Python3: Why is del called after reassignment of a new object variable?

Question

Suppose I have the following code in Python:

class Test:
    def __del__(self):
        print("del is called")


a = Test()
a = Test()

yields to the following output:

`del is called`

Why is that and what is the concept behind this?

Is "del" called after every reassignment?

I would like to know, why "del" is implicitly called in this context — David
– David, Commented Apr 26, 2019 at 8:55

L3viathan · Accepted Answer · 2019-04-26 08:54:20Z

2

__del__ is called because there's no more references to the original a, causing it to be garbage-collected. See the Python docs for details.

You only get the output once, because

It is not guaranteed that __del__() methods are called for objects that still exist when the interpreter exits.

answered Apr 26, 2019 at 8:54

L3viathan

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