How would you describe the for loop in terms of its use?

The for loop in Python is designed specifically for executing a fixed sequence of statements for each item in a given iterable, such as a list, tuple, dictionary, or string. It is structured to simplify the process of iterating through a collection of items without the need for manual indexing.

When you use a for loop, you define the iterable, and the loop processes each element in that iterable sequentially. This makes it particularly useful for tasks that involve repetitive actions on elements of a collection, such as summing the values in a list, printing each character in a string, or applying a function to each element of an array.

While the for loop can iterate over ranges, it is not limited to that alone, as it works with any iterable. Its versatility and clarity in expressing iterations make it an essential construct in Python programming, particularly when working with collections.