How does pattern matching work in Elixir?

Summary

= is the match operator: the left side is a pattern matched against the right side, binding variables; a mismatch raises MatchError. Patterns are used in function heads, case, with and receive; ^ pins an existing value.

Longer Answer

Tagged tuples like {:ok, value} and {:error, reason} rely on pattern matching.

Key Points

• = matches, not assigns.
• Destructure tuples, lists, maps.
• ^ pins; _ ignores.

Deep dive: Elixir Fundamentals: Pattern Matching