Step: The dot: any character

The dot . is a wildcard: it matches any single character except a newline.

Why it matters: . lets one pattern match a whole family of strings that share a shape.

Example: c.t matches "cat", "cot", "cut" — a c, then anything, then a t.

Your turn: match all four three-letter words with the pattern c.t.

Pitfall: . is greedy about what it matches — to match a literal dot, escape it: \.