Nonlocal statement
A nonlocal statement makes a name assigned in a nested Python function refer to a binding in an enclosing function scope.
Python Workout, Second Edition
The nonlocal keyword declares that assignments in a nested function refer to a name in an enclosing function scope.
- How it is used
- Uses nonlocal to maintain mutable state across calls to a nested function.
- How deep it goes
- Explains LEGB lookup and demonstrates state updates, but stops short of broader closure internals.
- Examples
- Demonstrates a returned counter function whose output increments from one call to the next.
- What you can do after
- Apply nonlocal to update enclosing-function state from a nested Python function.
Read how Python Workout, Second Edition explains nonlocal statement →
Python Workout: 50 ten-minute exercises
The nonlocal keyword declares that assignments in a nested function target a binding in an enclosing function rather than a new local binding.
- How it is used
- Updates state in an enclosing function from a nested function.
- How deep it goes
- Explains name lookup and demonstrates mutation through a complete nested-function counter, without deeper implementation details.
- Examples
- Uses a returned counter function that records calls while processing values from 10 through 90.
- What you can do after
- Apply it via Python to preserve and update enclosing-function state across nested-function calls.
Read how Python Workout: 50 ten-minute exercises explains nonlocal statement →
Related concepts
- scopeconfigures · Scope is the region of a program in which names are visible and can be resolved according to the language’s lookup rules.
- global statementcontrasts with · A global statement is a Python declaration that makes specified names in a function refer to bindings in the module-level global namespace.
- enclosing functionconfigures · An enclosing function is a function whose body contains a nested function definition and provides a surrounding lexical scope for it.
- assignmentcontrasts with · Assignment is a programming-language operation that binds or stores an evaluated value in a variable, property, or other assignable location.
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