What is the purpose of the while-else statement?

• A. To execute code when the while loop is still true.
• B. To perform an action when the while condition is no longer true.
• C. To stop the execution of the while loop.
• D. To add an additional condition in a while loop.

Answer: (B)

The purpose of the while-else statement is to perform an action when the while condition is no longer true. In Python, an else block can be associated with a while loop, and the code inside this else block executes only after the while loop terminates naturally—that is, the loop finishes because the condition has evaluated to false.

This is particularly useful when the loop is used for searching or iterating through data, as the else block can handle scenarios where the intended operation completes without a premature exit, such as encountering a break statement within the loop. It allows you to write cleaner and more intuitive code by separating the normal completion of a loop from cases where the loop was exited via a break.

The other options do not accurately describe the functionality of the while-else statement. For instance, executing code when the while loop is still true describes the main operation of the loop itself rather than the purpose of the else block. Stopping the execution of the loop is not the role of the else; instead, it is the condition of the while that controls the loop’s execution. Adding an additional condition is related to how you structure the loop's logic but does not pertain to the specific purpose of the else statement in this context.