Remove Punctuations From a String in Python

In this blog, we will explore a Python program to remove punctuations from a string using for loop. We will explain the step-by-step logic of this code which will give you a clear understanding of how to apply this technique to your own projects and streamline your string manipulation tasks.

Let’s learn how to remove punctuations from a string in Python using a for loop.

Python Program to Remove Punctuations From a String Using for Loop

# Python program to remove custom punctuation from a string

# punctuation collection - you can mention any special characters you want to exclude from a string
punc_col = '''!()-[]{};:'"\,<>./?@#$%^&*_~'''

# sample text
sample_text = "Hello, Newtum !is# ^the*@ b)e$st^ platform>< to Learn P>ython??"

print("Input String: " + sample_text)

# for loop will iterate through each character of the string and will check if it present in the punctuation collection variable
for c in sample_text:
    if c in punc_col:
        sample_text = sample_text.replace(c, "")

print("Final String: " + sample_text)

Code Logic Explanation

• Initialise the punctuation collection

In the first step, we define a variable called punc_col and assign it a string value containing the custom punctuation characters we want to exclude from the string. This collection can be modified to include any specific characters that need to be removed.

• Define the sample text

Next, we create a variable called sample_text and assign it the input string from which we want to remove the custom punctuation. This sample text serves as the input for our code.

• Print the input string

We display the original input string using the print() function to provide visibility into the starting point of our operation.

• Iterate through each character

Now, we utilize a for loop to iterate through each character of the sample_text string. The loop variable c represents each character during each iteration.

• Checking for punctuation characters

Within the loop, we use an if statement to check if the current character c is present in the punctuation collection variable punc_col. This condition allows us to identify the custom punctuation characters in the string.

• Remove punctuation using replace()

If the current character c is found in the punctuation collection, we utilize the replace() function to remove it from the sample_text string. The replace() function replaces all occurrences of the specified character with an empty string, effectively removing it from the string.

• Print the final string

Finally, we print the modified sample_text string after removing the custom punctuation characters. This output provides the resulting string with the desired punctuation excluded.

Output:

Input String: Hello, Newtum !is# ^the*@ b)e$st^ platform>< to Learn P>ython??
Final String: Hello Newtum is the best platform to Learn Python

This program iterates through each character of the input string and checks if it is present in the punctuation collection. If a character is found in the collection, it is removed using the replace() function. This process is repeated for each character in the string that matches the custom punctuation characters. When the user inputs: “Hello, Newtum !is# ^the*@ b)e$st^ platform>< to Learn P>ython??”, all the custom punctuation characters have been successfully removed.

The output string is displayed as: “Hello Newtum is the best platform to Learn Python”.

Other Ways to Remove Punctuations From a Strings

A few other ways to remove punctuations from strings in Python are:

• Regular Expressions can be used to match and replace patterns in strings. By defining a regular expression pattern that represents the custom punctuation characters, you can use the re.sub() function to remove them from the string. 

• Using List Comprehension you can iterate through each character in the string and selectively include only the characters that are not part of the custom punctuation collection in a new string. 

• ASCII Translation with str.translate() method can be used to perform character-level translations or deletions based on the ASCII code of the characters.
• The join and Filter method involves splitting the string into individual characters and then joining them back together while excluding the custom punctuation characters. 

In this blog, we choose the for loop and replace() approach due to its simplicity, readability, and ease of understanding for beginners. It provides a clear and intuitive solution without requiring in-depth knowledge of regular expressions or other advanced concepts. It is also efficient for smaller strings and scenarios where the custom punctuation collection is relatively small.

In this blog, we explored how to remove custom punctuation from a string in Python. By using a for loop and the replace() function, we were able to iterate through each character of the input string and remove any specified punctuation characters. 

Removing custom punctuation from a string can be useful in various applications such as text processing, data cleaning, or text analysis. By eliminating unwanted punctuation, we can ensure that the resulting string is cleaner, easier to work with, and more suitable for further processing or analysis. You can apply similar techniques to handle other string manipulation challenges in your Python projects.

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