Question 350 of 498
PCEP Practice Question: Functions, Tuples, Dictionaries and Exceptions
A team is building a configuration parser that reads a file containing key=value pairs. They use a dictionary to store the configuration. The parser function `load_config(filename)` opens the file, reads line by line, splits on '=', and populates a dictionary. Some lines have comments starting with '#'. The developer wants to ensure that the dictionary is not polluted with comment lines. They write: `if line.startswith('#'): continue`. However, after parsing, the dictionary contains an entry with key '#' because some lines have no '=' sign. For example, a line like `#comment` is being added as a key with value None. The developer wants to fix this. Which modification should be made?
⚠ Common exam trap
Python Institute often tests the misconception that checking for a comment marker alone is sufficient, when the real issue is that any line without an '=' sign (including comments) will be incorrectly parsed as a key with no value.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Check `if '=' not in line: continue` before splitting.
The core issue is that lines without an '=' sign (like `#comment`) are still processed by the split, causing the entire line to become a key with no value. By explicitly checking `if '=' not in line: continue` before splitting, the developer ensures that only lines containing a key-value separator are added to the dictionary, effectively filtering out comment lines and any other malformed lines.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Use `key, value = line.split('=', 1)` and catch ValueError if less than two parts.
Why it's wrong here
Unpacking would raise ValueError if no '=', but catching it would skip the line. Actually this could work, but not the best because it relies on exception handling for control flow.
- ✗
Strip the line of whitespace before checking for comments.
Why it's wrong here
Stripping does not prevent lines without '='.
- ✓
Check `if '=' not in line: continue` before splitting.
Why this is correct
Explicitly skip lines without '='.
- ✗
Replace `startswith('#')` with `line.lstrip().startswith('#')` and also skip empty lines.
Why it's wrong here
Does not handle lines without '='.
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Last reviewed: Jun 30, 2026
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