Memorize to Memoize

What this Python functools memoization question tests

This is a straightforward language-knowledge question on Python's standard library. It checks whether you can identify which decorators in the functools module are designed to cache function results, a practical optimization technique used across backend systems, data pipelines, and algorithmic code.

Memoization—caching the outputs of expensive function calls based on their inputs—is a cornerstone of performance tuning in Python. Interviewers ask this to confirm you know the standard tools available and when to reach for them. The question rewards direct familiarity with the module's API rather than deep algorithmic thinking.

• Decorator syntax and how decorators modify function behaviour
• When and why to cache function results
• Trade-offs between memory use and computation speed