/**
 * Look for a match between the string and the pattern.
 * Return matchingLength of matching characters before * and #.
 * Return -1 if strings do not match.
 *
 * e.g: `pre: dont don't` `*pre: * *` ==> 0
 * e.g: `pre: dont don't` `pre: * *` ==> 5
 *
 * @export
 * @param {string} str
 * @param {string} pat Pattern
 */
export declare function amatch(str: string, pat: string): number;
/**
 * Search in successive positions of the string,
 * looking for a match to the pattern.
 * Return the start position in str of the match,
 * or -1 for no match.
 *
 * Learned from `EString#findPat(String str, String pat)`
 *
 * @export
 * @param {string} str
 * @param {string} pat
 * @returns
 */
export declare function findWildString(str: string, pat: string): number;
/**
 * Look for a number in the string.
 *
 * @export
 * @param {string} str
 * @returns the length of numerical digits from the beginning,
 * or `0` if the string does not start with number.
 */
export declare function findNum(str: string): number;
/**
 * Check if the script line read match the given pattern
 *
 * @export
 * @param {string} str line
 * @param {string} pat Pattern
 * @returns Matched script lines stored here
 */
export declare function match(str: string, pat: string): string[] | null;
/**
 * Translates corresponding characters in src to dest.
 * Src and dest must have the same length.
 *
 * @export
 * @param {string} str
 * @param {string} src
 * @param {string} dest
 * @returns
 */
export declare function replaceAll(str: string, src: string, dest: string): string;
/**
 * Compresses its input by:
 *   dropping space before space, comma, and period;
 *   adding space before question, if char before is not a space; and
 *   copying all others
 *
 * @export
 * @param {string} s
 * @returns
 */
export declare function compress(s: string): string;
/**
 * Trim off leading spaces
 *
 * @export
 * @param {string} s
 */
export declare function trim(s: string): string;
/**
 * Pad by ensuring there are spaces before and after the sentence.
 *
 * @export
 * @param {string} s
 * @returns
 */
export declare function pad(s: string): string;
/**
 * Count number of occurrances of c in str
 */
export declare function count(s: string, c: string): number;