What is the difference between closures and anonymous functions in Python?

6 months ago

2 minutes

Closures and anonymous functions are concepts within functions, but they do have some distinctions.

A closure refers to a function defined within another function that can access the variables of the outer function. Closures are typically used to protect variables from being modified by external functions. On the other hand, an anonymous function is a function without a name, often used for simple one-time operations.
A closure is made up of a function and its environment variables, which can still exist after the function call. In contrast, an anonymous function lacks this capability and can only access external variables when defined, not after its definition.
Closures can modify external variables, while anonymous functions can only reference external variables, not modify them.

In general, closures and anonymous functions are both forms of functions, but they serve different purposes and are used in different ways. Closures are typically used to protect variables and prolong their lifespan, while anonymous functions are used for simple function operations.