variable vs. object

[André Roberge]

On Sunday, 29 November 2015 22:06:58 UTC-4, fl  wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> I read several parts on line about Python that everything in Python is an 
> object. Yes, it is a key difference with other languages. Then, I read a page
> it says variables: global and local variable at:
> 
> http://www.tutorialspoint.com/python/python_functions.htm
> 
> 
> I have a question that whether variables are objects?
> 
> For example,
> 
> a=10
> 
> 'a' is an integer. Is it an object too?
> 
> Thanks,

In Python, a "variable" is a name given to an object.  In Python, the "=" sign is used to assign a name to an object: the name is on the left-hand side, and the object is on the right hand side.   Multiple names can be assigned to the same object.  In the example you gave, "a" is a name given to the object "10" which is an integer.    

If you do:

a = 10
b = a
a = "hello"

b will be 10.  b was just another name given to object 10 to which the name "a" was referring to at that point, even though we decided later that a should refer to the string "hello" (which is an object).

André