use strict; use warnings; my $pattern = qr{ (?) { my $match = $text =~ m/$pattern/ ? 1 : 0; print "$match $text"; # This prints... # 0 Papua New Guinea # 1 I live in Guinea. # 1 i live in guinea, but i don't have a shift key. # 0 Guinea-Bissau # 0 Guinea Bissau # 0 Equatorial Guinea # 0 I love guinea pigs! } __DATA__ Papua New Guinea I live in Guinea. i live in guinea, but i don't have a shift key. Guinea-Bissau Guinea Bissau Equatorial Guinea I love guinea pigs!