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Programming in Python

Arithmetic Operators in Python

Explore how to use Python's arithmetic operators for various mathematical operations. Learn the function of each operator, how in-place assignment operators work, and understand operator precedence and associativity to correctly evaluate expressions in Python.

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There are different arithmetic operators that can be applied for mathematical operations: +, -, *, /, %, // and **.

Python 3.8
a = 4 / 2  # performs true division and yields a float 2.0
b = 7 % 2  # % yields remainder 1
c = 3 ** 4 # ** yields 3 raised to 4 (exponentiation)
d = 4 // 3 # // yields quotient 1 after discarding fractional part
print("4 / 2 =",a)
print("7 % 2 =",b)
print("3 ** 4 =",c)
print("4 // 3 =",d)

In-place assignment operators offer a good shortcut for arithmetic operations. They include +=, -=, *=, /=, %=, //= and **=.

Python 3.8
a = 2
b = 12
a **= 3 # same as a = a ** 3
b %= 10 # same as b = b % 10
print(a)
print(b)

Operation nuances

On performing floor division a // b, the result is the largest integer which is less than or equal to the quotient. The // operator is called a floor division operator.

Python 3.8
print(10 // 3)     # yields 3
print(-10 // 3)    # yields -4
print(10 // -3)    # yields -4
print(-10 // -3)   # yields 3
print(3 // 10)     # yields 0
print(3 // -10)    # yields -1
print(-3 // 10)    # yields -1
print(-3 // -10)   # yields 0

In the code above:

  • In -10 // 3, the multiple of 3 that yields -10 is -3.333, whose floor value is -4.
  • In 10 // -3, the multiple of -3 that yields 10 is -3.333, whose floor value is -4.
  • In -10 // -3, the multiple of -3 that yields -10 is 3.333, whose floor value is 3.

Note: The print() function is used for sending output to the screen.

Operation a % b is evaluated as a−(b∗(a//b))a - (b * (a // b)) ...