![regex word regex word](https://i.stack.imgur.com/snm9M.png)
![regex word regex word](https://i.stack.imgur.com/3VFMx.png)
they have inconsistent parentheses, hyphens, and spaces. We would like to break up these phone numbers into 3 individual components: area code (first 3 digits), exchange (next 3 digits), and line number (last 4 digits).Īs we can see, the number patterns here are not always consistent i.e. If you are more of a Python enthusiast, you can find the Python version of the code on my GitHub here. Specifically, we will be discussing the concept of capturing groups in regular expressions.
#REGEX WORD HOW TO#
So, in this article, I will be explaining what regular expressions are, introduce some basic regex characters, and most importantly demonstrate, using several practical examples, how to perform regex using the R programming language. And as it turns out, it is actually not that bad once you understand the fundamentals. It wasn’t until a recent task I got given at work that involved retrieving the elements of a string that I finally gained an appreciation for the power of regular expressions. I mean, a string of characters tied together with seemingly no logic behind them whatsoever - nobody’s got time for that! This blog post was born out of my own frustration and avoidance of the topic of regular expression (regex) for the longest time.įor months, I have been putting off the idea of learning regex because let's be honest, they can look extremely daunting especially when you first encounter them.