Pass by Value and Pass by Reference in Python

Passing a value and passing a reference explained below. Below is the simple example which shows how to use these in python.

python pass value reference
Python Pass by Value Vs. Pass by Reference Simple Example

What is Pass by value

What is pass by value? Passing a value as an argument to the function. The pass-by-value concept explained in three steps.

  • Create a function
  • pass value as an argument to the function
  • to verify the result

A literal (20) as an argument supplied here. So it is called pass-by-value.

def my_pass_by_value(b):
    b += 2
    print(b)
c=my_pass_by_value(20)
print(c)
The result:
22
None
** Process exited - Return Code: 0 **
Press Enter to exit terminal

What is Pass by reference

Supplying a reference instead of value is called pass-by-refefence. The working principle you can see in the below example.

  • Create a function
  • pass reference as an argument to the function
  • to verify the result

The below example tells how pass-by-reference works. Value not supplied, instead of the value provided a variable (reference).

def my_pass_by_reference(r):
    r += 10
    print(r)
ref1=100
h=my_pass_by_reference(ref1)
print(h)
The result
110
None
** Process exited - Return Code: 0 **
Press Enter to exit terminal

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Author: Srini

Experienced software developer. Skills in Development, Coding, Testing and Debugging. Good Data analytic skills (Data Warehousing and BI). Also skills in Mainframe.