Variables and assignment

Estimated Time: 15 minutes

What you need to know about variables

• A Variable is a name you give to data, so you can use it later in the program
• You assign a variable with =
• There are lots names you can use for variables, but there are some rules
• Using meaningful variable names makes your program better

Video: What are variables?

Variable Names

Good and Bad Variable Names

Variable names should be descriptive and help a reader understand the code.

For example, take a look at the code below:

x1q3z9ocd = 35.0
x1q3z9afd = 12.50
x1q3p9afd = x1q3z9ocd * x1q3z9afd
print(x1q3p9afd) # 437.5

The variable names above are allowed in Python, but they are not helpful.

Contrast with:

hours = 35.0
pay_rate = 12.50
pay = hours * pay_rate
print(pay) # 437.5

These variable names are descriptive and helpful!

Practice: Assigning and printing variables

books_read = 13
print(books_read)

meals_eaten = 4
meals_eaten = meals_eaten + 1
print(meals_eaten)