Tuple indexing and slicing in Python - Interactive Code Practice

Practice - 5 Tasks

1fill in blank

easy

Complete the code to get the first element of the tuple.

Python

my_tuple = (10, 20, 30)
first_element = my_tuple[1]

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A[0]

B<0>

C{0}

D(0)

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using parentheses instead of square brackets for indexing.

Using curly braces or angle brackets which are invalid for indexing.

Use square brackets with index 0 to get the first element of a tuple.

2fill in blank

medium

Complete the code to get the last element of the tuple using negative indexing.

Python

my_tuple = ('a', 'b', 'c', 'd')
last_element = my_tuple[1]

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A[1]

B[-1]

C[-4]

D[0]

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using positive index 1 which gives the second element.

Using -4 which gives the first element but is less clear.

Negative indexing starts from the end. Index -1 gives the last element.

3fill in blank

hard

Fix the error in the code to slice the tuple from index 1 to 3 (excluding 3).

Python

my_tuple = (5, 10, 15, 20, 25)
slice_part = my_tuple[1]

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A{1:3}

B(1:3)

C[1,3]

D[1:3]

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using parentheses instead of square brackets for slicing.

Using comma instead of colon inside the brackets.

Use square brackets with colon to slice tuples: [start:end].

4fill in blank

hard

Fill both blanks to get a slice of the tuple from the second element to the end.

Python

my_tuple = ('x', 'y', 'z', 'w')
slice_part = my_tuple[1][2]

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A[1:

B1:

C]

D:]

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Forgetting the closing bracket.

Using parentheses instead of square brackets.

To slice from index 1 to the end, use [1:] with square brackets.

5fill in blank

hard

Complete the code to get every second element from the tuple starting at index 0.

Python

my_tuple = (2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12)
slice_part = my_tuple[[1]]

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A[

B::2

C]

D:

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Missing the closing bracket.

Using single colon instead of double colon for step.

Use [::2] to slice every second element from the start to the end.

Practice

1.

What does my_tuple[2] return if my_tuple = (10, 20, 30, 40)?

easy

A. 30

B. 20

C. 40

D. 10

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand tuple indexing

   Indexing starts at 0, so index 2 means the third item in the tuple.

2. Step 2: Identify the item at index 2

   The tuple is (10, 20, 30, 40), so the item at index 2 is 30.

3. Final Answer:

   30 -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Index 2 in tuple = 30 [OK]

Hint: Remember: indexing starts at zero in tuples [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Counting from 1 instead of 0
• Confusing index 2 with index 3
• Mixing up tuple with list indexing

2.

Which of the following is the correct syntax to get the last item of a tuple t?

easy

A. t[1]

B. t[-1]

C. t[last]

D. t[len(t)]

Solution

1. Step 1: Recall negative indexing in tuples

   Negative index -1 accesses the last item in a tuple.

2. Step 2: Check each option

   t[-1] correctly accesses the last item. t[1] accesses second item, t[last] is invalid syntax, t[len(t)] causes IndexError because indexing starts at 0.

3. Final Answer:

   t[-1] -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Last item index = -1 [OK]

Hint: Use -1 to get last item from any tuple [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using len(t) as index (out of range)
• Trying to use variable 'last' as index
• Confusing positive and negative indexes

3.

What is the output of this code?

t = (5, 10, 15, 20, 25)
print(t[1:4])

medium

A. (10, 15, 20)

B. (10, 15, 20, 25)

C. (5, 10, 15)

D. (15, 20, 25)

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand slicing syntax

   Slicing t[1:4] means start at index 1 up to but not including index 4.

2. Step 2: Extract the slice from the tuple

   Tuple is (5, 10, 15, 20, 25). Index 1 is 10, index 2 is 15, index 3 is 20. Index 4 (25) is excluded.

3. Final Answer:

   (10, 15, 20) -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Slicing excludes end index [OK]

Hint: Slice excludes the end index, so stop before it [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Including the end index in slice
• Confusing indexes with values
• Using parentheses instead of brackets for slicing

4.

Find the error in this code:

t = (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
print(t[5])

medium

A. Prints 5

B. SyntaxError

C. IndexError: tuple index out of range

D. Prints 1

Solution

1. Step 1: Check tuple length and indexing

   Tuple has 5 items indexed 0 to 4. Index 5 is outside this range.

2. Step 2: Understand what happens when accessing invalid index

   Accessing t[5] causes an IndexError because the index is out of range.

3. Final Answer:

   IndexError: tuple index out of range -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Index must be less than length [OK]

Hint: Index must be less than tuple length [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using index equal to length
• Confusing SyntaxError with IndexError
• Assuming last index is length instead of length-1

5.

Given t = (2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12), which expression returns a tuple with every second item starting from the last item going backwards?

hard

A. t[1::2]

B. t[::2]

C. t[-2::-1]

D. t[::-2]

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand slicing with negative step

   A negative step means slicing backwards. t[::-2] starts from the end and takes every second item backwards.

2. Step 2: Check what t[::-2] returns

   Tuple is (2,4,6,8,10,12). t[::-2] picks 12 (last), 8, 4, resulting in (12, 8, 4).

3. Final Answer:

   t[::-2] -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Negative step slices backwards skipping items [OK]

Hint: Use negative step in slice to go backwards [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using positive step for backward slicing
• Starting slice incorrectly
• Confusing slice start and step positions