Compares a string expression to a pattern in an SQL expression.
Syntax
expression Like “pattern”
The Like operator syntax has these parts:
|
Part |
Description |
|
expression |
SQL expression used in a WHERE clause . |
|
pattern |
String or character string literal against which expression is compared. |
Remarks
You can use the Like operator to find values in a field that match the pattern you specify. For pattern, you can specify the complete value (for example, Like “Smith”), or you can use wildcard characters to find a range of values (for example, Like “Sm*”).
In an expression, you can use the Like operator to compare a field value to a string expression. For example, if you enter Like “C*” in an SQL query, the query returns all field values beginning with the letter C. In a parameter query, you can prompt the user for a pattern to search for.
The following example returns data that begins with the letter P followed by any letter between A and F and three digits:
Like “P[A-F]###”
The following table shows how you can use Like to test expressions for different patterns.
|
Kind of match |
Pattern |
Match (returns True) |
No match (returns False) |
|
Multiple characters |
a*a |
aa, aBa, aBBBa |
aBC |
|
*ab* |
abc, AABB, Xab |
aZb, bac |
|
|
Special character |
a[*]a |
a*a |
aaa |
|
Multiple characters |
ab* |
abcdefg, abc |
cab, aab |
|
Single character |
a?a |
aaa, a3a, aBa |
aBBBa |
|
Single digit |
a#a |
a0a, a1a, a2a |
aaa, a10a |
|
Range of characters |
[a-z] |
f, p, j |
2, & |
|
Outside a range |
[!a-z] |
9, &, % |
b, a |
|
Not a digit |
[!0-9] |
A, a, &, ~ |
0, 1, 9 |
|
Combined |
a[!b-m]# |
An9, az0, a99 |
abc, aj0 |
