50+ Python Interview Questions — Part 1

Yashuv Baskota
7 min readDec 29, 2022

Image by Yashuv Baskota
Image by Yashuv Baskota

Preparing for Python interview questions can be helpful for both demonstrating your skills and knowledge to potential employers, and for improving your understanding of the language.

Here we go.

1. What is Python?

Python is a high-level, interpreted, general-purpose programming language. It was created by Guido van Rossum in 1991 and has a design philosophy that emphasizes code readability and simplicity.

2. What are the main features of Python?

Some of the main features of Python include:

a. Dynamically-typed: Python is a dynamically-typed language, which means that the type of a variable is determined at runtime rather than at compile time.

b. High-level: Python is a high-level language, which means that it abstracts away many of the low-level details of the computer. This makes it easier to read and write code, but it also means that Python programs may be slower than programs written in a lower-level language.

c. Interpreted: Python is an interpreted language, which means that it is executed by an interpreter rather than being compiled to machine code. This makes it easier to debug and test code, but it also means that Python programs may be slower than compiled programs.

d. Object-oriented: Python is an object-oriented language, which means that it supports the creation and manipulation of objects. Objects are abstractions of real-world entities and are used to model complex systems.

3. What are the benefits of using Python?

Some of the benefits of using Python include:

a. Easy to learn: Python has a simple, easy-to-learn syntax that makes it a popular choice for beginners.

b. High-level: Python’s high-level nature makes it easier to read and write code, which can save time and reduce the risk of errors.

c. Dynamically-typed: Python’s dynamically-typed nature makes it easier to write code quickly and allows for more flexibility in data types.

d. Interpreted: Python’s interpreted nature makes it easier to debug and test code.

e. Object-oriented: Python’s object-oriented nature makes it easier to model complex systems and reuse code.

4. What is a Python interpreter?

A Python interpreter is a program that reads and executes Python code. It reads the code line by line, interprets it, and executes it on the fly. This makes it possible to run Python code directly, without the need to compile it first.

5. What is a Python script?

A Python script is a text file that contains Python code. It has a ‘.py’ extension and can be run directly by the Python interpreter.

6. What is a Python module?

A Python module is a file that contains Python code, including definitions of functions, classes, and variables. It has a ‘.py’ extension and can be imported into other Python scripts or modules.

7. What is a Python package?

A Python package is a collection of Python modules that are organized into a directory structure. It is used to provide a namespace for the modules and to make it easier to reuse code across multiple projects.

8. What is a Python tuple?

A Python tuple is an immutable sequence type that is used to store a collection of items. It is similar to a list, but unlike a list, a tuple cannot be modified once it has been created. This means that you cannot add or remove elements from a tuple, or change the values of the elements.

9. What is a Python list?

A Python list is a mutable sequence type that is used to store a collection of items. It is similar to a tuple, but it allows you to modify the items by assigning new values to them. Lists are created by enclosing a comma-separated sequence of items in square brackets.

10. What is a Python dictionary?

A Python dictionary is a data structure that is used to store a collection of key-value pairs. It is also known as a map or associative array. Dictionaries are created by enclosing a comma-separated sequence of key-value pairs in curly braces. The keys must be unique and are used to access the values.

11. What is a Python set?

A Python set is a collection of unique items that is used to store and manipulate a group of elements. Sets are created by enclosing a comma-separated sequence of items in curly braces. Sets are unordered and do not allow duplicate items.

12. What is a Python generator?

A Python generator is a function that returns an iterator that produces a sequence of values when iterated over. Generators are useful for creating sequences of values that are too large to fit in memory all at once. They are created by using the yield keyword instead of return.

13.What is a Python decorator?

A Python decorator is a function that takes another function as an argument and extends the behavior of the wrapped function without modifying its code. Decorators are used to add additional functionality to existing functions and to modify their behavior in a reusable and flexible way.

14.What is a Python exception?

A Python exception is an error that occurs during the execution of a program. Exceptions are raised when the interpreter encounters an error or when a program explicitly raises an exception. Exceptions can be caught and handled using the try and except statements.

15. What is a Python context manager?

A Python context manager is an object that defines a block of code that is executed when the object is used in a with statement. The with statement is used to wrap the execution of a block of code and is useful for managing resources, such as files, locks, and network connections.

16. What is a Python class?

A Python class is a template for creating objects. It defines the attributes and behaviors of the objects that are created from it. Classes are created using the class keyword and are used to model real-world entities or abstract concepts.

17. What is a Python object?

A Python object is an instance of a class. It is created by calling the class’s constructor and is used to represent a specific instance of the class. Objects have their own attributes and behaviors, which are defined by the class.

18. What is inheritance in Python?

Inheritance in Python is the ability of a class to inherit attributes and behaviors from a parent class. It allows you to create a new class that is a modified version of an existing class, without having to rewrite all of the code.

19. What is polymorphism in Python?

Polymorphism in Python is the ability of a class to have multiple forms. It allows you to define methods in a parent class that are implemented differently in child classes. Polymorphism allows you to create a family of related classes that can be used interchangeably.

20. What is a Python iterator?

A Python iterator is an object that implements the iter() and next() methods and can be used to iterate over a sequence of elements, such as a list or a string. Iterators are useful because they allow you to work with large sequences of data without having to store the entire sequence in memory at once.

21. How do you define a function in Python?

To define a function in Python, you can use the ‘def ’ keyword, followed by the name of the function and a set of parentheses containing any parameters that the function takes. The body of the function should be indented and should contain the code that you want to execute when the function is called.

For example:

def greet(name):
print("Hello, " + name)

22. What is a decorator in Python?

A decorator in Python is a function that takes another function as an argument and extends the behavior of the original function without modifying its code. Decorators are used to add additional functionality to existing functions, such as logging, caching, or input validation.

For example:

def my_decorator(func):
def wrapper(*args, **kwargs):
print("Before the function call")
result = func(*args, **kwargs)
print("After the function call")
return result
return wrapper

@my_decorator
def greet(name):
print("Hello, " + name)

23. How do you create a dictionary in Python?

To create a dictionary in Python, you can use the following syntax:

my_dict = {'key1': 'value1', 'key2': 'value2'}

Alternatively, you can use the dict() constructor:

my_dict = dict(key1='value1', key2='value2')

24. How do you sort a list in Python?

To sort a list in Python, you can use the sorted() function. This function takes a list as an argument and returns a new list with the elements sorted in ascending order.

For example:

my_list = [3, 1, 2]
sorted_list = sorted(my_list)
print(sorted_list) # prints [1, 2, 3]

25. How can you sort the list in place?

Unlike the sorted() function, you can use the sort() method on a list object to sort the list in place:

For example:

my_list = [3, 1, 2] 
my_list.sort()
print(my_list) # prints [1, 2, 3]

You can reach the set of second part of interview questions here.

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Yashuv Baskota
Yashuv Baskota

Written by Yashuv Baskota

Python | Data Science and Machine Learning Practitioner | Learner | "The only way to do great work is to love what you do." - Steve Jobs

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