python / python/mypy

Flow-sensitive typing ignores dictionary key mutation

Open
#10,185 1 comment 0 reactions 0 assignees View on GitHub

Nobody has claimed this yet.

bug topic-type-narrowing
Dominant language
Python
Stars
20.6k
Forks
3.3k
PR merge metrics
PR metrics pending

Description

Bug Report

mypy allows runtime type checks for dictionary items. However it ignores subsequent dictionary mutations. This leads to mypy accepting code that fails at runtime.

To Reproduce

from typing import Dict, Optional

foo_dict: Dict[str, Optional[str]] = {'bar': 'baz'}

if foo_dict['bar'] is not None:
    foo_dict['bar'] = None
    foo_dict['bar'].upper()

Expected Behavior

mypy reports .upper() call as error. This is similar to what already happens with object attributes:

from dataclasses import dataclass
from typing import Optional

@dataclass
class Foo:
    bar: Optional[str]

foo = Foo(bar='baz')

if foo.bar is not None:
    foo.bar = None
    foo.bar.upper()

For such code mypy outputs the following error: "None" has no attribute "upper".

Actual Behavior

mypy reports no error.

Your Environment

  • Mypy version used: 0.812
  • Mypy command-line flags: --strict
  • Mypy configuration options from mypy.ini (and other config files): none
  • Python version used: 3.6.8
  • Operating system and version: Windows 8.1

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Start by running the Python reproduction with mypy --strict and compare it with the dataclass attribute example, confirming the dictionary case is accepted while the attribute case is rejected. Trace the flow-sensitive narrowing logic for dictionary item expressions and add coverage for the mutation; done when mypy reports the .upper() call as an error.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
python
Domain
compilers, devtools
Issue type
Bug
Difficulty
4/5
Estimated time
3-5 days
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
45/100

Get new issues in your inbox

A short digest of beginner-friendly GitHub issues.