Python Break and Continue Statements

What are Break and Continue Statements?

In Python loops, break and continue are special statements used to control the flow inside loops.

- break: Immediately terminates the loop and moves control outside the loop.
- continue: Skips the current iteration and moves to the next iteration of the loop.

These help in controlling loops efficiently based on specific conditions.

Python के loops में break और continue statements flow control के लिए उपयोग होते हैं।

- break: loop को तुरंत रोक देता है और control loop के बाहर भेजता है।
- continue: current iteration को छोड़कर अगले iteration पर चला जाता है।

ये statements loop को बेहतर तरीके से नियंत्रित करने में मदद करते हैं।

When to Use Break and Continue?

Use break when you want to stop the entire loop based on a condition.
Use continue when you want to skip certain iterations but continue the loop.
Both are useful to avoid unnecessary processing inside loops.
They improve code efficiency and readability.

10 Examples of Break Statement

Example 1: Simple Break in While Loop

i = 1
while i <= 10:
    if i == 5:
        break
    print(i)
    i += 1

Loop stops when i becomes 5, so numbers 1 to 4 are printed.

Output:

1
2
3
4

Example 2: Break in For Loop

for num in range(1, 11):
    if num == 7:
        break
    print(num)

For loop breaks when num is 7, printing numbers 1 to 6.

Output:

1
2
3
4
5
6

Example 3: Break to Exit Infinite Loop

while True:
    user_input = input('Enter exit to stop: ')
    if user_input == 'exit':
        break
print('Loop exited')

Infinite loop ends when user types 'exit'.

Output:

User input loop, exits on 'exit' input.

Example 4: Nested Loop Break

for i in range(1, 4):
    for j in range(1, 4):
        if j == 2:
            break
        print(f'i={i}, j={j}')

Inner loop breaks when j is 2; outer loop continues.

Output:

i=1, j=1
i=2, j=1
i=3, j=1

Example 5: Break with Condition in Loop

numbers = [1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9]
for n in numbers:
    if n % 2 == 0:
        break
    print(n)

Loop breaks on first even number (8).

Output:

1
3
5
7

Example 6: Break with User Input in For Loop

for i in range(5):
    inp = input('Enter stop to exit: ')
    if inp == 'stop':
        break
    print(f'You entered: {inp}')

User can break the loop by entering 'stop'.

Output:

User inputs loop, breaks on 'stop'.

Example 7: Break in While Loop with Else

i = 0
while i < 3:
    if i == 2:
        break
    print(i)
    i += 1
else:
    print('Completed without break')

Else block does not execute due to break.

Output:

0
1

Example 8: Break in Loop Searching an Item

fruits = ['apple', 'banana', 'cherry']
for fruit in fruits:
    if fruit == 'banana':
        print('Banana found!')
        break

Breaks the loop when banana is found.

Output:

Banana found!

Example 9: Break in While Loop Based on Counter

count = 0
while True:
    print(count)
    count += 1
    if count == 3:
        break

Infinite loop broken after printing 3 numbers.

Output:

0
1
2

Example 10: Break to Optimize Search

nums = [10, 20, 30, 40, 50]
search = 30
for n in nums:
    if n == search:
        print('Found', n)
        break

Stops loop once the item is found.

Output:

Found 30

10 Examples of Continue Statement

Example 1: Skip Even Numbers

for i in range(1, 6):
    if i % 2 == 0:
        continue
    print(i)

Continue skips even numbers, printing only odd numbers.

Output:

1
3
5

Example 2: Continue in While Loop

i = 0
while i < 5:
    i += 1
    if i == 3:
        continue
    print(i)

Skips printing 3 in while loop using continue.

Output:

1
2
4
5

Example 3: Continue to Skip Blank Lines

lines = ['Hi', '', 'Hello', '', 'Bye']
for line in lines:
    if line == '':
        continue
    print(line)

Continue skips blank lines in list.

Output:

Hi
Hello
Bye

Example 4: Continue to Skip Certain Inputs

while True:
    data = input('Enter data (type quit to stop): ')
    if data == 'quit':
        break
    if data == 'skip':
        continue
    print(f'You entered: {data}')

Skips printing when user types 'skip', breaks on 'quit'.

Output:

User inputs; skips printing if input is 'skip'.

Example 5: Continue in Nested Loops

for i in range(1, 3):
    for j in range(1, 4):
        if j == 2:
            continue
        print(f'i={i}, j={j}')

Skips j=2 in inner loop using continue.

Output:

i=1, j=1
i=1, j=3
i=2, j=1
i=2, j=3

Example 6: Continue to Filter Characters

text = 'Hello123'
for char in text:
    if not char.isalpha():
        continue
    print(char)

Continue skips non-alphabet characters.

Output:

H
e
l
l
o

Example 7: Continue with Multiple Conditions

for i in range(1, 10):
    if i % 2 == 0 or i % 3 == 0:
        continue
    print(i)

Skips numbers divisible by 2 or 3.

Output:

1
5
7
11

Example 8: Continue to Skip Error Inputs

while True:
    try:
        num = int(input('Enter a number: '))
    except ValueError:
        print('Invalid input')
        continue
    print(f'You entered: {num}')
    break

Continue restarts loop if input is invalid number.

Output:

User input loop; invalid input skipped.

Example 9: Continue to Filter List Elements

items = [1, 0, 3, 0, 5]
for item in items:
    if item == 0:
        continue
    print(item)

Skips zero elements in list using continue.

Output:

1
3
5

Example 10: Continue in String Processing

s = 'Python!'
for ch in s:
    if ch == '!':
        continue
    print(ch)

Continue skips printing the exclamation mark.

Output:

P
y
t
h
o
n