Python time.sleep() – How to Make a Time Delay in Python

howchoo   (467)

September 13, 2023

3 minutes

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Python

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Learn how to use Python’s sleep function to make a timed delay.

tl;dr

import time
time.sleep(seconds)

1 – Import the time module

We will first want to import Python’s time module:

import time

This module ships with Python so it should be available on any system. Although it is not necessary for this guide, I highly recommend getting familiar with the time module. Read more about the time module here.

2 – Use time.sleep to set the delay

You can set a delay in your Python script by passing the number of seconds you want to delay to the sleep function:

time.sleep(5)

This means you want the script to delay 5 seconds before continuing. The sleep function also accepts floats if you want to give a more precise number:

time.sleep(1.75)

This will sleep for 1 second and 750 milliseconds. You can also use a float to delay for less than a second like this:

time.sleep(0.5)

This will sleep for half of a second. You can and should read more about Python’s sleep function here.

Secure Your Sensitive Data with Kubernetes Secrets

howchoo   (467)

November 26, 2023