How to Sort Words in Descending Order in a Text File Using Python

Learn how to efficiently sort a list of words in descending order by length from a text file using Python. This guide provides step-by-step instructions to enhance your coding skills.
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How to Sort Words in Descending Order in a Text File Using Python

If you're working on a project that involves manipulating text files, such as generating a crossword puzzle, you may encounter some challenges when sorting words. Particularly, sorting them by length and in descending order can be tricky if you are new to programming with Python. In this guide, we will break down the process of sorting the words from a text file so you can efficiently utilize them in your projects.

The Problem

Imagine you are generating a crossword puzzle for the first time, and you want to sort a list of words by their length before placing the longest word onto the grid. However, when you try to read and sort the words from your text file named crosswords, the output is not what you expect. Instead of displaying the sorted list of words, you keep getting None.

Example Output

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

This can be frustrating, especially when you need to ensure the words are sorted correctly to implement them into your crossword. Let's dig into the code you've provided and see how we can solve this issue.

Understanding the Current Code

Here’s the initial code that you are working with:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

While the intention behind this code is clear, there are some critical mistakes that need addressing to make it functional.

Key Issues in the Code

Understanding the sort Method:

The sort() function modifies the list in place and returns None.

Lack of Return Statement:

Your sort_words function does not return any value. This will result in None being printed when you call print_this(sort_words()).

The Solution

To fix these issues, we need to make a few adjustments to your code.

Step-by-Step Fix

Change the Sorting Output:
Instead of trying to print the result of the sort method, you need to print the list itself after sorting:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Return the Sorted List:
Ensure your function returns the sorted data:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Complete Refined Code

Here is the corrected version of your code:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Explanation of Changes

Line Stripping: Instead of using sorted(filename), we use a list comprehension to read each line while removing extra whitespace.

Writing to File: Iteration over sorted data ensures each word is placed on a new line.

Conclusion

Sorting words from a file can be straightforward once you recognize the potential pitfalls with methods that return None. By following the steps outlined above, you can sort words successfully by length and utilize them in your crossword puzzle.

With practice, you'll become more adept at coding in Python and applying these techniques in your projects. Happy coding!