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Python File Reading and Writing (Text Files)

In Python, you can read and write text files using the open() function, ideally combined with a with statement to ensure the file is properly closed. Use w mode to write and r mode to read files. Methods like read() and readlines() help process file content.

Writing to a File

# Open 'my_file.txt' in write mode (creates or overwrites the file)
with open("my_file.txt", "w", encoding="utf-8") as f:
    f.write("This is the first line.\n")
    f.write("This is the second line.")
# File is automatically closed after the with block
  

Explanation:

• open("my_file.txt", "w", encoding="utf-8"): Opens the file in write mode with UTF-8 encoding. Creates a new file or overwrites if it exists.
• f.write(...): Writes the specified string to the file. Use \n for line breaks.
• with ensures the file is automatically closed.

Reading from a File

# Read the entire file content
with open("my_file.txt", "r", encoding="utf-8") as f:
    content = f.read()
print(content)

# Read the file line by line into a list
with open("my_file.txt", "r", encoding="utf-8") as f:
    lines = f.readlines()
    for line in lines:
        print(line.strip())  # Remove leading/trailing whitespace and newline
  

Explanation:

• open("my_file.txt", "r", encoding="utf-8"): Opens the file in read mode with UTF-8 encoding.
• f.read(): Reads the entire file as a single string.
• f.readlines(): Reads all lines into a list.
• line.strip(): Removes whitespace and newline characters from each line.

Key Points

• Always use with for automatic file closing.
• Use w mode for writing, r mode for reading.
• Use \n to add line breaks when writing.

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These methods allow you to efficiently read from and write to text files in Python while handling encoding and ensuring proper file closure.