php-regexHow to use backslash in PHP regex?

Using backslash in PHP regex is a way to escape special characters. For example, if you want to match a literal dot character, you need to escape it with a backslash.

$string = 'This is a string with a dot.';
$pattern = '/\./';

if (preg_match($pattern, $string)) {
    echo 'Match found!';
}

Output example

Match found!

Code explanation

• $string = 'This is a string with a dot.'; - This is the string we are searching in.
• $pattern = '/\./'; - This is the pattern we are searching for. The backslash is used to escape the dot character, so that it is treated as a literal character instead of a special character.
• if (preg_match($pattern, $string)) { - This is the function that is used to search for the pattern in the string.
• echo 'Match found!'; - This is the output that is printed if a match is found.

Helpful links

• PHP Regex
• PHP preg_match() Function

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