Comments in Python

In Python, comments are used to explain code to readers or to add notes to yourself. These comments are ignored by the interpreter and do not affect the program’s functionality. Python supports two types of comments:

1. Single-line comments start with a hash symbol (#) and can be used to add comments on a single line.
2. Multi-line comments are not directly supported in Python, but multi-line strings can be used as a workaround. These are strings enclosed in triple quotes (“”” or ”’) and can span multiple lines. They are often used as docstrings to document classes, functions, and modules.

Comments are a crucial part of programming, as they help other developers understand the code you have written. It is best practice to add comments to your code regularly to ensure that the code remains clear and easy to read. Additionally, comments can be used to document functions and classes, as well as provide instructions on how to use them.

Syntax

# single line comment

# multi
# line
# comment

"""
multi
line
comment
"""

# comment including description and parameters
def add(a, b):
    """
    Addition of two numbers

    :a: first number
    :b: second number
    :return: result

    :Example:

    >>> add(12, 8)
    20
    """

    result = a + b
    return result

Code Example

def add(x, y):
    """
    Addition of two numbers

    :a: first number
    :b: second number
    :return: result

    :Example:

    >>> add(12, 8)
    20
    """
    return x + y

# Variable declaration and initialization
x, y = 2, 4

print(add(x, y)) # Output

Output

6

Code Explanation

This code is a Python script that defines a function add, which takes two arguments, x and y, and returns their sum. The function also includes a docstring, which provides information about the function’s purpose, arguments, return value, and an example of usage.

Here’s a step-by-step explanation of what the code does:

1. The def keyword is used to define a new function called add.
2. The function takes two arguments, x and y, which are the two numbers that the function will add together.
3. The function starts with a docstring, which is a multi-line string that provides documentation for the function. The docstring provides information about what the function does, what arguments it takes, what it returns, and an example of how to use the function.
4. The function has a single line of code, return x + y, which calculates the sum of x and y and returns the result.
5. After the function definition, two variables x and y are declared and initialized to the values 2 and 4, respectively.
6. Finally, the print function is called with the result of add(x, y) as its argument. This will print the result of adding x and y to the console.