SyntaxError: future feature annotations is not defined

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# SyntaxError: future feature annotations is not defined

The Python error "SyntaxError: future feature annotations is not defined" occurs when the future behavior for annotations is used in a Python version less than 3.7.

The functionality is available starting with Python version 3.7.

Here is an example of how the error occurs.

main.py

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# Python version 3.6
from __future__ import annotations

print('bobbyhadz.com')

Running the code sample produces the following output.

shell

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 from future import annotations
^
SyntaxError: future feature annotations is not defined

The issue in the code sample is that I'm running the code sample in Python version 3.6.

As shown in this PEP 563 proposal the future behavior is available starting with Python 3.7.

You can check your Python version with the python --version command.

shell

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python --version

# Or python3
python3 --version

# Or with py alias on Windows
py --version

You need to be running at least version 3.7 of the Python interpreter to be able to include the import statement.

check python version

# Creating a virtual environment scoped to a specific Python version

If you have a Python installation with a version greater than 3.7, try to create a virtual environment scoped to the specific version.

shell

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# 👇️ Create a virtual environment
python3 -m venv venv

Make sure to create the virtual environment with a Python interpreter that runs a version greater than 3.7.

If the python3 -m venv venv command doesn't work, try one of the following commands:

python -m venv venv
py -m venv venv
python3.10 -m venv venv
python3.11 -m venv venv

The version of Python in your virtual environment will be the version of Python that was used to create it.

Once you've created the virtual environment, activate it by running one of the following commands.

shell

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# 👇️ Activate on Windows (cmd.exe)
venv\Scripts\activate.bat

# 👇️ Activate on Windows (PowerShell)
venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1

# 👇️ Activate on Unix or MacOS
source venv/bin/activate

Now, verify that your virtual environment runs a Python version greater than 3.7.

shell

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python --version

If the output shows a version greater than 3.7, you should be able to rerun your Python script without getting errors.

# Installing a more recent Python version via Anaconda

If you have Anaconda installed, you can use the conda command to install a more recent Python version.

shell

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conda install python=3.10.6

install more recent python version using anaconda

You can also create an Anaconda virtual environment that runs a more recent Python version.

shell

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conda create --name my_env -c anaconda python=3.10.6

# Installing a more recent version of Python to solve the error

Alternatively, you can install a more recent version of Python to solve the error.

Visit the official python.org website.
Click on the download button below the Download the latest source release header.

download more recent version of python

Once you download a Python version greater than 3.7, you should be able to rerun your Python script without getting any errors.

# Additional Resources

You can learn more about the related topics by checking out the following tutorials:

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SyntaxError: future feature annotations is not defined

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