Python List Functions: 18 Definitions & Examples

Python is an excellent programming language for manipulating lists. It comes equipped with a series of built-in functions that you can use to alter and update lists of numbers, items, characters, and more. 

Below, we've curated a list of Python list functions that you can reference while coding your website. Use the list of functions as well as the interactive code module to program your site faster and become a more efficient website developer.

Python List Functions

This table will help you navigate to specific list functions. Copy the examples from the list of functions below into this interactive code module. Then click the play button (horizontal triangle) to see the output or the result of the function.

1. List Function: list()

The list function in Python creates an ordered list. 

List Function Example:

sports = list(('baseball', 'football', 'soccer', 'hockey', 'basketball'))

print(sports)

Output:

['baseball', 'football', 'soccer', 'hockey', 'basketball']

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2. Next Function: next()

The next() function returns the item that appears next in an iterator. 

Next Function Example:

mylist = iter(["blue", "red", "green"])

x = next(mylist)

print(x)

x = next(mylist)

print(x)

Output:

Blue

Red

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3. Range Function: range()

The range() function returns a sequence of numbers that starts at zero and ends at a specified number.

Range Function Example:

mylist = range(3)

for x in mylist:

  print(x)

Output:

0

1

2

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4. Add Function: add()

The add() method adds a new element to a set.

Add Function Example:

mylist = {"dog", "cat", "bird"}

mylist.add("elephant")

print(mylist)

Output:

{'cat', 'dog', 'bird', 'elephant'}

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5. Random Choice Function: choice()

The choice() function returns a random element from a sequence.

Random Choice Function Example:

import random

animals = ["bear", "squirrel", "bird", "deer", "hedgehog"]

print(random.choice(animals))

Output:

Deer

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6. Remove Function: remove()

The remove() function or method removes a specified element from a list.

Remove Function Example:

mylist = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

mylist.remove(4)

print(mylist)

Output:

[1, 2, 3, 5]

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7. Reverse Function: reverse()

The reverse() function or method reverses the order of elements in a list.

Reverse Function Example:

mylist = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

mylist.reverse()

print(mylist)

Output:

[5, 4, 3, 2, 1]

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8. Slice Function: slice()

The slice() functions returns a slice object which specifies where and how a sequence should be sliced.

Slice Function Example:

fruits = ("apple", "banana", "cherry", "kiwi", "date", "fig",)

x = slice(4)

print(fruits[x])

Output:

('apple', 'banana', 'cherry', 'kiwi')

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9. Sort Function: sort()

The sort() function or method organizes a list in ascending or descending order. 

Sort Function Example:

mylist = [44, 3, 8, 16, 25]

mylist.sort()

print(mylist)

Output:

[3, 8, 16, 25, 44]

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10. Sorted Function: sorted()

The sorted() function returns a sorted list from an iterable object.

Sorted Function Example:

animals = ("dog", "cat", "bear", "deer", "koala", "rooster", "cow")

myvalue = sorted(animals)

print(myvalue)

Output:

['bear', 'cat', 'cow', 'deer', 'dog', 'koala', 'rooster']

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11. Filter Function: filter()

The filter function returns an iterator (element from an iterable) based on the output of a function testing the iterable or sequence.

Filter Function Example:

def greater_than_five(x):

    if x > 5:

        return True

nums = (1,4,6,2,9)

filter_nums = filter(greater_than_five, nums)

print(list(filter_nums))

Output:

6,9

// The example will print out the elements greater than 5 from the list, which would be 6 and 9.

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12. Pass a List to a Function: list()

The list() function is used to convert an iterable (such as a string, tuple or dictionary) into a list. It takes an iterable as an argument and returns a list with each element of the iterable as an item in the list. 

Pass List to Function Example:

my_list = ["a", "b", "c"]  

new_list = list(my_list)  

print(new_list) 

Output:

["a", "b", "c"]

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13. Append Function: append()

The append function adds a specified item to the end of a list.

Append Function Example:

fruits = ['Apple', 'Orange', 'Pear']

fruits.append('Banana')

Output:

['Apple', 'Orange', 'Pear', 'Banana']

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14. Clear Function: clear()

The clear() function removes all elements from a given list.

Clear Function Example:

your_list = [8, 4, 2, 1, 10, 15]

your_list.clear()

print(your_list)

Output:

[]

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15. Pop Function: pop()

The pop() function is used to remove an item from a list. It takes the index of the item as an argument and removes it from the list.

Pop Function Example:

 my_list = ["a", "b", "c"]  

my_list.pop(1)  

print(my_list) 

Output:

["a", "c"]

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16. Count Function: count()

The count() functions returns the number of times a given item appears in a list.

Count Function Example:

fruits = ['apple', 'banana', 'kiwi', 'apple', 'pear', 'strawberry', 'apple']

quantity = fruits.count('apple')

print(quantity)

Output:

3

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17. Extend Function: extend()

The extend() function adds all specified elements to the end of a list. 

Extend Function Example:

my_list = [5, 6, 7, 8]

your_list = [1, 2, 3, 4]

your_list.extend(my_list)

print(your_list)

Output:

[1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8]

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18. Index Function: index()

The index() function searches for an element from the start of a list and returns the index of that element once found.

Index Function Example:

fruits = ['apple', 'pear', 'banana', 'kiwi']

index = fruits.index('pear')

print(index)

Output:

1

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