
        
        
            
                
                
                    fruits = ['apple', 'pear', 'orange']
fruits_copy = fruits.copy()
print(fruits)
print(fruits_copy)
                
            
            ['apple', 'pear', 'orange']
['apple', 'pear', 'orange']

Copying using the = operator

It is also possible to copy a list using the = operator. However, with this method if you modify one of the lists the other is also automatically modified which can pose problems:


        
        
            
                
                
                    old_fruits = ['apple', 'pear', 'orange']
new_fruits = old_fruits
# Adding item grape to new_fruits
new_fruits.append('grape')
print("old_fruits =", old_fruits)
print("new_fruits =", new_fruits)
                
            
            old_fruits = ['apple', 'pear', 'orange', 'grape']
new_fruits = ['apple', 'pear', 'orange', 'grape']

Note that 'grape' is automatically added to old_fruits despite the fact we only added 'grape' to new_fruits. Therefore, using the = operator to copy lists is not recommended.

Copying a list in Python

A recipe on how to copy lists in Python.

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