Function

Specifies any single alphanumeric character, as in ?an, which locates "ran," "pan," "can," and "ban." You don’t have to use the WILDCARD operator when you use the question mark. The question mark is ignored in a set ([ ]) or in an alternative pattern ({ }).

Specifies zero or more of any alphanumeric character, as in corp*, which locates “corp,” "corporate," "corporation," "corporal," and "corpulent." You don’t have to use the WILDCARD operator when you use the asterisk; you should avoid using the asterisk as the first character of a wildcard string because it uses computing resources intensively. The asterisk is ignored in a set ([ ]) or in an alternative pattern ({ }).

Specifies one of any character in a set, as in <WILDCARD> `c[auo]t`, which locates "cat," "cut," and "cot." You must enclose the word that includes a set in backquotes (`). The backquote character normally shares a keyboard key with the tilde (~), near the upper left corner of the keyboard. Space characters are not allowed in a set..

Specifies one of each pattern separated by a comma, as in <WILDCARD> `bank{s,er,ing}`, which locates "banks," "banker," and "banking." You must enclose the word that includes a pattern in backquotes (`). Space characters are not allowed in a set.

Specifies one of any character not in the set, as in <WILDCARD> `st[^oa]ck`, which excludes "stock" and "stack" but returns "stick" and "stuck." The caret (^) must be the first character after the left bracket ([) that introduces a set.

Specifies a range of characters in a set, as in <WILDCARD> `c[a-r]t`, which locates every three-letter word from "cat" to "crt."