[Python-Dev] Terminology for PEP 343 (original) (raw)

Raymond Hettinger python at rcn.com
Sat Jul 2 00:52:15 CEST 2005

I would use "She left the ballpark." for someone walking into the dugout, climbing up into the stands, or walking out of the stadium, and might refer to the entire process. Using "She exited the ballpark." to me suggests the exact moment that she went through the door dividing outside from inside. If you accept this connotation, then it's clear that "exit" is a closer match for the with statement's behavior than "leave".

Anyway, this stuff is always very subjective and, as I said, I'm just expressing an opinion. So take it for what it's worth.

Hmm, that got me to thinking a bit more. Here's another subjective two cents worth. "exit" seems to be a more global concept and "leave" seems more local. For instance, I leave a room but exit a building. In Python, sys.exit and os._exit are grand exits rather than local exits for functions or modules.

Raymond

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