lex

Lexical analyzer generator. Given the specification for a lexical analyzer, generates C code implementing it. More information: https://manned.org/lex.1.

  • Generate an analyzer from a Lex file, storing it to the file lex.yy.c:

lex analyzer.l

  • Write analyzer to stdout:

lex --stdout|t analyzer.l

  • Specify the output file:

lex analyzer.l --outfile analyzer.c

  • Generate a [B]atch scanner instead of an interactive scanner:

lex -B analyzer.l

  • Compile a C file generated by Lex:

cc path/to/lex.yy.c --output executable