From aad3d0b90d4e15929fc19d7aa40c1d24749eb670 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Justin Bertram <jbertram@apache.org>
Date: Wed, 26 Apr 2023 12:50:21 -0500
Subject: [PATCH] ARTEMIS-4262 clarify wildcard syntax documentation

---
 docs/user-manual/en/wildcard-syntax.md | 51 +++++++++++++++++++-------
 1 file changed, 38 insertions(+), 13 deletions(-)

diff --git a/docs/user-manual/en/wildcard-syntax.md b/docs/user-manual/en/wildcard-syntax.md
index ba8dc23822..c16b790c4e 100644
--- a/docs/user-manual/en/wildcard-syntax.md
+++ b/docs/user-manual/en/wildcard-syntax.md
@@ -1,30 +1,55 @@
 # Wildcard Syntax
 
-Apache ActiveMQ Artemis uses a specific syntax for representing wildcards in security
-settings, address settings and when creating consumers.
+Apache ActiveMQ Artemis uses a specific syntax for representing
+wildcards in security settings, address settings and when creating
+consumers.
 
 The syntax is similar to that used by [AMQP](https://www.amqp.org).
 
-An Apache ActiveMQ Artemis wildcard expression contains words delimited by the character
-`.` (full stop).
+An Apache ActiveMQ Artemis wildcard expression contains **words
+separated by a delimiter**. The default delimiter is `.` (full stop).
 
 The special characters `#` and `*` also have special meaning and can
-take the place of a word.
+take the place of a **word**.
+
+To be clear, the wildcard characters cannot be used like wildcards in
+a [regular expression](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regular_expression).
+They operate exclusively on **words separated by a delimiter**.
+
+## Matching Any Word
 
 The character `#` means "match any sequence of zero or more words".
 
+So the wildcard `news.europe.#` would match:
+ - `news.europe`
+ - `news.europe.sport`
+ - `news.europe.politics`
+ - `news.europe.politics.regional`
+
+But `news.europe.#` would _not_ match:
+ - `news.usa`
+ - `news.usa.sport`
+ - `entertainment`
+
+## Matching a Single Word
+
 The character `*` means "match a single word".
 
-So the wildcard `news.europe.#` would match `news.europe`,
-`news.europe.sport`, `news.europe.politics`, and
-`news.europe.politics.regional` but would _not_ match `news.usa`,
-`news.usa.sport` or `entertainment`.
+The wildcard `news.*` would match:
+ - `news.europe`
+ - `news.usa`
 
-The wildcard `news.*` would match `news.europe`, but not
-`news.europe.sport`.
+But `news.*` would _not_ match:
+ - `news.europe.sport`
+ - `news.usa.sport`
+ - `news.europe.politics.regional`
 
-The wildcard `news.*.sport` would match `news.europe.sport` and also
-`news.usa.sport`, but not `news.europe.politics`.
+The wildcard `news.*.sport` would match:
+ - `news.europe.sport`
+ - `news.usa.sport`
+
+But `news.*.sport` would _not_ match:
+ - `news.europe.politics`
 
 ## Customizing the Syntax