How to use pass statement in Python

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Updated on Nov 20, 2022 21:32 IST

A pass statement in Python is a null statement that act as a placeholder for future code. In this article, we will briefly discuss how to use pass statement with the help of examples.

In this article, we are going to look at the Python Pass statement. So basically the past statement does absolutely nothing from a computational perspective. It is generally used syntactically inside a code block to perform no action. It acts as a placeholder for future code.

The pass statement in python is used with classes, loops, functions, and conditional statements to represent no operation. To better understand the concept of the pass statement in python, take look at the below examples.

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Using ***pass* Statement with the *if condition.***

Example

# declare list with integers
list = [2,-4,5,-8,3]

# iterate through the list
for item in list:
    
    # if condition
    if item<0:
        
        # if True, do nothing
        pass
    
    # else condition
    else:
        # statement inside else
        print( item,"is a positive number")
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Output

2 is a positive number
5 is a positive number
3 is a positive number

As you can observe in the output of the above example, every time the if condition is True( ie, the element inside the list is negative), the code does nothing.

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**Using pass Statement with loops**

Example

# declare list with integers
list = [2,-4,5,-8,3]

# for loop
for item in list:
    
    # do no operation while
    # iterating through the
    # list
    pass

# print when for loop is finished
# iterating the list
print("End of for loop")
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Output:

End of for loop

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**Using pass Statement with Class**

# an empty class A
class A():
    pass

# an empty class B 
class B():
    pass
 
print("Both classes are valid.")
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Output:

Both classes are valid.

As you can observe in the above output, the print statement at the end gets executed without throwing up a syntax error. Currently, both the classes defined above are empty and the pass statement acts as a placeholder for future code.

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**Using pass Statement inside function definitions**

# function check if a number is 
# positive
def check_positive(number):
    
    # if condition
    if number<0:
        
        # if True, do nothing
        pass
    
    # else condition
    else:
        
        # statement inside else
        print( number,"is a positive number")

# function call        
check_positive(1)
check_positive(-2)
check_positive(3)
check_positive(-4)
check_positive(5)
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Output

1 is a positive number
3 is a positive number
5 is a positive number

As you can observe in the output of the above code, no operation occurs in cases of -2 and -4.

Note: It is not possible to leave the statement inside a class, loop, or conditionals empty. That would raise a SyntaxError as shown below:

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Conclusion:

We have managed to understand the basic functionality and use case of the pass statement in python. So we have explored the following key points:

The pass statements state the interpreter to perform no operation in a code.
The pass statements are used as a placeholder for future code.
Without the pass statement, we will encounter Runtime errors like SyntaxError or IndentationError, as we can’t leave python statements empty.

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How to use pass statement in Python

Using pass Statement with the if condition.

Using pass Statement with loops

Using pass Statement with Class

Using pass Statement inside function definitions

Conclusion:

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Using ***pass* Statement with the *if condition.***

**Using pass Statement with loops**

**Using pass Statement with Class**

**Using pass Statement inside function definitions**