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Rahul Gupta
Rahul Gupta

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Day 23/100: Tuples in Python – When and Why to Use Them

#python #programming #learning #100daysofcode

Welcome to Day 23 of the 100 Days of Python series!
Today we explore tuples, Python’s immutable sibling of the list.

If you’ve mastered lists, learning tuples is easy — but knowing when to use them is what makes your code cleaner, safer, and faster.

Let’s dive in. 🐍

📦 What You’ll Learn

  • What tuples are and how they differ from lists
  • How to create and access tuples
  • When to use tuples instead of lists
  • Real-world use cases
  • Tuple tricks (unpacking, swapping, returning multiple values)

🧱 What is a Tuple?

A tuple is a collection of ordered, immutable items.
That means you can access its elements like a list, but you can’t change them once created.

🔹 Syntax: 

my_tuple = (1, 2, 3)
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Yes, they look like lists, but use parentheses () instead of brackets [].

🔍 Tuple vs List

Feature List Tuple
Syntax [] ()
Mutable ✅ Yes ❌ No
Faster ❌ Slightly slower ✅ Slightly faster
Hashable ❌ No ✅ Yes (if immutable)
Use case Dynamic data Fixed data

🛠 How to Create Tuples

1. Basic Tuple 

person = ("Alice", 30, "Engineer")
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2. Tuple Without Parentheses (Python allows it) 

coordinates = 10, 20
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3. Single-Item Tuple (must include a comma!) 

single = (42,)     # ✅ Tuple
not_a_tuple = (42) # ❌ Just an integer
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🎯 Accessing Tuple Elements

Use indexing and slicing just like lists:

colors = ("red", "green", "blue")
print(colors[0])      # 'red'
print(colors[-1])     # 'blue'
print(colors[1:3])    # ('green', 'blue')
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❌ Tuples are Immutable

Once created, you can’t modify, add, or remove elements:

colors[0] = "yellow"  # ❌ Error: 'tuple' object does not support item assignment
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✅ When to Use Tuples

  • Fixed collections of data: like (latitude, longitude)
  • Function returns: return multiple values cleanly
  • As dictionary keys: only hashable types allowed
  • Faster performance: slight speed benefits
  • Safety: prevent accidental modification

🧪 Real-World Examples

1. Returning Multiple Values 

def get_user():
    return ("Alice", 25)

name, age = get_user()
print(name, age)
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2. Storing Coordinates 

point = (10.5, 20.3)
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Tuples work well for fixed data where names like x and y are implied.

3. Dictionary Key Example 

location_data = {
    (28.6139, 77.2090): "Delhi",
    (40.7128, -74.0060): "New York"
}
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You can’t use lists as keys, but tuples are allowed.

🪄 Tuple Tricks

1. Tuple Unpacking 

name, age, city = ("John", 30, "Paris")
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2. Swapping Variables (Pythonic way) 

a, b = 5, 10
a, b = b, a
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3. Nested Tuples 

matrix = ((1, 2), (3, 4))
print(matrix[1][0])  # 3
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✅ Recap

Today you learned:

  • What tuples are and how they differ from lists
  • How to create, access, and unpack tuples
  • Why tuples are useful when dealing with fixed data
  • Common tuple use cases in real-world scenarios
  • Tuple tricks like unpacking and swapping

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