Regex for javascript for word count (excluding numbers)

Question

I have this function

String.prototype.countWords = function(){
    return this.split(/\s+\b/).length;
}

which counts words in textarea, but also counts the numbers inserted, I was wondering how to count words but not numbers, so ignoring numbers,

+3

Useer May 31 '15 at 18:57

2 answers

Your regex is counting the number of spaces. Use the following words (no numbers):

/[a-zA-Z]+/

Use the following for separation:

this.split(/[\s\D]+/).length

+1

karthik manchala May 31 '15 at 19:07

Jo oko · Accepted Answer · 2015-05-31T19:09:59+0000

The following regex might help you:

String.prototype.countWords = function(){
    return this.split(/\s+[^0-9]/).length;
}

^

cancels the characters in parentheses, so all characters are allowed to follow spaces except for any numbers.

By the way: here's a good place to test your regex: http://regexpal.com/