```python
import re

txt = "beat"

#Check if txt contains either "bear" or "bean":

x = re.findall("bear|n", txt)

if x:
  print("Match!")
else:
  print("No match")

#Since txt is "beat", it will print "No match"
```

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

- ^ matches the start of a string.
- $ matches the end of a string.
- . matches all characters except a newline.
- | means or, so a|b means it will match a or b. If it matches a first, then b will not be tried.
- \ is an escape character, which is used to match special characters that usually have other meanings. An example would be \$ that matches a literal $ rather than the end of a string.

Basic Characters

```python
import re

#Check if txt starts with "1Cademy":

txt = "1Cademy is super cool"
pattern = "^1Cademy"
x = re.search(pattern, txt)

if x:
  print("Match!")
else:
  print("No match")

#Since txt starts with 1Cademy, it prints "Match!"
```

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