expandtabs()

The expandtabs() method in Python is a string method that replaces tab characters in a string with spaces. It allows you to specify the tab size as an optional parameter. If no size is provided, it defaults to 8 spaces per tab.

Parameter Values

Parameter Description
tabsize

An optional integer parameter specifying the number of spaces to replace each tab character with. Default is 8.

Return Values

The expandtabs() method returns a new string with tab characters '\t' expanded.

How to Use expandtabs() in Python

Example 1:

The expandtabs() method in Python is used to replace tab characters in a string with spaces. By default, the tab size is set to 8 spaces, but you can specify a custom tab size as an argument.

text = 'Hello	world'
print(text.expandtabs())

# Output: 'Hello   world'
Example 2:

You can also specify a custom tab size when using the expandtabs() method by passing an integer argument representing the number of spaces to replace each tab character.

text = 'Python	is	a	programming	language'
print(text.expandtabs(4))

# Output: 'Python  is  a   programming language'
Example 3:

If a tab character is followed by a newline character, the expandtabs() method does not replace the tab with spaces, as it only pertains to tab characters within the string.

text = 'Code:
	print("Hello, world!")'
print(text.expandtabs())

# Output: 'Code:
	print("Hello, world!")'

String Methods