Summary
Iterate over a string
Prototype
it = string.gmatch (str, pattern)
Description
Returns an iterator function for returning the next capture from a pattern over a string. If there is no capture, the whole match is produced.
See string.find for an explanation of regular expressions.
for w in string.gmatch ("nick takes a stroll", "%a+") do
print (w)
end -- for
-->
nick
takes
a
stroll
For this function, a '^' at the start of a pattern does not work as an anchor, as this would prevent the iteration.
See Also ...
Lua functions
string.byte - Converts a character into its ASCII (decimal) equivalent
string.char - Converts ASCII codes into their equivalent characters
string.dump - Converts a function into binary
string.find - Searches a string for a pattern
string.format - Formats a string
string.gfind - Iterate over a string (obsolete in Lua 5.1)
string.gsub - Substitute strings inside another string
string.len - Return the length of a string
string.lower - Converts a string to lower-case
string.match - Searches a string for a pattern
string.rep - Returns repeated copies of a string
string.reverse - Reverses the order of characters in a string
string.sub - Returns a substring of a string
string.upper - Converts a string to upper-case
Topics
Lua base functions
Lua bc (big number) functions
Lua bit manipulation functions
Lua coroutine functions
Lua debug functions
Lua io functions
Lua LPEG library
Lua math functions
Lua os functions
Lua package functions
Lua PCRE regular expression functions
Lua script extensions
Lua string functions
Lua syntax
Lua table functions
Lua utilities
Regular Expressions
Scripting
Scripting callbacks - plugins
(Help topic: lua=string.gmatch)