Looking for values from the list among column values

Question

So the problem I am facing that I am looking for a solution to do something like this: (general example)

def categotizer(value):
   toys = ['ball', 'bear', 'lego']
   food = ['pizza', 'ice-cream', 'cake']
   if value in toys:
      return 'toys'
   if value in food:
      return 'food'
   else:
      return 'empty'

df['purchases_category'] = df['purchases'].apply(categorizer)

On a column which looks like the first one with result as the second column: Table

In this exact method I am getting new column filled with 'empty' values though I totally have examples from the lists. How could this possibly be fixed?

Thanks.

Answer 1

Because in if value in toys: for example, value here is "red ball from..." and it's not in the toys list. Same can be said for food. Instead, you might want to check the elements in toys/food against the value. Perhaps this would answer your concern?

import pandas as pd


def categorizer(value):
   toys = ['ball', 'bear', 'lego']
   food = ['pizza', 'ice-cream', 'cake']
   for toy in toys:
      if toy in value:
         return 'toys'
   for f in food:
      if f in value:
         return 'food'
   return 'empty'


df = pd.DataFrame({
   "purchases": ["red ball from the shop nearby", "chocolate cake cafe", "teddy bear extra"]
})
df['purchases_category'] = df['purchases'].apply(categorizer)
print(df)