Using print to “return” values fails with nesting

• functions
• newbie
• return
• print

The OP has a function which prints output instead of return ing it. They observe that in the REPL, the result is the same – the output is displayed:

>>> def foo():
...     result = 5  # random value – computed by fair roll of dice!
...     print(result)
...
>>> foo()  # looks the same as if `return` were used
5

However, when trying to re-use the result or nesting the function, an error occurs because the function returns None.

• How is returning the output of a function different from printing it?