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Ten short Python expressions cover a lot of everyday work: filtering a list, pairing values with their positions, sorting by a custom rule, checking a condition across a collection, and listing files. Each example below shows the exact input, the value Python returns, and the point where a longer version is the better choice. Every snippet runs in a Python 3 interpreter, and one of them needs Python 3.10 or later.
Before you run the examples
You need a Python interpreter. The official Python Tutorial says Python and its standard library are freely available for major platforms, and it describes the language this way: “Python is an easy to learn, powerful programming language.” (The Python Tutorial, version 3.14) Open a terminal, type python3 (or python on Windows), and you get the interactive prompt, >>>. Paste each line after the prompt and compare what you see with the output shown below it.
The examples use built-in functions, which are available without any import. Built-ins are documented on the built-in functions page for version 3.13. A few examples use tools from itertools and pathlib, and each of those is marked with its import line.
Building lists in one expression
A list comprehension has the shape [expression for item in iterable if condition]. Python reads it left to right: take each item, optionally keep it if the condition is true, and collect the results into a new list.
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1. Filter even numbers
>>> [n for n in range(10) if n % 2 == 0]
[0, 2, 4, 6, 8]range(10) produces 0 through 9. The if clause keeps only the values whose remainder after division by 2 is zero. The input is never changed; a new list is returned.
2. Square every value in a sequence
>>> [n * n for n in range(5)]
[0, 1, 4, 9, 16]This version has no if clause, so every value is transformed. If you replace the square brackets with parentheses, you get a generator expression. It yields values one at a time instead of building a list, which matters when the input is large. The built-in docs describe generator expressions alongside comprehensions in the same built-in functions reference.
Pairing values with positions and with other sequences
3. Number items with enumerate
>>> list(enumerate(['Ada', 'Lin']))
[(0, 'Ada'), (1, 'Lin')]
>>> list(enumerate(['Ada', 'Lin'], start=1))
[(1, 'Ada'), (2, 'Lin')]enumerate returns an iterator of (index, item) pairs. Counting starts at zero unless you pass start. Use start=1 when the numbers will be shown to people, such as in a numbered menu. The list(...) wrapper is only there so you can see the values; the function itself produces them lazily.
4. Pair two sequences by position
>>> list(zip(['a', 'b'], [1, 2]))
[('a', 1), ('b', 2)]
>>> list(zip('abc', [1, 2]))
[('a', 1), ('b', 2)]zip matches values by position. The second example shows the catch: when the inputs have different lengths, zip stops at the shortest one and does not warn you. The letter 'c' is silently dropped. If that could hide a bug in your data, check the lengths before zipping.
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Sorting and asking yes-or-no questions
5. Sort words by length
>>> sorted(['pear', 'fig', 'plum'], key=len)
['fig', 'pear', 'plum']sorted returns a new list and leaves the original alone. The key argument is a function applied to each item before comparison; here len measures each word, so the words are ordered by character count. Words of equal length, such as pear and plum, keep their original relative order because Python’s sort is stable.
6. Check whether any value passes a threshold
>>> any(n > 10 for n in [3, 12, 7])
True
>>> any(n > 10 for n in [])
Falseany returns True as soon as one item is truthy and False otherwise. The generator expression stops evaluating at the first match, which is useful when checking a long or expensive sequence. The empty-list case is worth remembering: any over nothing is False, so a check that expects at least one match should not rely on any alone when the input might be empty.
Iterator tools from itertools
The itertools documentation describes these functions as iterator building blocks. Their results are iterators, so you wrap them in list(...) only when you need to see or store every value at once. If you loop over the result directly, you can skip the wrapper.
7. Flatten one level of nested lists
>>> from itertools import chain
>>> list(chain.from_iterable([[1, 2], [3], [4, 5]]))
[1, 2, 3, 4, 5]chain.from_iterable takes an iterable of iterables and yields the items of each in turn. It removes exactly one level of nesting. A list inside a list inside a list stays nested. For string concatenation, the built-in docs recommend ''.join(sequence) over sum(), while itertools.chain() is the recommended tool for concatenating iterables.
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nested = [[1, 2], [3], [4, 5]]
flat = []
for part in nested:
flat.extend(part)
print(flat) # [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]8. Build a running total
>>> from itertools import accumulate
>>> list(accumulate([2, 3, 5]))
[2, 5, 10]accumulate yields each partial result: 2, then 2 + 3, then 2 + 3 + 5. The last value is the total, which is what sum([2, 3, 5]) returns on its own. Use accumulate when you need the intermediate totals, such as a cumulative balance chart. Use sum when only the final figure matters.
9. Get adjacent pairs
>>> from itertools import pairwise
>>> list(pairwise('PYTHON'))
[('P', 'Y'), ('Y', 'T'), ('T', 'H'), ('H', 'O'), ('O', 'N')]pairwise yields each item together with the one after it. A list of n items produces n minus one pairs, so the result is one shorter than the input. This is the example to check first if your Python is older: pairwise is not available before Python 3.10. On an older release, the import fails with an ImportError. You can confirm the version with python3 --version, and the itertools reference lists the function’s documented behavior.
Listing files from a folder
10. List Python files in the current directory
>>> from pathlib import Path
>>> [p.name for p in Path('.').iterdir() if p.suffix == '.py' and p.is_file()]
['helpers.py', 'main.py']Path('.') refers to the folder Python was started from, which is not always the folder your script lives in. The output depends on that folder and its contents, so the list above is only an example; your result will differ. Two details make the expression safer. The p.is_file() check excludes folders whose names happen to end in .py. The order of iterdir() results is arbitrary, so wrap the expression in sorted(...) if you need a stable listing.
The pathlib documentation for version 3.14 describes Path as the object-oriented interface to filesystem paths. Behavior can vary across operating systems and folder permissions, so test the expression in the folder you actually plan to use.
Quick reference
| # | Pattern | Import needed | What it returns | Version note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Filter with a comprehension | None | List | None noted |
| 2 | Transform with a comprehension | None | List | None noted |
| 3 | enumerate | None | Iterator of (index, item) pairs | None noted |
| 4 | zip | None | Iterator of tuples; stops at shortest input | None noted |
| 5 | sorted with key | None | New list | None noted |
| 6 | any | None | Boolean | None noted |
| 7 | chain.from_iterable | from itertools import chain | Iterator; removes one level of nesting | None noted |
| 8 | accumulate | from itertools import accumulate | Iterator of running totals | None noted |
| 9 | pairwise | from itertools import pairwise | Iterator of adjacent pairs | Python 3.10 or later |
| 10 | Path.iterdir with filter | from pathlib import Path | List of file names; depends on folder contents | None noted |
When the one-liner is the wrong choice
A one-liner earns its place when the operation is familiar to anyone reading the code: filtering, pairing, or summing. It stops earning its place when a reader has to decode it. Keep the compact form when a single transformation fits on one line and the names are self-explanatory. Switch to a loop or named intermediate variables when any of the following is true:
- The expression needs more than one condition or nested comprehension.
- The loop body has side effects, such as writing files or updating a counter.
- You need error handling or logging for individual items.
- The empty-input case has a different meaning from the populated case, as with
any([])returningFalse.
In practice, the best one-liner is often two readable lines. Name the intermediate result, and let the next line use it.
Quick Recap
Where to go next
- The Python Tutorial is written for programmers new to Python and assumes basic programming knowledge.
- The Python standard library index for version 3.14 lists every module, including the ones used above.
- Python One-Liners by Christian Mayer is identified in the Python wiki beginner guide as a book that teaches readers to read and write one-liners. Check a current retailer for edition and availability.
- Automate the Boring Stuff with Python is the official author site for a broader practical Python book, which covers automation tasks beyond one-liners.
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