Editing Wildcard character (section)

===File and directory patterns===
When specifying file names (or paths) in [[CP/M]], [[DOS]], [[Microsoft Windows]], and [[Unix-like]] [[operating system]]s, the [[asterisk]] character ({{code|*}}, also called "star") matches zero or more characters. For example, {{code|doc*}} matches {{code|doc}} and {{code|document}} but not {{code|dodo}}. If files are named with a date stamp, wildcards can be used to match date ranges, such as <code>{{#time:Ym}}*.mp4</code> to select video recordings from {{#time:F}} {{#time:Y}}, to facilitate file operations such as copying and moving.

In Unix-like and DOS operating systems, the [[question mark]] {{code|?}} matches exactly one character. In DOS, if the question mark is placed at the end of the word, it will also match missing (zero) trailing characters; for example, the pattern {{code|123?}} will match {{code|123}} and {{code|1234}}, but not {{code|12345}}.

In [[Unix shell]]s and [[Windows PowerShell]], ranges of characters enclosed in [[square brackets]] ({{code|[}} and {{code|]}}) match a single character within the set; for example, {{code|[A-Za-z]}} matches any single uppercase or lowercase letter. In Unix shells, a leading exclamation mark {{code|!}} negates the set and matches only a character not within the list. In shells that interpret {{code|!}} as a history substitution, a leading caret {{code|^}} can be used instead.

The operation of matching of wildcard patterns to multiple file or path names is referred to as [[glob (programming)|''globbing'']].