If you’ve ever wanted to pull out a specific word from a sentence—or check whether the nth word matches something—in Google Sheets, this post is for you.

I’ll walk you through how to extract the nth word from a line using two handy methods, and then show you how to match the nth word using formulas. We’ll use both SPLIT + INDEX and regular expressions (REGEXEXTRACT / REGEXMATCH). Let’s dive in.

Extract the Nth Word from a Sentence in Google Sheets

To keep things simple, let’s use this sentence in cell A2:

Let the cat out of the bag

(I just picked an idiom to make it fun—feel free to try this on your real data.)

Using SPLIT + INDEX to Extract the Nth Word

This is probably the easiest approach when your text is nicely spaced. Here’s the formula:

=INDEX(SPLIT(A2, " "), 0, n)

Just replace n with the word position you want.

To extract the third word (“cat”):

=INDEX(SPLIT(A2, " "), 0, 3)

What’s happening:

• SPLIT(A2, " ") breaks the sentence into separate words using space
• INDEX(..., 0, 3) picks the third one

Result:

cat

It’s simple, readable, and works great when your data doesn’t have extra spaces.

Can I use this in an array? Yes, you can:

=INDEX(SPLIT(A2:A, " "), 0, 3)

This formula will extract the 3rd word from each line in a vertical range.

Using REGEXEXTRACT to Extract the Nth Word

Want a formula that uses regex? Here’s how to extract the 3rd word:

=REGEXEXTRACT(A2, "(?:\S+\s+){2}(\S+)")

Let me break it down:

• (?:\S+\s+){2} skips the first two words (non-capturing group)
• \S+ captures the 3rd word (non-space characters)

So if you change the {2} to {n-1}, you can pull any word by position. For example:

=REGEXEXTRACT(A2, "(?:\S+\s+){4}(\S+)")

…would get you the fifth word.

Can I use this in an array? Yes, you can:

=ArrayFormula(IFNA(REGEXEXTRACT(A2:A, "(?:\S+\s+){2}(\S+)")))

Both formulas work well—pick based on whether you prefer simplicity or pattern control.

Match the Nth Word in a Line in Google Sheets

Let’s say you now want to check if the 3rd word is “cat”. You’ve got two options: a regex formula (case-sensitive) or a non-regex one using XMATCH (case-insensitive).

Using REGEXMATCH (Case-Sensitive)

Try this:

=REGEXMATCH(A2, "^(?:\S+\s+){2}cat\b")

Here’s what it does:

• ^ anchors the match at the start
• (?:\S+\s+){2} skips the first two words
• cat\b matches the exact word “cat”

If the 3rd word is “cat”, it’ll return TRUE. Otherwise, FALSE. Just note: it’s case-sensitive.

Using SPLIT + INDEX + XMATCH to Match the Nth Word

Prefer something without regex? Here’s a cleaner alternative:

=NOT(ISNA(XMATCH("cat", INDEX(SPLIT(A2, " "), 0, 3))))

This one grabs the 3rd word using SPLIT + INDEX, then compares it to “cat” using XMATCH. It’s more forgiving when it comes to letter case.

Wrapping Up

So here’s a quick recap:

To extract the nth word in Google Sheets:

• Use SPLIT + INDEX if your text is well-structured
• Use REGEXEXTRACT for more control or compact formulas

To match the nth word:

• Use REGEXMATCH for case-sensitive matching
• Use SPLIT + INDEX + XMATCH for a simpler, case-insensitive check

Each method has its place—go with whatever suits your workflow best.

Further Reading

• Extract, Replace, Match Nth Occurrence of a String or Number in Google Sheets
• Substitute Nth Match of a Delimiter from the End of a String in Google Sheets
• XLOOKUP Nth Match in Google Sheets – How to Return the Nth Occurrence
• INDEX MATCH Every Nth Column in Google Sheets
• Regex to Get All Words after Nth Word in a Sentence in Google Sheets
• Extract Different Text Strings from a Cell in Google Sheets
• Extract Numbers Prefixed by Currency Signs from a String in Google Sheets
• Extract Last N Values from a Delimiter Separated String in Google Sheets
• How to Extract Negative Numbers from Text Strings in Google Sheets