Python Tutorial
Introduction
Python Data Types & Oper...
Python Strings
Python Lists
Python Tuples
Python Sets
Python Dictionaries
Conditional Statements
Python Loops
Python Functions
Python Modules
Python OOPS
Advanced Topics
File Handling
Python Unpacking Tuples
In Python, unpacking a tuple means pulling apart its items and assigning them to individual variables in one go. This makes code cleaner and easier to read when working with structured data.
Basic Unpacking
Let’s say you have a tuple with three items, and you want each item stored in its own variable:
student_info = ("Hamza", 21, "FAST-NU")
name, age, university = student_info
print("Name:", name)
print("Age:", age)
print("University:", university)
Output:
Name: Hamza
Age: 21
University: FAST-NU
Each value from the tuple is assigned to its matching variable in the same order.
Unpacking with *
Sometimes, your tuple may have more values than variables. Python lets you capture the “leftovers” using an asterisk * before a variable name.
Example 1: Remaining items stored in the first variable
Land Animals: ['goat', 'cow', 'horse', 'duck']
Bird: sparrow
Fish: tuna
Output:
Land Animals: ['goat', 'cow', 'horse', 'duck']
Bird: sparrow
Fish: tuna
Example 2: Leftovers in the middle
species = ("eagle", "goat", "cow", "duck", "salmon")
bird, *others, fish = species
print("Bird:", bird)
print("Other Animals:", others)
print("Fish:", fish)
Output:
Bird: eagle
Other Animals: ['goat', 'cow', 'duck']
Fish: salmon
Example 3: Leftovers at the end
species = ("sparrow", "shark", "lion", "tiger", "wolf")
bird, fish, *wild_animals = species
print("Bird:", bird)
print("Fish:", fish)
print("Wild Animals:", wild_animals)
Output:
Bird: sparrow
Fish: shark
Wild Animals: ['lion', 'tiger', 'wolf']
Final Thoughts
Make sure the number of variables matches the structure of the tuple.
Use
*when you’re unsure how many values you want in a part of the unpacking.
Unpacking gives you clean, readable code and helps break tuples into meaningful pieces — all part of writing smarter Python with Learn With Arshyan.