TextIOWrapper.write() takes exactly one argument (2 given)

TextIOWrapper.write() takes exactly one argument (2 given) #

The Python "TypeError: TextIOWrapper.write() takes exactly one argument (2 given)" occurs when we pass multiple arguments to the write() method. To solve the error, use the addition (+) operator to concatenate the strings in the call to the method.

Here is an example of how the error occurs.

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file_name = 'example.txt'

with open(file_name, 'w', encoding='utf-8') as my_file:
    # ⛔️ TypeError: TextIOWrapper.write() takes exactly one argument (2 given)
    my_file.write('first line', '\n')
    my_file.write('second line', '\n')
    my_file.write('third line', '\n')

Notice that we separate the two strings using a comma, so we are passing 2 arguments to the write() method, but the method takes a single string.

One way to solve the error is to use the addition (+) operator to concatenate the two strings.

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file_name = 'example.txt'

with open(file_name, 'w', encoding='utf-8') as my_file:
    my_file.write('first line' + '\n')
    my_file.write('second line' + '\n')
    my_file.write('third line' + '\n')

We replaced each comma with a plus + to concatenate the two strings.

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print('a' + 'b' + 'c')  # 👉️ 'abc'

An alternative approach is to use a formatted string literal.

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file_name = 'example.txt'

first = 'first line'
second = 'second line'
third = 'third line'

with open(file_name, 'w', encoding='utf-8') as my_file:
    my_file.write(f'{first}\n')
    my_file.write(f'{second}\n')
    my_file.write(f'{third}\n')

Make sure to wrap expressions in curly braces - {expression}.

The with open() syntax takes care of automatically closing the file even if an exception is thrown.

Alternatively, you can store the file object into a variable and manually close it.

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file_name = 'example.txt'

first = 'first line'
second = 'second line'
third = 'third line'

my_file = open(file_name, 'w', encoding='utf-8')

my_file.write(f'{first}\n')
my_file.write(f'{second}\n')
my_file.write(f'{third}\n')

my_file.close()

Note that it's better to use the with open() syntax as it automatically closes the file after we are done.

Conclusion #

The Python "TypeError: TextIOWrapper.write() takes exactly one argument (2 given)" occurs when we pass multiple arguments to the write() method. To solve the error, use the addition (+) operator to concatenate the strings in the call to the method.