LEFT

Syntax

LEFT(char_expr, int_expr)

LEFT returns int_expr leftmost characters of char_expr.

Example

This example returns the five leftmost characters of each book title.

SELECT LEFT(title, 5)
FROM TITLES;

Here is the result set:

_______
The B
Cooki
You C
The G
The P

Equivalents in other databases

TABLE 66. Equivalents in other databases

Oracle	SUBSTR function
Microsoft SQL Server	LEFT function