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date(withNaturalLanguageString:)

Creates and returns a date object set to the date and time specified by a given string.

Declaration

class func date(withNaturalLanguageString string: String) -> Any?

Parameters

  • string:

    A string that contains a colloquial specification of a date, such as “last Tuesday at dinner,” “3pm December 31, 2001,” “12/31/01,” or “31/12/01.”

Return Value

A new NSDate object set to the current date and time specified by string.

Discussion

This method supports only a limited set of colloquial phrases, primarily in English. It may give unexpected results, and its use is strongly discouraged. To create a date object from a string, you should use a date formatter object instead (see DateFormatter and Data Formatting Guide).

In parsing the string, this method uses the date and time preferences stored in the user’s defaults database. (See date(withNaturalLanguageString:locale:) for a list of the specific items used.)

See Also

Legacy Operations