PARSE macro

Distributes the contents of the current selection to fill several adjacent columns; the selection can be no more than one column wide. Use PARSE to reorganize data, especially data that you've read from files created by another application, such as a database.

Syntax

PARSE(parse_text, destination_ref)

PARSE?(parse_text, destination_ref)

Parse_text    is the parse line in the form of text. It is a copy of the first nonblank cell in the selected column, with square brackets indicating where to distribute (or parse) text. If parse_text is omitted, Microsoft Excel guesses where to place the brackets based on the spacing and formatting of data.

Destination_ref    is a reference to the upper-left corner of the range of cells where you want to place the parsed data. If destination_ref is omitted, it is assumed to be the current selection, so the parsed data will replace the original data.

Remarks

When you use the PARSE function, Microsoft Excel splits the first column into as many columns as you specify with parse_text and replaces any information in those columns.

Return to index