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Python nested functions variable scoping
After much trial and error I have eventually discovered that this doesn't work:
def a():
def b():
print x
x=2
x = 1
b()
print x
You get an exception (x not defined before being referenced). So it looks like b can read from x, but if it tries to assign to it, Python changes its interpretation of 'x' to be a local variable, which is now not defined.
Question for my own sick curiosity: is there any way of achieving this? Is there a way of explicitly accessing the scope of the parent function? (x is not global)
The nonlocal
statement in Python 3 will do this.
Edit: In Python 2, there's not a simple way to do it. I suggest you use some mutable container object if you need this capability. For example:
def a():
def b():
print d["x"]
d["x"]=2
d = dict(x=1)
b()
print d["x"]
If you absolutely must emulate nonlocal
for CPython 2, you can hack it with the Python C API this way:
import ctypes
import inspect
locals_to_fast = ctypes.pythonapi.PyFrame_LocalsToFast
locals_to_fast.restype = None
locals_to_fast.argtypes = [ctypes.py_object, ctypes.c_int]
def set_in_frame(frame, name, value):
frame.f_locals[name] = value
locals_to_fast(frame, 1)
def a():
def b(frame=inspect.currentframe()):
print x
set_in_frame(frame, "x", 2)
x = 1
b()
print x
You could also set the frame local, and instead of calling PyFrame_LocalsToFast()
, you could manipulate the bytecode of a
so that it uses LOAD_NAME
instead of LOAD_FAST
. Please don't do either of these things. There is surely a better solution for your use case.