These topics introduce the concept of regular expressions and explain how to create and use them.
A regular expression describes one or more strings to match when you search a body of text. The expression serves as character pattern to compare with the text being searched. You can use regular expressions to search for patterns in a string, replace text, and extract substrings.
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Uses for Regular Expressions
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Illustrates circumstances that would benefit from the use of regular expressions.
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Creating a Regular Expression
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Explains how to construct a regular expression.
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Regular Expression Programming
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Provides code examples that show how to search for patterns in a string, replace text, and extract substrings.
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Regular Expression Syntax
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Summarizes the elements that make up the regular expression syntax and provides examples.
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Lists of Matching Characters
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Describes how to match a single character from a list of characters or range of characters.
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Quantifiers
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Explains how to search for a character or set of characters that is repeated a specific number of times.
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Anchors
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Explains how to specify that a pattern that you are searching for has to appear either at the start or end of the searched string, or the start or end of a line or word in the searched string.
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Alternation and Subexpressions
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Explains how to specify a choice between two or more alternatives in a regular expression. Also explains how to create a subexpression.
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Backreferences
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Explains how to refer to a subexpression from within a regular expression, and from within a replacement string.
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JavaScript User's Guide
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Provides information about how to use JavaScript and includes a guide to regular expressions.
