Python Remove Dictionary Items

Ways to Remove Items from a Dictionary

Python provides several methods to remove one or more items from a dictionary:

  • pop()
  • popitem()
  • del
  • clear()

Example 1: pop() Method – Remove Specific Item

car = {
 "brand": "Ford",
 "model": "Mustang",
 "year": 1964
}
car.pop("model")
print(car)

Output:

{'brand': 'Ford', 'year': 1964}

Explanation: pop("model") removes the item with key "model" and returns its value.

Example 2: popitem() Method – Remove Last Inserted Item

car = {
 "brand": "Ford",
 "model": "Mustang",
 "year": 1964
}
car.popitem()
print(car)

Output:

{'brand': 'Ford', 'model': 'Mustang'}

Explanation: popitem() removes the last inserted key-value pair (in this case, "year": 1964).

Example 3: del Keyword – Remove Specific Item

car = {
 "brand": "Ford",
 "model": "Mustang",
 "year": 1964
}
del car["year"]
print(car)

Output:

{'brand': 'Ford', 'model': 'Mustang'}

Explanation: del deletes the key "year" and its value from the dictionary.

Example 4: del Keyword – Delete Entire Dictionary

car = {
 "brand": "Ford",
 "model": "Mustang"
}
del car
# print(car)  # This would raise an error: NameError

Explanation: del car completely deletes the dictionary from memory.

Example 5: clear() Method – Remove All Items

car = {
 "brand": "Ford",
 "model": "Mustang"
}
car.clear()
print(car)

Output:

{}

Explanation: clear() removes all items but keeps the dictionary object itself.

Summary of Removal Methods

MethodWhat it doesRaises error if key not found?
pop(key)Removes key-value by key✅ Yes
popitem()Removes last inserted key-value pair❌ No
delRemoves item or entire dictionary✅ Yes
clear()Empties the dictionary❌ No

Conclusion

Python makes it easy to remove items from dictionaries. Choose the method based on what you want to delete: a specific item, the last one, or all items.