Here's a simple example:
for letter in 'Django':
if letter == 'D':
continue
print("Current Letter: " + letter)
Output will be:
Current Letter: j
Current Letter: a
Current Letter: n
Current Letter: g
Current Letter: o
It skips the rest of the current iteration (here: print) and continues to the next iteration of the loop.
Top answer 1 of 10
237
Here's a simple example:
for letter in 'Django':
if letter == 'D':
continue
print("Current Letter: " + letter)
Output will be:
Current Letter: j
Current Letter: a
Current Letter: n
Current Letter: g
Current Letter: o
It skips the rest of the current iteration (here: print) and continues to the next iteration of the loop.
2 of 10
112
I like to use continue in loops where there are a lot of contitions to be fulfilled before you get "down to business". So instead of code like this:
for x, y in zip(a, b):
if x > y:
z = calculate_z(x, y)
if y - z < x:
y = min(y, z)
if x ** 2 - y ** 2 > 0:
lots()
of()
code()
here()
I get code like this:
for x, y in zip(a, b):
if x <= y:
continue
z = calculate_z(x, y)
if y - z >= x:
continue
y = min(y, z)
if x ** 2 - y ** 2 <= 0:
continue
lots()
of()
code()
here()
By doing it this way I avoid very deeply nested code. Also, it is easy to optimize the loop by eliminating the most frequently occurring cases first, so that I only have to deal with the infrequent but important cases (e.g. divisor is 0) when there is no other showstopper.
GeeksforGeeks
geeksforgeeks.org › python › python-continue-statement
Python Continue Statement - GeeksforGeeks
i = 0 while i < 10: if i == 5: ... next iteration. The continue statement is useful when you need to skip specific iterations while still executing the rest of the loop:...
Published 2 weeks ago
When should I use the 'continue' keyword?
Continue is a fairly clean way to skip the rest of the loop code for that element. For example you might have a situation like the following: for element in elements: if element == unusable_edge_case: continue # skip this element if element == problematic: if element == fixable: do-fix-here # apply fix, element is now compatible with the 30-lines-of-code below else: continue # skip this element do 30-lines-of-code here You can rewrite this with nested if/else logic, but it is not pretty and the overall intention will not be as easy to read. You might even mess up the exact nesting logic for if/else. Edit: Reworded the ...lines-of-code... placeholder names. More on reddit.com
51
7
April 26, 2024Can't understand "Continue" function in Python statement(for loop, while loop) !!
It jumps directly to the next iteration of a loop. In the code below the continue function skips the print statement below it so that "odd" is only printed on odd numbers. for i in range(10): if i%2==0: print("even") continue print("odd") More on reddit.com
20
44
November 9, 2019(Over?)use of continue in for loops in python
I don't see any issue with a standard pattern like: for rec in records: if is_invalid(rec): continue process(rec) I would caution against burying continues in the middle of a body of code as people wouldn't be expecting them, or against having multiple continues, but otherwise it is fine. You might also consider things like filter or itertools.filterfalse as an alternative. More on reddit.com
30
28
November 17, 2021Example to understand use of 'break' and 'continue' in loops.
While in a loop, break terminates the loop execution and continues to the next instruction. continue, on the other hand, instructs the loop to begin the next iteration immediately. Say you had a loop like this: a = True counter = 0 while True: counter += 1 if a == True: print("Ending loop!") break if counter % 2 != 0: continue print(counter) print("Got out of the loop!") If you were to run this code, you'd get Ending loop! Got out of the loop! And if a had any other value, you'd just get an infinite loop printing even numbers. As I said, break terminates the loop that is currently in scope. It raises an error if you use it without being in a loop. This is why also the code below the loop is executed. The continue essentially skips everything inside the loop before it and starts over from the top. More on reddit.com
21
9
September 12, 2017How does the continue statement work in Python?
When a program encounters a Python continue statement in code, it skips the current iteration and moves on to the next one. This is useful when we want to exclude certain iterations depending on given conditions.
wscubetech.com
wscubetech.com › resources › python › continue-statement
Continue Statement in Python: Syntax, Uses, Examples
Why do we need the continue statement in Python?
The continue statement in Python skips the rest of the statements in the current iteration of the loop and gives control to the top of the loop. Basically, it returns control to the beginning of the loop. We use the continue statement with the while and for loops.
wscubetech.com
wscubetech.com › resources › python › continue-statement
Continue Statement in Python: Syntax, Uses, Examples
When should we use the pass statement in Python?
The Python pass statement works as a placeholder for future code and is used when we require a statement syntactically, but without any immediate action. We use the pass statement while defining classes, functions, and conditional blocks that are implemented later.
wscubetech.com
wscubetech.com › resources › python › continue-statement
Continue Statement in Python: Syntax, Uses, Examples
Videos
04:08
How to Use "break" and "continue" in Python "while" Loops - YouTube
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What Does Continue Do In Python - YouTube
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#26 Break Continue in Python - YouTube
16:49
break and continue Statements in Python - YouTube
03:49
Python - Loop Break and Continue Statements - Code Examples with ...
W3Schools
w3schools.com › python › ref_keyword_continue.asp
Python continue Keyword
Python Examples Python Compiler ... Training ... The continue keyword is used to end the current iteration in a for loop (or a while loop), and continues to the next iteration....
Reddit
reddit.com › r/learnpython › when should i use the 'continue' keyword?
r/learnpython on Reddit: When should I use the 'continue' keyword?
April 26, 2024 -
So, I tried searching the group and I found people asking *what* the continue keyword does, which is not my question. I think I understand it. Basically, it just says "hey, if x condition is met do not do what you did to every other element in the loop. Potentially do this instead or Just go to the next item."
The question I have is why should I use it instead of just an if-esle statement,, or if you prefer continue why should I use an if-else and not default to continue.
To put it into context, what is the meaningful difference between the following code blocks:
for i in range(10):
if i == 7:
print('7? I hate prime numbers bigger than 5!')
continue
print(f'Woo! I love the number {i}')and
for i in range(10):
if i == 7:
print('7? I hate prime numbers bigger than 5!')
else:
print(f'Woo! I love the number {i}')Both got me the same result. Is it just a "Python has many ways to do the same thing" deal or am I missing a crucial difference?
Top answer 1 of 15
17
Continue is a fairly clean way to skip the rest of the loop code for that element. For example you might have a situation like the following: for element in elements: if element == unusable_edge_case: continue # skip this element if element == problematic: if element == fixable: do-fix-here # apply fix, element is now compatible with the 30-lines-of-code below else: continue # skip this element do 30-lines-of-code here You can rewrite this with nested if/else logic, but it is not pretty and the overall intention will not be as easy to read. You might even mess up the exact nesting logic for if/else. Edit: Reworded the ...lines-of-code... placeholder names.
2 of 15
2
If you have two things to do like in your example, you can use either pattern. Let's say you have a list of items. You need to iterate through them and only perform an action if certain conditions are met. If not, it is a no-op iteration. for thing in things: if thing.property != Y: continue; # Do stuff here It's an elegant way to quickly move on.
Real Python
realpython.com › python-continue
Skip Ahead in Loops With Python's continue Keyword – Real Python
March 27, 2025 - It allows you to skip code in a loop for the current iteration and jump immediately to the next one. It’s used exclusively in for and while loops, letting you control the flow of execution, bypass specific conditions, and continue processing ...
Tutorialspoint
tutorialspoint.com › python › python_continue_statement.htm
Python - Continue Statement
Python continue statement is used to skip the execution of the program block and returns the control to the beginning of the current loop to start the next iteration. When encountered, the loop starts next iteration without executing the remaining ...
Built In
builtin.com › software-engineering-perspectives › pass-vs-continue-python
Pass vs. Continue in Python Explained | Built In
Pass: The pass statement in Python ... code. Continue: The continue statement in Python is used to skip the remaining code inside a loop for the current iteration only...
Programiz
programiz.com › python-programming › break-continue
Python break and continue (With Examples)
The continue statement skips the current iteration of the loop and the control flow of the program goes to the next iteration. ... We can use the continue statement with the for loop to skip the current iteration of the loop and jump to the next iteration.
WsCube Tech
wscubetech.com › resources › python › continue-statement
Continue Statement in Python: Syntax, Uses, Examples
October 1, 2025 - Learn about the Python continue statement, its features, benefits, use cases, and examples. Enhance your code efficiency in this tutorial.
Unstop
unstop.com › home › blog › continue statement in python | working explained with examples
Continue Statement In Python | Working Explained With Examples
February 4, 2025 - The continue statement in Python programming is used inside loops to skip the current iteration and proceed directly to the next iteration of the loop. When the continue statement is encountered, the remaining code in that iteration is ignored, ...
DigitalOcean
digitalocean.com › community › tutorials › how-to-use-break-continue-and-pass-statements-when-working-with-loops-in-python-3
How to Break Out of Multiple Loops in Python | DigitalOcean
August 7, 2025 - The break statement in Python allows you to exit a loop immediately when a specific condition is met, which is especially useful for terminating early during search or validation operations. The continue statement skips the rest of the current iteration and moves to the next cycle of the loop, ...
Tutorialspoint
tutorialspoint.com › python › python_loop_control.htm
Python Break, Continue and Pass Statements
The continue statement in Python returns the control to the beginning of the while loop. The continue statement rejects all the remaining statements in the current iteration of the loop and moves the control back to the top of the loop.
LearnDataSci
learndatasci.com › solutions › python-continue
Python Continue - Controlling for and while Loops – LearnDataSci
continue is used to skip the remainder of a loop when certain conditions are met. When called, continue will tell Python to skip the rest of the code in a loop and move on to the next iteration.
Boot.dev
boot.dev › lessons › 3f2e485c-fcc2-419c-8664-f4b6318b4c7f
Learn to Code in Python: Continue Statement | Boot.dev
Python (like many programming languages) provides a way to do this: the continue statement. continue means "go directly to the next iteration of this loop." Whatever else was supposed to happen in the current iteration is skipped.
Python
docs.python.org › 2.0 › ref › continue.html
6.10 The continue statement
continue may only occur syntactically nested in a for or while loop, but not nested in a function or class definition or try statement within that loop.6.1It continues with the next cycle of the nearest enclosing loop.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/learnpython › can't understand "continue" function in python statement(for loop, while loop) !!
r/learnpython on Reddit: Can't understand "Continue" function in Python statement(for loop, while loop) !!
November 9, 2019 -
I am new to learning Python or rather I say new to programming. So, anyway
Can anyone help me understanding the "continue" function in Python statement(for loop while loop etc) or help me with a link with broad explanation?
I get "break" , "pass" but can't quite understand the use of "continue".
Top answer 1 of 5
31
It jumps directly to the next iteration of a loop. In the code below the continue function skips the print statement below it so that "odd" is only printed on odd numbers. for i in range(10): if i%2==0: print("even") continue print("odd")
2 of 5
12
Continue is to stop processing current loop iteration but do not exit loop. Go to the condition of the loop to check if it should be processed once more or exit.
Quora
quora.com › What-is-the-purpose-of-the-continue-and-break-statements-in-a-loop-in-Python
What is the purpose of the 'continue' and 'break' statements in a loop in Python? - Quora
The continue statement is used to skip the current iteration of the loop and the control flow of the program goes to the next iteration. ... The break and continue statements in Python are used to skip parts of the current loop or break out ...
AskPython
askpython.com › home › python continue statement
Python continue Statement - AskPython
July 7, 2022 - Python continue statement is used to skip the execution of the current iteration of the loop. We can’t use continue statement outside the loop, it will throw an error as “SyntaxError: ‘continue’ outside loop“. We can use continue statement ...
freeCodeCamp
freecodecamp.org › news › python-break-and-python-continue-how-to-skip-to-the-next-function
Python Break and Python Continue – How to Skip to the Next Function
March 14, 2022 - In this next example, we are using ... break ... You can use the continue statement if you need to skip the current iteration of a for or while loop and move onto the next iteration....
Medium
medium.com › @huasa0115 › python-how-to-use-the-continue-keyword-in-for-while-loops-19aa860a50d5
[Python] How to use the continue keyword in for/while loops? | by Yi-Ning Huang | Medium
May 26, 2025 - The continue keyword is used to skip the current rest of iteration process and proceed to the next iteration. When we use it in a loop, it immediately returns the control to the beginning of the loop and re-evaluate the loop’s condition.