Tuples in Python: The Key to Optimized Data Structures in Python

You may have learned all about Lists in python in the previous modules, and in this one, you are going to learn an advanced version of it, Tuples.

Tuples are similar to Lists but their differences lie in their characteristics for example, one of the key differences between them is that tuples are immutable, meaning that the elements cannot be altered once the tuple is created. This makes Tuple a bit more advanced than Lists and let us understand more about it in this article.

A tuple is an ordered collection of elements in Python. It is a data structure that allows us to store multiple items together.

Whenever you want to represent a fixed set of values or when you need to return multiple values from a function, tuples are the best choice as they provide a convenient way to group data and they can also serve as a key in dictionaries.

In Python, you can create a tuple using the following syntax:

 >>> my_tuple = (element1, element2, element3, ...)

Here's a breakdown of the syntax:

• Parentheses: Tuples are typically defined using parentheses (). The elements of the tuple are enclosed within these parentheses.
• Elements: The elements of a tuple are comma-separated values. You can include any number of elements in a tuple, and they can be of different data types.

You can also create a tuple without using parentheses by simply separating the elements with commas:

 >>> my_tuple = 1, 2, 3, 4

You can use the tuple() function to create a tuple from an iterable, such as a list:

 >>> my_list = [1, 2, 3]
 >>> my_tuple = tuple(my_list)

If you want to create a tuple with a single element, you need to include a trailing comma after the element.

 >>> single_tuple = (42,)

The trailing comma is important because, without that, it would be interpreted as a value rather than a tuple.