? Python Booleans

⚡ Quick Overview

In Python, a Boolean represents one of two values: True or False. Booleans are used in conditions, loops, and logical expressions to control the flow of a program.

Internally, Booleans are a special type that behave like the numbers 1 (for True) and 0 (for False) in many situations, but they are mainly used to represent logical states.

? Key Concepts

Booleans have only two possible values: True and False.
They are often the result of comparison or logical operations.
Booleans are widely used in if statements, loops, and decision-making logic.
Python has built-in rules of truthiness:
- False values: 0, 0.0, "" (empty string), [], (), {} (empty collections), and None.
- Almost everything else is considered True.

? Syntax and Theory

Python provides three main logical operators for Booleans:

and – returns True if both operands are True.
or – returns True if at least one operand is True.
not – returns the opposite Boolean value (inverts it).

Booleans are often produced using comparison operators like:

== – equal to
!= – not equal to
>, < – greater than, less than
>=, <= – greater than or equal to, less than or equal to

? Basic Boolean Values

You can store Boolean values directly in variables using True and False.

? View Code Example – Boolean Variables

a = True
b = False

print(a)
print(b)
print(type(a))

? Expected Output

True
False
<class 'bool'>

Here, a and b are Boolean variables, and type(a) confirms that they are of type bool.

? Boolean Operations

Use logical operators to combine or invert Boolean values.

? View Code Example – Logical Operators

x = True
y = False

print(x and y)   # False
print(x or y)    # True
print(not x)     # False

? Explanation

x and y is False because both need to be True, but y is False.
x or y is True because at least one of them (x) is True.
not x inverts True to False.

? Boolean Comparisons

Comparisons between values result in Boolean answers:

? View Code Example – Comparisons

a = 5
b = 10

print(a == b)    # False
print(a != b)    # True
print(a < b)     # True
print(a >= 5)    # True

? Explanation

a == b is False because 5 is not equal to 10.
a != b is True because 5 is different from 10.
a < b is True because 5 is less than 10.
a >= 5 is True because 5 is greater than or equal to 5.

? Booleans in Conditions

Booleans are most commonly used in if statements to decide which block of code should run.

? View Code Example – Using Booleans in if

is_raining = True

if is_raining:
    print("Take an umbrella!")
else:
    print("No umbrella needed.")

? Typical Output

Take an umbrella!

If is_raining is True, the first message prints. If it were False, the else part would run instead.

? Tips and Best Practices

Use descriptive Boolean variable names like is_active, has_access, or is_logged_in.
Remember that 0, empty strings, None, and empty collections are treated as False in conditions.
Write concise conditions:
- ✅ if is_raining:
- ❌ if is_raining == True:
Don’t confuse Boolean values with strings: "True" (string) is not the same as True (Boolean).

? Try It Yourself

Create two Boolean variables (for example, is_student and has_id_card) and print the results of and, or, and not on them.
Write an if statement using a Boolean variable (e.g., is_logged_in) to print different messages for logged-in and guest users.
Experiment with comparison operators (>, <=, ==, !=) on numbers and strings and print their Boolean results.
Try printing bool() of different values: bool(0), bool(1), bool(""), bool("hello"), bool([]), bool([1, 2, 3]) and observe which ones are True or False.