How to Fix “SyntaxError: Missing Parentheses in Call to ‘Print'” in Python?

Are you facing the “SyntaxError: missing parentheses in the call to ‘print’” error message in Python 🤔? Or are you confused as this error wasn’t there in Python 2x versions but is now occurring in the 3x version of Python?

Python keeps itself fit and healthy through continuous improvement and updates to make everything more functional, easy to use, and helpful. This is one of the reasons today, one function might be working perfectly, but with a future update, I might not be there or not working expectedly. This is because the function is either updated or removed for technical reasons.

Python3 was one of the significant updates in Python history, which has changed many things, and of these changes is the print function. We’ll discuss how print() works in Python 2x and Python 3x, what the “SyntaxError missing parentheses in the call to ‘print’” mean, and how to fix this SyntaxError in Python.

So keep reading📚, and stay with me for the next 5 minutes to understand the SyntaxError: missing parentheses in the call to print and how to fix it. Let’s dive deep into the topic and fix the error!

What is “SyntaxError: Missing Parentheses in the Call to ‘Print'” in Python?

In computer programming, SyntaxErrors are the most common errors you can encounter in every programming language. Regardless of your programming experiences or the amount of coffee consumed ☕, every programmer must have encountered SyntaxError at some point.

The SyntaxError Missing parentheses in the call to print is self-explanatory it is saying that the print function is missing parentheses as follows:

Code example

print "SyntaxError: parentheses are missing"

Output

SyntaxError: Missing parentheses in call to 'print'

In Python 3, adding parentheses to the function is mandatory because values change from just a simple distinct statement to an ordinary function call, which is why adding parentheses is mandatory.

However, in the old Python 2x, version print was just a statement, and it wasn’t mandatory to use parentheses. 

In Python 3, printing values changed from being a separate statement to being an ordinary function call, so it now needs parentheses:

Example of print statement in Python 2x version:

print 'This is the python 2X version'

Output

This is the python 2X version

See, this works in Python 2x, but when you try to use the same code in Python 3, it will raise a SyntaxError, as demonstrated in the above example.

How to Fix “SyntaxError Missing Parentheses in Call to ‘Print'” in Python?

The cause of this error is this statement prints “Hello, World!” which is an invalid statement in Python in Python 3, although it works perfectly in Python 2x versions. SyntaxError missing parentheses in call to ‘print’ is a new message added to Python 3.4.2 primarily to help those trying to follow the old style of Python 2.

Let’s see an example of print in Python:

print("Print is working perfectly")

Output

Print is working perfectly

The conversion of print from a statement in Python 2x to a function in 3x is done for some good reasons, including;

1. The function format in Python 3 is more flexible.
2. A statement couldn’t use arguments splatting with it, but a function can do so. Let’s understand the point with the help of an example:

items = ['Hello', 'Hi', 'Bye']

print(*items, sep=' :: ')

Output

Hello :: Hi :: Bye

3. You can override a function but not a statement in case you want to change print behavior, and you can override and customize it because it is now a function in Python 3x.

Conclusion

To summarize the article on SyntaxError missing parentheses in call to print, we have discussed SyntaxError in Python, how to fix it, and the reasons behind the conversion of print from a statement to a function in Python 3.

It is always necessary to keep yourself updated and upgraded because things are improving and changing in this era, specifically in the technology domain. And there is a famous saying in the software development domain that “change is constant.” You will face frequent and continuous changes, so it’s better to learn and adapt to them at first glance.

Let’s have a quick recap of the topics we have covered in this article.

1. What is a SyntaxError?
2. What is SyntaxError missing parentheses in the call to print?
3. How to fix SyntaxError missing parentheses in the call to print?
4. What are the reasons behind the change of print from a statement to a function?

Learning moment💡, mention any reason behind the conversion of print from a statement to a function except the reasons discussed above.