What is bisect.insort_left() in Python?
Overview
In this shot, we’ll learn about the insort_left() method in Python.
We may want to insert an element in a sorted list, but we still want to maintain the sort order after insertion. If we do this operation over a long list, this will become a costly operation. We can use the bisect module in this situation, which ensures that the list is automatically put in sorted order.
The insort_left() method is provided by the bisect module, which sorts the list in-place after inserting the given element. If the element is already present, it inserts it at the left-most position.
Syntax
import bisect
bisect.insort_left(list, element)
Parameters
list: This contains a list of sorted integers.element: This provides an element that needs to be inserted into the sorted list.
Example
Let’s look at an example to understand this better.
#import the moduleimport bisect#given sorted list of numbersnums = [1,3,5,7,10,25,49,55]#given element to be inserted into the listele = 50#insert the elementbisect.insort_left(nums, ele)#print the nums after inserting the elementprint(nums)
Explanation
In the code snippet above:
- Line 2: We import the
bisectmodule, which contains methods likeinsort_left,insort_right, and so on. - Line 5: We declare and initialize the list
numsin sorted order. - Line 8: We are given an element
eleto be inserted in the listnums. - Line 11: We pass
listandelementas parameters to theinsort_left()method, which sorts the list in place after inserting the given element. - Line 14: We print the list after inserting the element.