41

I have some code like:

def first_function(x):
    try:
        return do_something_else()
def second_function(x, y, z):
    pass

But I get an error like:

    def second_function(x, y, z):
    ^
IndentationError: unexpected unindent

The indentation uses only spaces and everything lines up properly. What is wrong?

This question is specifically about the fact that a try block requires a corresponding except or finally. Some older versions of Python will detect this as an IndentationError for subsequent code, because it's expecting that code to be "inside the try" when an except or finally hasn't been seen yet. More recent versions of Python may report the error differently.

See also I'm getting an IndentationError (or a TabError). How do I fix it? for general information about IndentationError.

See also Why do I get a SyntaxError (or an IndentationError) in a line with perfectly valid syntax? for another common case where a syntax issue is reported in a misleading way.

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3
  • All of the methods / functions in the class also need self as their first parameter, unless you've used the staticmethod or classmethod decorator. Commented Apr 20, 2012 at 3:10
  • Thanks to recent improvements in error handling, Python 3.11 (and possibly 3.10; I don't have it available to check) now detect this as a SyntaxError instead, and point out the "missing except or finally block" explicitly. Commented Nov 25, 2023 at 0:40
  • I have since confirmed that the change to error reporting was made in 3.10. Commented May 6, 2024 at 20:24

3 Answers 3

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105

It's because you have:

def first_function(x):
    try:
        return do_something_else()

without a matching except block after the try: block. Every try must have at least one matching except.

See the Errors and Exceptions section of the Python tutorial.

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5 Comments

How did you know, without even seeing the try statement?!
@Pacane If you click where it says "edited Apr 20 at 22:56", you can see the edit history. The original version had more code.
@agf Ah, I thought you were a wizard.
I've never loved python earlier just because of these indentation errors, it takes a whole day sometimes just to correct this, and I had to lose grades for this. Is there any simple way I could code in python without getting these errors and without using any online tool?
I feel like all this confusion could have been avoided with an error message like: "try statement not accompanied by except". I know my syntax needs work, but we also need to talk about your communication skills, Python.
8

you didn't complete your try statement. You need an except in there too.

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2

This error could actually be in the code preceding where the error is reported. For example, if you have a syntax error as below, you'll get the indentation error. The syntax error is actually next to the "except" because it should contain a ":" right after it.

try:
    #do something
except
    print 'error/exception'


def printError(e):
    print e

If you change "except" above to "except:", the error will go away.

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1 Comment

Hi. If you look at my answer, and the original version of the question before it was edited, you can see this has already been covered. Also, you need to indent your code four spaces (or use the code button at the top of the editing box) for it to format correctly.

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