remove & return	`d.pop("a")`
`setdefault(k, v)`	Set if missing	`d.setdefault("x", [])`
`copy()`	Shallow copy	`d.copy()`
`clear()`	Remove all	`d.clear()`

Code Examples

# Creating dictionaries
user = {"name": "Alice", "age": 30, "city": "NYC"}

# Safe access (avoid KeyError)
name = user.get("name", "Unknown")  # "Alice"
phone = user.get("phone", "N/A")    # "N/A"

# Iterating
for key, value in user.items():
    print(f"{key}: {value}")

# Dictionary comprehension
squares = {x: x**2 for x in range(5)}
# {0: 0, 1: 1, 2: 4, 3: 9, 4: 16}

# Merging (Python 3.9+)
defaults = {"theme": "dark", "lang": "en"}
settings = {"lang": "zh"} | defaults  # lang="zh" wins

# Nested dict operations
data = {"users": {}}
data["users"].setdefault("alice", []).append("admin")

# Convert to sorted
sorted_dict = dict(sorted(user.items()))

# Filter dictionary
adults = {k: v for k, v in {"a": 25, "b": 17, "c": 30}.items() if v >= 18}