Copy Dictionaries

When working with dictionaries in Python, sometimes you need to make a duplicate so you can modify it without changing the original. Python gives you two easy ways to do this.

Method 1: Using copy()

The copy() method creates a separate copy of the dictionary. Changes made to the copied version will not affect the original.

				
					student = {
    'name': 'Ayesha',
    'grade': 'A',
    'passed': True,
    'year': 2024
}

backup = student.copy()

print("Original:", student)
print("Copied:", backup)

Output:

				
					Original: {'name': 'Ayesha', 'grade': 'A', 'passed': True, 'year': 2024}
Copied: {'name': 'Ayesha', 'grade': 'A', 'passed': True, 'year': 2024}

Method 2: Using dict() Function

Another way to copy a dictionary is by using the built-in dict() function. It creates a new dictionary using the key-value pairs from the original one.

				
					student = {
    'name': 'Ayesha',
    'grade': 'A',
    'passed': True,
    'year': 2024
}

backup = dict(student)

print("Original:", student)
print("Copied using dict():", backup)

Output:

				
					Original: {'name': 'Ayesha', 'grade': 'A', 'passed': True, 'year': 2024}
Copied using dict(): {'name': 'Ayesha', 'grade': 'A', 'passed': True, 'year': 2024}

Why Make a Copy?

To try out changes without touching the original data
To create backups or temporary versions
To use the same base dictionary in multiple places safely

Both copy() and dict() work well for this task. Use whichever you find more readable in your code.