What are some examples of type hints in Python?

What are some examples of type hints in Python?

Type hints in Python are used to indicate the expected data types of variables. For example, you can use def add(a: int, b: int) -> int: to specify that both a and b should be integers and the function returns an integer.

Can you give me more examples?

Sure! Here are a few more:

1. def greet(name: str) -> None: indicates that name should be a string and the function returns nothing.
2. def get_items() -> List[str]: shows that the function returns a list of strings.

What if I want to use a union type?

You can use the Union type from the typing module. For example, def process(value: Union[int, str]) -> None: means value can be either an integer or a string.

Are type hints mandatory in Python?

No, type hints are optional in Python. They are mainly used for better code readability and to help with static type checking.