In programming, one of the most essential operations is displaying output to the user. This is done using the print() function in Python. The print() function allows a programmer to show messages, values of variables, results of calculations, and much more to the screen. Whether you're debugging code or building user-friendly software, mastering the use of print() is fundamental. In this chapter, you will learn what the print() function is, how it works, and how to use it effectively with various data types, formatting options, and escape characters.

The print() function in Python is used to display output on the screen. It is a built-in function, meaning it’s available without any import or special declaration.

Syntax:

print(object(s), sep=' ', end='\\n', file=sys.stdout, flush=False)

Parameters:
• object(s) – Any number of objects to be printed. Separated by commas.
• sep – Optional. Separator between objects. Default is a space ' '.
• end – Optional. String appended after the last value. Default is newline '\n'.
• file – Optional. An object with a write method. Default is sys.stdout.
• flush – Optional. Whether to forcibly flush the stream. Default is False.

Strings are text enclosed in single quotes (' '), double quotes ('" '), or triple quotes (''' ''' or """ ").

Example:

print("Hello, World!")

Output:
Hello, World!

You can use print() to display numbers and even solve arithmetic expressions directly.

Example:

print(10)
print(5 + 3)

Output:
10
8

The print() function can take multiple arguments, separated by commas.

Example:

a = 5
b = 10
print("The values are", a, "and", b)

Output:
The values are 5 and 10

The sep parameter controls what is printed between multiple items.

Example:

print("10", "20", "30", sep="-")

Output:
10-20-30
This is useful when printing dates, times, or IDs with specific formatting.

The end parameter controls what is printed after the statement ends. By default, it’s a newline (\n), but you can change it.

Example:

print("Hello", end=" ")
print("World")

Output:
Hello World

Escape characters start with a backslash (\) and allow you to include special characters in strings.

Example:

print("Line1\\nLine2")
print("She said, \\"Hello!\\"")

Output:
Line1
Line2
She said, "Hello!"

You can use variables with the print() function to show their values.

Example:

name = "Ravi"
age = 14
print("Name:", name)
print("Age:", age)

Output:
Name: Ravi
Age: 14

Introduced in Python 3.6, f-strings allow you to embed variables directly inside strings.

Example:

name = "Anita"
score = 95
print(f"{name} scored {score} marks.")

Output:
Anita scored 95 marks.

F-strings make code more readable and concise.

Another way to insert values into a string is by using the .format() method.

Example:

print("My name is {} and I am {} years old".format("Rahul", 15))

Output:
My name is Rahul and I am 15 years old

You can also use the + operator to join strings.

Example:

name = "Aman"
print("Hello, " + name)

Output:
Hello, Aman

Note: All items must be strings when using +. You must convert numbers using str().

❌ Mixing string with numbers:

age = 14
print("Age is " + age) # Error!

✅ Fix:

print("Age is " + str(age))

• The print() function is used to display output on the screen.
• You can print strings, numbers, variables, or expressions.
• Use sep to change separators, and end to change line endings.
• Escape sequences like \n and \t help format your output.
• f-strings and .format() make printing dynamic messages easier.
• Always convert non-string values to string when using concatenation (+).