Use string as input to re.compile
- by williamx
I want to use a variable in a regex, like this:
variables = ['variableA','variableB']
for i in range(len(variables)):
regex = r"'('+variables[i]+')[:|=|\(](-?\d+(?:\.\d+)?)(?:\))?'"
pattern_variable = re.compile(regex)
match = re.search(pattern_variable, line)
The problem is that python adds an extra backslash character for each backslash character in my regex string (ipython), and makes my regex invalid:
In [76]: regex
Out[76]: "'('+variables[i]+')[:|=|\\(](-?\\d+(?:\\.\\d+)?)(?:\\))?'"
Any tips on how I can avoid this?
