# Off Topic > Tips and Tutorials >  >  Extracting the First N Number of Words from a String

## ExcelTip

Problem:	

Extracting the first three words from each of the strings in column A.

Solution:								
Use the TRIM, LEFT, FIND, and SUBSTITUTE functions as shown in the following formula:
=TRIM(LEFT(A2,FIND(\"^\",SUBSTITUTE(TRIM(A2)&\" \",\" \",\"^\",3))-1))

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## stephenb

:Confused:  
Good tip but it won't work properly if the text you work on has variable spacing between words. I think you might find the following works better:

*=LEFT(TRIM(A2),FIND("^",SUBSTITUTE(TRIM(A2)&" "," ","^",3))-1)*

Cheers  :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):

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