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Python Python Basics (2015) Number Game App String length

Sahil Sharma
Sahil Sharma
4,791 Points
Posted by Sahil Sharma
Sahil Sharma
4,791 Points

How to ensure a string as an argument for a function?

This code returns a NameError : 'a' is not defined. How can I ensure that a is a string and declare it?

strlen.py 
a = str(a)
def just_right(a):
    if len(a) < 5:
        print ("Your string is too short")
    elif len(a) > 5:
        print ("Your string is too long")
    else:
        return True

1 Answer

Jennifer Nordell
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STAFF
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Jennifer Nordell
Treehouse Teacher
Jennifer Nordell
.a{fill-rule:evenodd;}techdegree
Jennifer Nordell
Treehouse Teacher

You're doing fine! And in this challenge it's not necessary to ensure that what's being sent in is a string. That's taken care of by Treehouse. They've guaranteed that they're sending in a string. But you're correct, checking for that is a great idea! We're just not really there yet.

What you've missed is the line in the instructions where it says to return the string... not print it. So if you remove this line here:

a = str(a)

and then change all your print statements to return statements, your code passes! Happy coding! :smiley: