What Is The Scope Of Continue In A Nested Python For Loop?

Question

When using nested for loops, if I use continue inside the inner nested for loop, does the scope of that continue only apply to the inner loop or will it continue the outer loop?

Note: For what I am working on I only want the continue to affect the nested loop

b = ["hello"] * 5
d = ["world"] * 10

for a in b: # Outer Loop
    x = 1 + 1
    for c in d: # Nested Loop
        if c:
            x += 1
        else: 
            continue # Does this affect the Nested Loop or the Outer Loop

It's [clearly documented](https://docs.python.org/3/reference/simple_stmts.html#the-continue-statement): "It continues with the next cycle of the nearest enclosing loop." — chepner, Jul 10 '19 at 19:05

score 8 · Accepted Answer · answered Jul 10 '19 at 19:04

8

It only affects the inner loop.

answered Jul 10 '19 at 19:04

botiapa

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score 3 · Answer 2 · answered Jul 10 '19 at 19:07

3

Loop control keywords like break and continue only affect the closest loop in scope to them. So if you have a loop nested in another loop, the keyword targets whatever loop it is immediately within, not loops farther up the line.

answered Jul 10 '19 at 19:07

Abion47

22,211
4
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What Is The Scope Of Continue In A Nested Python For Loop?

2 Answers2