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PHP Regular Expression Examples using preg_match()
Posted on January 25, 2016 in PHP, Regular Expressions by Matt Jennings

Example PHP Function Using preg_match() to Regular Expressions Against Strings

<?php
function test($my_pattern, $my_string) {
  $output = '<p><strong>My String:</strong><br />' . $my_string . '</p>';
  $output .= '<p><strong>My Pattern:</strong><br />' . $my_pattern .'</p>';

  if(preg_match($my_pattern, $my_string)) {
    $match = 'MATCH';
  }
  else {
    $match = 'DOES NOT MATCH';
  }

  $output .= '<p><strong>Pattern Match?</strong><br />' . $match . '</p>';
  $output .= '<p><hr /></p>';

  echo $output;
}
?>

Example PHP test() Function Call

<?php test('/awesome/', 'This website rocks!'); ?>

Example HTML Output to Match awesome Anywhere in a String

My String:
This website rocks!

My Pattern:
/awesome/

Pattern Match?
DOES NOT MATCH

Match awesome, Case Insensitive, Anywhere in a String

My String:
This site is totally AWESOME!

My Pattern:
/awesome/i

Pattern Match?
MATCH

Match awesome and/or rocks, Case Insensitive, Anywhere in a String

My String:
This website ROCKS!

My Pattern:
/awesome|rocks/i

Pattern Match?
MATCH

Match Digits 0 through 9 at the Start of a String

My String:
1 December

My Pattern:
/^[0-9]/

Pattern Match?
MATCH

My String:
1 December

My Pattern:
/^\d/

Pattern Match?
MATCH

Match jpg, Case Insensitive, at the End of a String

My String:
scotland.JPG

My Pattern:
/jpg$/i

Pattern Match?
MATCH

Match a String with woman in It and No Other Characters

My String:
woman

My Pattern:
/^woman$/

Pattern Match?
DOES NOT MATCH

Match a String with a Canadian Zip Code Which has [Letter][Number][Letter] [Number][Letter][Number] and All Capital Letters

My String:
M5K 1A1

My Pattern:
/[A-Z]\d[A-Z] \d[A-Z]\d/

Pattern Match?
MATCH

My String:
M5K 1A1

My Pattern:
/[A-Z][0-9][A-Z] [0-9][A-Z][0-9]/

Pattern Match?
MATCH

Match a String that has 6 to 8 Characters, Inclusive

My String:
username

My Pattern:
/^\w{6,8}/

Pattern Match?
MATCH

Match a String has 5 Numbers, and Optional a - with 4 More Numbers for an American Zip Code

My String:
14609-1234

My Pattern:
/^\d{5}(-\d{4})?$/

Pattern Match?
MATCH

Match a String that Uses Non-Latin Characters that are Supported by UTF-8

My String:
ดั๊กลาส

My Pattern:
/ดั๊กลาส/u

Pattern Match?
MATCH

Match a String with a Canadian Zip Code Which has [Letter][Number][Letter][space][Number][Letter][Number] and All Capital Letters

My String:
M5K 1A1

My Pattern:
/[A-Z]\d[A-Z]\s\d[A-Z]\d/

Pattern Match?
MATCH

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