Question

What is the purpose of the return statement in a function?

Short answer

Answer: The return statement is used in a function to denote the end of the function and to specify the value or values that the function should return as output. It stops the execution of the function and sends the specified value(s) back to the calling point of the function, allowing the output to be used in further operations.

Step-by-step solution

Define a function

A function is a reusable block of code that performs a specific task within a program. It typically takes some input (called arguments), processes the input, and returns a value or multiple values as output.

Explain the role of a return statement

The return statement is used in a function to denote the end of the function and to specify the value or values that the function should return as output. When the return statement is executed, the current function stops executing, and the value(s) specified after the return keyword are sent back to the calling point of the function.

Provide an example

Let's consider a simple example of a function that calculates the sum of two numbers. Here is the Python code: def add_numbers(x, y): sum_xy = x + y return sum_xy result = add_numbers(3, 4) print(result) In this example, the function `add_numbers` takes two arguments, x and y, calculates their sum, assigns it to the variable `sum_xy`, and then uses the return statement to provide the value of `sum_xy` as the output of the function. When the function is called with the input values 3 and 4, the return statement sends the sum (7) back to the calling point, assigning it to the variable `result`. Then the resulting sum is printed on the console.