Print vs. Return

Print Statement: As you saw on the previous page the print statement converted the number i into a string and printed it to the command line. This is more or less the equivalent of "say" in Snap!. Print statements allow a programmer to print values and variables at a chosen location in the code.

>>> x = 5 >>> print(x) 5

Return: If print is Python's version of "say", then return is Python's version of "report". return should be used when you want to end a function and report a value.

>>> def times_5(x): ... return 5 * x ... >>> times_5(3) 15 >>> times_5(3) + 2 17

If you're testing a function in Python like above, the interpreter will often print the return value so you can see what it was.