What does %s mean in a Python format string? Last Updated : 27 Dec, 2024 Comments Improve Suggest changes Like Article Like Report In Python, the %s format specifier is used to represent a placeholder for a string in a string formatting operation. It allows us to insert values dynamically into a string, making our code more flexible and readable. This placeholder is part of Python's older string formatting method, using the % operator, which is still widely used for simple formatting tasks.Let’s look at a basic example of how %s is used in string formatting. Python s = "Coco" greeting = "Hello, %s!" % s print(greeting) OutputHello, Coco! Explanation:We define the string variable name with the value "Coco".The string "Hello, %s!" contains the placeholder %s, which will be replaced by the value of the name variable.The method % is used to replace %s with the value of name. Table of ContentSyntax of %sExamples of %sFrequently Asked Questions on %s Syntax of %s"string" % valuestring: The string containing placeholders (like %s) where the value will be inserted.value: The value to replace the placeholder. It can be any object that can be converted into a string.Parameters:%s: This is the placeholder that expects a value, which can be a string or any data type that can be converted to a string.Return Type:The return type is a string, where the placeholder %s has been replaced with the provided value.Examples of %s mean Inserting a StringHere’s an example where we replace %s with a string. Python s = "Kay" message = "Welcome, %s!" % s print(message) OutputWelcome, Kay! Explanation: The placeholder %s is replaced by the value of name.Inserting Multiple ValuesWe can use multiple %s placeholders in a single string and pass multiple values to replace them. Python name = "Bob" age = 25 info = "Name: %s, Age: %s" % (name, age) print(info) OutputName: Bob, Age: 25 Explanation:We use two %s placeholders in the string.The values for name and age are passed as a tuple (name, age) and inserted in the string.Using ObjectsWe can also insert custom objects into strings using %s. The object will be automatically converted to a string using its __str__() method. Python class Person: def __str__(self): return "Person object" obj = Person() message = "The object is: %s" % obj print(message) OutputThe object is: Person object Explanation: Even custom objects can be used with %s. Python automatically calls the __str__() method of the object to convert it to a string before inserting it into the format string. Comment More infoAdvertise with us Next Article Python String Interpolation C codersgram9 Follow Improve Article Tags : Python python-string Practice Tags : python Similar Reads Python String A string is a sequence of characters. 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