Assigning a function to a variable

Let's say I have a function

def x():
    print(20)

Now I want to assign the function to a variable called y, so that if I use the y it calls the function x again. if i simply do the assignment y = x(), it returns None.

Solution 1:

You simply don't call the function.

>>>def x():
>>>    print(20)
>>>y = x
>>>y()
20

The brackets tell python that you are calling the function, so when you put them there, it calls the function and assigns y the value returned by x (which in this case is None).

Solution 2:

When you assign a function to a variable you don't use the () but simply the name of the function.

In your case given def x(): ..., and variable silly_var you would do something like this:

silly_var = x

and then you can call the function either with

x()

or

silly_var()

Solution 3:

when you perform y=x() you are actually assigning y to the result of calling the function object x and the function has a return value of None. Function calls in python are performed using (). To assign x to y so you can call y just like you would x you assign the function object x to y like y=x and call the function using y()