Python - Escape Characters

Python From Beginner to Advanced

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Escape characters in Python are used to include special characters in strings that would otherwise be difficult or impossible to represent. They are prefixed with a backslash (\) and allow us to format text, insert special characters, or control string behavior.

Escape characters are useful when working with strings that contain quotes, newlines, tabs, or special symbols, making them essential for proper string formatting and manipulation.

Common Escape Characters

Here is a table of common escape characters in Python, each with a description and example:

Escape Character	Description	Example Usage	Output
`\\`	Backslash	`"This is a backslash \\\\"`	`This is a backslash \`
`\'`	Single quote	`'It\'s a single quote'`	`It's a single quote`
`\"`	Double quote	`"He said, \"Hello\""`	`He said, "Hello"`
`\n`	Newline	`"First line\nSecond line"`	Prints on two lines
`\t`	Horizontal tab	`"Column 1\tColumn 2"`	`Column 1 Column 2`
`\r`	Carriage return (Moves cursor to start of line)	`"Hello\rWorld"`	`World` replaces `Hello`
`\b`	Backspace (Deletes previous character)	`"ABC\b"`	`AB`
`\f`	Form feed (New page effect in some systems)	`"Page\fNew page"`	`Page` + form feed effect
`\ooo`	Character with octal value ooo	`"\101"` (A)	`A`
`\xhh`	Character with hex value hh	`"\x41"` (A)	`A`

Example 1: Using Escape Characters in a String

Python3

. . . .

Explanation:

The \" escape sequence allows double quotes inside a string.
\n creates a newline, so the second sentence starts on a new line.

The output will print:

She said, "Python is amazing!"
Let's learn escape characters.

Escape characters in Python allow you to format strings efficiently and include special characters such as newlines, tabs, and quotes. They help in handling string formatting, improving readability, and ensuring compatibility with different text processing scenarios.

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