any()

any(iterable)

Returns: bool · Updated March 13, 2026 · Built-in Functions

built-in iteration boolean validation

The any() function returns True if at least one element in an iterable is truthy. It short-circuits on the first truthy value, making it efficient for checking whether any condition holds across a collection.

Syntax

any(iterable)

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`iterable`	iterable	—	Any iterable (list, tuple, set, dict, generator, etc.)

Examples

Basic usage

# At least one element is truthy
numbers = [0, 0, 5, 0]
print(any(numbers))
# True

# All elements are falsy
falsy = [0, 0, 0, 0]
print(any(falsy))
# False

# Empty iterable returns False
empty = []
print(any(empty))
# False

With strings

# Non-empty string is truthy
words = ["", "", "hello", ""]
print(any(words))
# True

# All empty strings
words_all_empty = ["", "", ""]
print(any(words_all_empty))
# False

# Single character is truthy
print(any("a"))
# True

With dictionaries

# At least one truthy key
d = {"a": 0, "b": 1, "c": 0}
print(any(d))
# True

# All falsy keys
d_all_falsy = {"a": 0, "b": 0, "c": 0}
print(any(d_all_falsy))
# False

Common Patterns

Checking if any value meets a condition

numbers = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
has_even = any(x % 2 == 0 for x in numbers)
print(has_even)
# True

numbers_all_odd = [1, 3, 5, 7]
has_even = any(x % 2 == 0 for x in numbers_all_odd)
print(has_even)
# False

Validating user input

def has_error(errors):
    return any(errors.values())

errors = {"email": None, "password": "Too short", "username": None}
print(has_error(errors))
# True

no_errors = {"email": None, "password": None, "username": None}
print(has_error(no_errors))
# False

Short-circuit behavior

# any() stops at the first True - useful for expensive computations
def check_value(x):
    print(f"Checking {x}")
    return x > 5

values = [1, 2, 10, 3]
print(any(check_value(v) for v in values))
# Checking 1
# Checking 2
# Checking 10
# True

Edge Cases

Empty iterable: Returns False
Non-iterable: Raises TypeError
None: Raises TypeError

# Empty list - returns False
print(any([]))
# False

# Raises TypeError
# any(42)  # TypeError: argument is not iterable