Add a time delay in Python

This post will discuss how to add a time delay in Python.

1. Using `time.sleep()` function

The standard way to add a time delay in Python is by calling the sleep() function from the time module. It works by suspending the execution of the calling thread for the specified number of seconds, which may be a floating-point value.

from time import sleep

if __name__ == '__main__':

delay = 1 # in seconds

print('Go to sleep…')

sleep(delay)

print('Back to work…')

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2. Using `threading.Event.wait` function

Another alternative is to use the Event.wait function in the threading module. Here’s what the code would look like:

from threading import Event

if __name__ == '__main__':

delay = 1 # in seconds

print('Go to sleep…')

Event().wait(delay)

print('Back to work…')

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3. Using `threading.Timer` class

If you need to delay the execution of a specific function instead of stopping the execution of the whole program, consider using the threading.Timer Python class, as shown below:

from threading import Timer

def foo(delay):

print(f'foo() called after {delay}s delay')

if __name__ == '__main__':

delay = 1 # in seconds

print('Timer class demo')

# call foo() after 1 second

t = Timer(delay, foo, [delay])

t.start()

print('foo() will be executed in 1 seconds…')

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That’s all about adding a time delay in Python.

Add a time delay in Python

1. Using time.sleep() function

2. Using threading.Event.wait function

3. Using threading.Timer class

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1. Using `time.sleep()` function

2. Using `threading.Event.wait` function

3. Using `threading.Timer` class