Python Set Methods

Python set methods

Created By: chatGPT

Sets in Python are a built-in data type used to store unordered collections of unique items. Here are some common methods associated with sets:

Creating a Set: You can create a set using curly braces or the set() function.

my_set = {1, 2, 3}

another_set = set([1, 2, 3])

Add an Element: Use the add() method to add a single element to a set.

my_set.add(4)  # my_set is now {1, 2, 3, 4}

Update the Set: Use the update() method to add multiple elements from another set or list.

my_set.update([5, 6])  # my_set is now {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6}

Remove an Element: Use the remove() method to remove a specific element. This raises an error if the element is not found.

my_set.remove(3)  # my_set is now {1, 2, 4, 5, 6}

Discard an Element: Similar to remove(), but does not raise an error if the element is not found.

my_set.discard(10)  # No error is raised and my_set remains unchanged.

Pop an Element: The pop() method removes and returns an arbitrary element from the set. The behavior is undefined if the set is empty.

element = my_set.pop()  # Removes and returns an arbitrary element

Clearing a Set: The clear() method removes all elements from the set.

my_set.clear()  # my_set is now an empty set

Set Length: Use the len() function to find out how many items are in a set.

length = len(my_set)  # Returns the number of elements in my_set

Set Mathematical Operations: Sets support mathematical operations like union, intersection, and difference.

set_a = {1, 2, 3}
set_b = {3, 4, 5}

union = set_a | set_b  # {1, 2, 3, 4, 5}
intersection = set_a & set_b  # {3}
difference = set_a - set_b  # {1, 2}

Membership Testing: Check if an element is in a set using the in keyword.

is_present = 2 in set_a  # Returns True