Python Programming for Raspberry Pi, Sams Teach Yourself in 24 Hours

def func1():

print('This is the first definition of the function name')

func1()

def func1():

print('This is a repeat of the same function name')

func1()

print('This is the end of the script')

When you run the script1203.py script, you should get this output:

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pi@raspberrypi ~ $ python3 script1203.py

This is the first definition of the function name

This is a repeat of the same function name

This is the end of the script

pi@raspberrypi ~ $

The original definition of the func1() function works fine, but after the second definition of the
func1() function, any subsequent uses of the function use the second definition instead of the first
one.

Returning a Value

So far the functions that you’ve used have just output a string and ended. Python uses the return
statement to exit a function with a specific value. With the return statement, you can specify a
value that the function returns back to the main program after it finishes, and then it uses that value
back in the main program.

The return statement must be the last statement in the function definition, as shown here:

def func2():

statement1

statement2

return value

In the main program, you can assign the value returned by the function to a variable and then use it in
your code. Listing 12.4 shows the script1204.py script, which demonstrates how to do this.

LISTING 12.4 Returning a Value from a Function

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#!/usr/bin/python3

def dbl():

value = int(input('Enter a value: '))

print('doubling the value')

result = value * 2

return result

x = dbl()

print('The new value is ', x)