They did not want to create a new "keyword" that would possibly conflict with some existing variable name. So try() is a built-in function, similar to len(), an

They did not want to create a new "keyword" that would possibly conflict with some existing variable name. So try() is a built-in function, similar to len(), and if you already have a variable named "try" (or "len") then it shadows the built-in (takes priority in that scope).