Infinite Iterators in Python

Iterator in Python is any python type that can be used with a ‘for in loop’. Python lists, tuples, dictionaries, and sets are all examples of inbuilt iterators. But it is not necessary that an iterator object has to exhaust, sometimes it can be infinite. Such type of iterators are known as Infinite iterators.

Python provides three types of infinite iterators –

1. count(start, step): This iterator starts printing from the “start” number and prints infinitely. If steps are mentioned, the numbers are skipped else step is 1 by default. See the below example for its use with for in loop.

   Example:

   
   

   
   
   

   # Python program to demonstrate # infinite iterators    import itertools    # for in loop for i in itertools.count(5, 5):     if i == 35:         break     else:         print(i, end =" ")

   Output:

   5 10 15 20 25 30
   

2. cycle(iterable): This iterator prints all values in order from the passed container. It restarts printing from beginning again when all elements are printed in a cyclic manner.

   Example #1:

   
   

   
   
   

   # Python program to demonstrate # infinite iterators    import itertools    count = 0    # for in loop for i in itertools.cycle('AB'):     if count > 7:         break     else:         print(i, end = " ")         count += 1

   Output:

   A B A B A B A B 
   

   Example #2: Using next function.

   
   

   
   
   

   # Python program to demonstrate # infinite iterators    import itertools    l = ['Geeks', 'for', 'Geeks']    # defining iterator iterators = itertools.cycle(l)    # for in loop for i in range(6):            # Using next function     print(next(iterators), end = " ")

   Output:

   Geeks for Geeks Geeks for Geeks 
   

3. repeat(val, num): This iterator repeatedly prints the passed value infinite number of times. If the optional keyword num is mentioned, then it repeatedly prints num number of times.

   Example:

   
   

   
   
   

   # Python code to demonstrate the working of   # repeat()       # importing "itertools" for iterator operations  import itertools       # using repeat() to repeatedly print number  print ("Printing the numbers repeatedly : ")  print (list(itertools.repeat(25, 4)))

   Output:

   Printing the numbers repeatedly : 
   [25, 25, 25, 25]