Shorthand Classes \d \w \s

Regex provides shortcuts for common character sets. These are easier to type and read.

The Big Three

Shorthand	Equivalent	Matches
\d	[0-9]	Any digit
\w	[a-zA-Z0-9_]	Word character (letter, digit, underscore)
\s	[ \t\n\r]	Whitespace (space, tab, newline)

Negated Shortcuts

Uppercase versions match the OPPOSITE:

Shorthand	Equivalent	Matches
\D	[^0-9]	NOT a digit
\W	[^a-zA-Z0-9_]	NOT a word character
\S	[^ \t\n\r]	NOT whitespace

Digit Exercises

Word Character Exercises

Whitespace Exercises

Negated Class Exercises

Combining Shorthand Classes

Practice Playground

Try:

• \d+ - sequences of digits
• \w+ - words
• \s+ - whitespace groups
• \W - non-word characters (punctuation)

Quick Reference

Pattern	Meaning
\d	Digit [0-9]
\D	Non-digit [^0-9]
\w	Word char [a-zA-Z0-9_]
\W	Non-word [^a-zA-Z0-9_]
\s	Whitespace
\S	Non-whitespace

Key Takeaways

• \d, \w, \s are shortcuts for common sets
• Uppercase versions (\D, \W, \S) match the opposite
• \w includes underscore (useful for programming)
• These work inside character sets too: [\d\s]