Character / String Functions:

Ascii Convert Lower Soundex

AsciiStr Decompose Lpad Substr
Chr Dump Ltrim Translate
Compose Initcap Replace Trim
Concat Instr Rpad Upper
Concat with || Length Rtrim VSize

Conversion Functions:
Bin_To_Num NumToDSInterval To_Date To_Number
Cast NumToYMInterval To_DSInterval To_Single_Byte
CharToRowid RawToHex To_Lob To_Timestamp
From_Tz To_Char To_Multi_Byte To_Timestamp_Tz
HexToRaw To_Clob To_NClob To_YMInterval

Advanced Functions:
BFilename Group_ID NULLIF User
Cardinality Lag NVL UserEnv
Case Statement Lead NVL2  
Coalesce LNNVL Sys_Context  
Decode NANVL Uid  

Mathematical Functions:
Abs Covar_pop Max Sqrt
Acos Covar_samp Median StdDev
Asin Count Min Sum
Atan Cume_Dist Mod Tan
Atan2 Dense_Rank Power Tanh
Avg Exp Rank Trunc (numbers)
Bin_To_Num Extract Remainder Trunc (dates)
BitAnd Floor Round (numbers) Var_pop
Ceil Greatest Round (dates) Var_samp
Corr Least Sign Variance
Cos Ln Sin  
Cosh Log Sinh  

Date Functions:
Add_Months Last_Day Round To_Date
Current_Date LocalTimestamp SessionTimeZone Trunc
Current_Timestamp Months_Between Sysdate Tz_Offset
DbTimeZone New_Time SysTimestamp
From_Tz Next_Day To_Char

Error Functions:
SQLCODE
SQLERRM
Oracle pl/sql trim function
The trim function removed characters from beginning and/or end of a string in Oracle. Oracle has 3
functions for this:

TRIM
The TRIM function trims specified characters from the left and/or right.
If no characters are specified, the left and right spaces are left out.
Example: trim(' Oradev dot com ') = 'Oradev dot com'.
Another option is:
trim(trailing 'a' from 'aaaabbaaaa') which results in 'aaaabb' or
trim(leading 'a' from 'aaaabbaaaa') which results in 'bbaaaa' or
trim(both 'a' from 'aaaabbaaaa') which results in 'bb'.

LTRIM
LTRIM removes characters from the left of a string if they are equal to the specified string. Example:
ltrim('aaaaaabc','a') = 'bc' If the last parameter is not specified, spaces are removed from the left side.

RTRIM

RTRIM removes characters from the right of a string if they are equal to the specified string. Example:
rtrim('bcaaaaaa','a') = 'bc' If the last parameter is not specified, spaces are removed from the right side.

Oracle date functions

Oracle has a number of functions that apply to a date
Sysdate Returns the current date/time
Function to add a number of months to a date. For example:
add_months(SYSDATE,3) returns 3 months after sysdate. This
ADD_MONTHS
could be rounded to below is the resulting month has fewer days
than the month this function is applied to.
In Oracle you can add or substract a number of days from a date.
+,- (plus/minus)
Example: sysdate+5 means systemdate/time plus 5 days
With the greatest function you can select the date/time that is the
GREATEST highest in a range of date/times. Example: greatest
(sysdate+4,sysdate,sysdate-5) = sysdate+4.
With the least function you can select the earliest date/time in a
LEAST range of date/times. Example: least(sysdate+4,sysdate,sysdate-5)
= sysdate-5.
 Returns the last_day of a month based on the month the passed
LAST_DAY date is in. Example: last_day(sysdate) returns the last day of this
month.
Returns the number of months between two dates. The number is
not rounded. Example: months_between(sysdate, to_date('01-01-
MONTHS_BETWEEN
2007','dd-mm-yyyy')) returns the number of months since jan 1,
2007.
Date of next specified date following a date NEXT_DAY(, )
Options are SUN, MON, TUE, WED, THU, FRI, and SAT
NEXT_DAY
SELECT NEXT_DAY(SYSDATE, 'FRI') FROM dual; NOTE:
This can be dependend on NLS_SETTINGS!
Returns date rounded to the unit specified by the format model. If
you omit the format, the date is rounded to the nearest day
ROUND
ROUND(, ) SELECT ROUND(TO_DATE('27-OCT-
00'),'YEAR') NEW_YEAR FROM dual;
Convert a date to the date without time (0:00h) Example:
TRUNC
TRUNC(sysdate) returns today without time.
trunc(example_date,'MM') Example: select trunc(TO_DATE('31-
First day of the month.
JAN-2007'),'MM') FROM dual;
Converts a date to a string using a format mask. Format masks are
TO_CHAR(date,format_mask)
explained here

Single row numeric functions

Oracle provides a lot of standard numeric functions for single rows. Here is a list of all the single row
numeric functions (in version 10.2).
Function Usage Description
ABS ABS(n) ABS returns the absolute value of n.
ACOS returns the arc cosine of n. The
argument n must be in the range of -1
ACOS ACOS(n) to 1, and the function returns a value
in the range of 0 to pi, expressed in
radians.
ASIN ASIN(n) ASIN returns the arc sine of n. The
argument n must be in the range of -1
to 1, and the function returns a value
 in the range of -pi/2 to pi/2, expressed
in radians.
ATAN returns the arc tangent of n.
The argument n can be in an
ATAN ATAN(n) unbounded range and returns a value
in the range of -pi/2 to pi/2, expressed
in radians.
ATAN2 returns the arc tangent of n1
and n2. The argument n1 can be in an
unbounded range and returns a value
ATAN2 ATAN2(n1,n2) or ATAN2(n1/n2) in the range of -pi to pi, depending on
the signs of n1 and n2, expressed in
radians. ATAN2(n1,n2) is the same as
ATAN2(n1/n2).
BITAND computes an AND
operation on the bits of expr1 and
expr2, both of which must resolve to
BITAND BITAND(expr1,expr2) nonnegative integers, and returns an
integer. This function is commonly
used with the DECODE function, as
illustrated in the example that follows.
This function takes as an argument
any numeric datatype or any
nonnumeric datatype that can be
CEIL CEIL(n) implicitly converted to a numeric
datatype. The function returns the
same datatype as the numeric
datatype of the argument.
COS returns the cosine of n (an angle
expressed in radians). This function
takes as an argument any numeric
datatype or any nonnumeric datatype
that can be implicitly converted to a
COS COS(n) numeric datatype. If the argument is
BINARY_FLOAT, then the function
returns BINARY_DOUBLE.
Otherwise the function returns the
same numeric datatype as the
argument.
COSH COSH(n) COSH returns the hyperbolic cosine
of n. This function takes as an
argument any numeric datatype or
any nonnumeric datatype that can be
 implicitly converted to a numeric
datatype. If the argument is
BINARY_FLOAT, then the function
returns BINARY_DOUBLE.
Otherwise the function returns the
same numeric datatype as the
argument.
EXP returns e raised to the nth power,
where e = 2.71828183... The function
returns a value of the same type as the
argument. This function takes as an
argument any numeric datatype or
any nonnumeric datatype that can be
EXP EXP(n) implicitly converted to a numeric
datatype. If the argument is
BINARY_FLOAT, then the function
returns BINARY_DOUBLE.
Otherwise the function returns the
same numeric datatype as the
argument.
FLOOR returns largest integer equal
to or less than n. This function takes
as an argument any numeric datatype
or any nonnumeric datatype that can
FLOOR FLOOR(n)
be implicitly converted to a numeric
datatype. The function returns the
same datatype as the numeric
datatype of the argument.
LN returns the natural logarithm of n,
where n is greater than 0. This
function takes as an argument any
numeric datatype or any nonnumeric
datatype that can be implicitly
LN LN(n) converted to a numeric datatype. If
the argument is BINARY_FLOAT,
then the function returns
BINARY_DOUBLE. Otherwise the
function returns the same numeric
datatype as the argument.
LOG LOG(n2,n1) LOG returns the logarithm, base n2,
of n1. The base n1 can be any positive
value other than 0 or 1 and n2 can be
any positive value. This function
takes as arguments any numeric
 datatype or any nonnumeric datatype
that can be implicitly converted to a
numeric datatype. If any argument is
BINARY_FLOAT or
BINARY_DOUBLE, then the
function returns BINARY_DOUBLE.
Otherwise the function returns
NUMBER.
MOD returns the remainder of n2
divided by n1. Returns n2 if n1 is 0.
This function takes as arguments any
numeric datatype or any nonnumeric
datatype that can be implicitly
MOD MOD(n2,n1) converted to a numeric datatype.
Oracle determines the argument with
the highest numeric precedence,
implicitly converts the remaining
arguments to that datatype, and
returns that datatype.
The NANVL function is useful only
for floating-point numbers of type
BINARY_FLOAT or
BINARY_DOUBLE. It instructs
Oracle Database to return an
alternative value n1 if the input value
n2 is NaN (not a number). If n2 is not
NaN, then Oracle returns n2. This
function is useful for mapping NaN
NANVL NANVL(n2,n1)
values to NULL. This function takes
as arguments any numeric datatype or
any nonnumeric datatype that can be
implicitly converted to a numeric
datatype. Oracle determines the
argument with the highest numeric
precedence, implicitly converts the
remaining arguments to that datatype,
and returns that datatype.
POWER POWER(n2,n1) POWER returns n2 raised to the n1
power. The base n2 and the exponent
n1 can be any numbers, but if n2 is
negative, then n1 must be an integer.
This function takes as arguments any
numeric datatype or any nonnumeric
datatype that can be implicitly
converted to a numeric datatype. If
 any argument is BINARY_FLOAT or
BINARY_DOUBLE, then the
function returns BINARY_DOUBLE.
Otherwise the function returns
NUMBER.
REMAINDER returns the remainder
of n2 divided by n1. This function
takes as arguments any numeric
datatype or any nonnumeric datatype
that can be implicitly converted to a
numeric datatype. Oracle determines
the argument with the highest
REMAINDER REMAINDER(n2,n1) numeric precedence, implicitly
converts the remaining arguments to
that datatype, and returns that
datatype. The MOD function is
similar to REMAINDER except that
it uses FLOOR in its formula,
whereas REMAINDER uses
ROUND.
ROUND returns n rounded to integer
places to the right of the decimal
point. If you omit integer, then n is
rounded to 0 places. The argument
integer can be negative to round off
digits left of the decimal point. n can
be any numeric datatype or any
nonnumeric datatype that can be
implicitly converted to a numeric
datatype. The argument integer must
be an integer. If you omit integer,
then the function returns the same
ROUND (number) ROUND (n) ROUND(n, integer)
datatype as the numeric datatype of
the argument. If you include integer,
then the function returns NUMBER.
For NUMBER values, the value n is
rounded away from 0 (for example, to
x+1 when x.5 is positive and to x-1
when x.5 is negative). For
BINARY_FLOAT and
BINARY_DOUBLE values, the
function rounds to the nearest even
value. Please refer to the examples
that follow.
SIGN SIGN(n) SIGN returns the sign of n. This
 function takes as an argument any
numeric datatype, or any nonnumeric
datatype that can be implicitly
converted to NUMBER, and returns
NUMBER. of NUMBER type, the
sign is:
-1 if n<0
0 if n=0
1 if n>0

For binary floating-point numbers

(BINARY_FLOAT and
BINARY_DOUBLE), this function
returns the sign bit of the number. The
sign bit is:
-1 if n<0
+1 if n>=0 or n=NaN
SIN returns the sine of n (an angle
expressed in radians). This function
takes as an argument any numeric
datatype or any nonnumeric datatype
that can be implicitly converted to a
SIN SIN(n) numeric datatype. If the argument is
BINARY_FLOAT, then the function
returns BINARY_DOUBLE.
Otherwise the function returns the
same numeric datatype as the
argument.
SINH returns the hyperbolic sine of n.
This function takes as an argument
any numeric datatype or any
nonnumeric datatype that can be
implicitly converted to a numeric
SINH SINH(n) datatype. If the argument is
BINARY_FLOAT, then the function
returns BINARY_DOUBLE.
Otherwise the function returns the
same numeric datatype as the
argument.
SQRT SQRT(n) SQRT returns the square root of n.
This function takes as an argument
any numeric datatype or any
nonnumeric datatype that can be
implicitly converted to a numeric
datatype. The function returns the
 same datatype as the numeric
datatype of the argument.
TAN returns the tangent of n (an
angle expressed in radians). This
function takes as an argument any
numeric datatype or any nonnumeric
datatype that can be implicitly
TAN TAN(n) converted to a numeric datatype. If
the argument is BINARY_FLOAT,
then the function returns
BINARY_DOUBLE. Otherwise the
function returns the same numeric
datatype as the argument.
TANH returns the hyperbolic tangent
of n. This function takes as an
argument any numeric datatype or
any nonnumeric datatype that can be
implicitly converted to a numeric
TANH TANH(n) datatype. If the argument is
BINARY_FLOAT, then the function
returns BINARY_DOUBLE.
Otherwise the function returns the
same numeric datatype as the
argument.
The TRUNC (number) function
returns n1 truncated to n2 decimal
places. If n2 is omitted, then n1 is
truncated to 0 places. n2 can be
negative to truncate (make zero) n2
digits left of the decimal point. This
function takes as an argument any
TRUNC (number) TRUNC(n1) TRUNC(n1,n2) numeric datatype or any nonnumeric
datatype that can be implicitly
converted to a numeric datatype. If
you omit n2, then the function returns
the same datatype as the numeric
datatype of the argument. If you
include n2, then the function returns
NUMBER.
WIDTH_BUCKET WIDTH_BUCKET(expr,min_value, WIDTH_BUCKET lets you construct
max_value,num_buckets) equiwidth histograms, in which the
histogram range is divided into
intervals that have identical size.
(Compare this function with NTILE,
 which creates equiheight histograms.)
Ideally each bucket is a closed-open
interval of the real number line. For
example, a bucket can be assigned to
scores between 10.00 and 19.999... to
indicate that 10 is included in the
interval and 20 is excluded. This is
sometimes denoted [10, 20).
For a given expression,
WIDTH_BUCKET returns the bucket
number into which the value of this
expression would fall after being
evaluated.
expr is the expression for which the
histogram is being created. This
expression must evaluate to a numeric
or datetime value or to a value that
can be implicitly converted to a
numeric or datetime value. If expr
evaluates to null, then the expression
returns null.
min_value and max_value are
expressions that resolve to the end
points of the acceptable range for
expr. Both of these expressions must
also evaluate to numeric or datetime
values, and neither can evaluate to
null.
num_buckets is an expression that
resolves to a constant indicating the
number of buckets. This expression
must evaluate to a positive integer.

Oracle string functions

The ASCII function returns the decimal representation in the database character
ASCII
set of the first character of char. Example: ASCII('b') =98
The CHR function returns the character having the binary equivalent to n as a
CHR VARCHAR2 value in either the database character set. Example: CHR(10)||
CHR(13) = carriage return plus line feed.
The COALESCE function returns the first non-null expr in the expression list. At
least one expr must not be the literal NULL. If all occurrences of expr evaluate to
COALESCE
null, then the function returns null. Example: select COALESCE(col1, col2, col3)
FROM emp;
CONCAT The CONCAT function returns the concatenation of 2 strings. You can also use
 the || command for this. Example: CONCAT('abc','def') = 'abcdef'
The CONVERT function converts a string from one characterset to another. The
datatype of the returned value is VARCHAR2. Example: CONVERT('This is an
CONVERT
example','UTF-8','WE8ISO8859P1') SELECT CONVERT('Ä Ê Í Ó Ø A B C D E
', 'US7ASCII', 'WE8ISO8859P1') FROM DUAL; = A E I ? ? A B C D E ?
The DUMP function returns a VARCHAR2 value containing the datatype code,
DUMP length in bytes, and internal representation of expr. The returned result is always
in the database character set.
Returns the position of a String within a String. For more information see Oracle
INSTR
instr function
INITCAP Transform String to init cap Example: INITCAP('ORADEV') = 'Oradev'
INSTRB Returns the position of a String within a String, expressed in bytes.
Returns the position of a String within a String, expressed in Unicode complete
INSTRC
characters
INSTR2 Returns the position of a String within a String, expressed in UCS2 code points
INSTR4 Returns the position of a String within a String, expressed in UCS4 code points
The LENGTH functions returns the length of char. LENGTH calculates length
LENGTH using characters as defined by the input character set. Example:
length('oradev.com') = 10
LENGTHB Returns the length of a string, expressed in bytes.
The LOWER function returns a string with all lower case characters. Example:
LOWER
LOWER('ORADEV') = 'oradev'
Add characters to the left of a string until a fixed number is reached. Example:
LPAD lpad('abc',8,'x') = 'xxxxxabc'. If the last parameter is not specified, spaces are
added to the left.
LTRIM removed characters from the left of a string if they are equal to the
LTRIM specified string. Example: ltrim('aaaaaabc','a') = 'bc' If the last parameter is not
specified, spaces are removed from the left side.
The replace function replaces every occurrence of a search_string with a new
REPLACE string. If no new string is specified, all occurrences of the search_string are
removed. Example: replace('a1a1a1','a','2') = '212121'.
Reverses the characters of a String. Example: REVERSE('oradev.com') =
REVERSE
'moc.vedaro'
Add characters to the right of a string until a fixed number is reached. Example:
RPAD rpad('abc',8,'x') = 'abcxxxxx'. If the last parameter is not specified, spaces are
added to the right.
RTRIM removed characters from the right of a string if they are equal to the
RTRIM specified string. Example: rtrim('bcaaaaaa','a') = 'bc' If the last parameter is not
specified, spaces are removed from the right side.
SOUNDEX returns a character string containing the phonetic representation of
char. This function lets you compare words that are spelled differently, but sound
SOUNDEX
alike in English. Example: select * from emp where lastname
SOUNDEX('SMITH');
SUBSTR Returns a substring. For more information see Oracle substring
SUBSTRB Returns a substring expressed in bytes instead of characters.
SUBSTRC Returns a substring expressed in Unicode code points instead of characters.
SUBSTR2 Returns a substring using USC2 code points.
SUBSTR4 Returns a substring using USC4 code points.
TRANSLATE returns expr with all occurrences of each character in from_string
replaced by its corresponding character in to_string. Characters in expr that are
TRANSLATE
not in from_string are not replaced. Example: SELECT TRANSLATE('SQL*Plus
User''s Guide', ' */''', '___') FROM DUAL; = 'SQL_Plus_Users_Guide'
The TRIM function trims specified characters from the left and/or right. If no
TRIM characters are specified, the left and right spaces are left out. Example: trim('
Oradev dot com ') = 'Oradev dot com'.
|| (pipes) With pipes you can concattenate strings. Example 'Oradev'||'.com' = 'Oradev.com'.
Transform a string to all upper case characters. Example: UPPER('oradev') =
UPPER
'ORADEV'
VSIZE The VSIZE function returns the byte size of a String.

Oracle INSTR function

The Oracle function instr returns an integer indicating the position of the character in string that
is the first character of this occurrence.

This function has the following syntax:

instr(string, substring [,position [,occurrence]])

with:
string: the string that is searched.
substring: the substring which we are looking for in the string
position: The position from which we start the search (an integer value). If position is negative,
then Oracle counts and searches backward from the end of string. If omitted, this defaults to 1.
occurrence is an integer indicating which occurrence of string Oracle should search for. The
value of occurrence must be positive. If this is omitted, this defaults to 1.
Both string and substring can be any of the datatypes CHAR, VARCHAR2, NCHAR,
NVARCHAR2, CLOB, or NCLOB. The value returned is of NUMBER datatype
If no value is found, the instr will return the value 0.

Examples
INSTR('CORPORATE FLOOR','OR', 3, 2) = 14
INSTR('CORPORATE FLOOR','OR', -3, 2) = 2
INSTR('ab ab ab','ab') = 1
INSTR('ab ab ab','ab',1,2) = 4
INSTR('ab ab ab','ab',2,2) = 7
INSTR('abcabcabcdef','de') = 7

Oracle number format

You can use a number format in Oracle in :
1. The TO_CHAR function to format a number datatype.
i.e. TO_CHAR(value,'90.99')
2. The TO_NUMBER function to convert a CHAR or VARCHAR2 value to a NUMBER datatype.
i.e. TO_CHAR('24.33','99.99')

All number format models cause the number to be rounded to the specified number of significant digits.
If a value has more significant digits to the left of the decimal place than are specified in the format,
then pound signs (#) replace the value. If a positive value is extremely large and cannot be represented
in the specified format, then the infinity sign (~) replaces the value. Likewise, if a negative value is
extremely small and cannot be represented by the specified format, then the negative infinity sign
replaces the value (-~).
Element Example Description
Returns a comma in the specified position. You can specify multiple
commas in a number format model.

Restrictions:
, 9,999
(comma)
 A comma element cannot begin a number format model.

 A comma cannot appear to the right of a decimal character or period

in a number format model.
Returns a decimal point, which is a period (.) in the specified position.
. (period) 99.99
Restriction: You can specify only one period in a number format model.
$ $9999 Returns value with a leading dollar sign.
0999 Returns leading zeros.
0
9990 Returns trailing zeros.
Element Example Description
Returns value with the specified number of digits with a leading space if
positive or with a leading minus if negative.
9 9999
Leading zeros are blank, except for a zero value, which returns a zero for the
integer part of the fixed-point number.
Returns blanks for the integer part of a fixed-point number when the integer
B B9999
part is zero (regardless of "0"s in the format model).
Returns in the specified position the ISO currency symbol (the current value
C C999
of the NLS_ISO_CURRENCY parameter).
Returns in the specified position the decimal character, which is the current
value of the NLS_NUMERIC_CHARACTER parameter. The default is a period (.).
D 99D99
Restriction: You can specify only one decimal character in a number format
model.
EEEE 9.9EEEE Returns a value using in scientific notation.
FM FM90.9 Returns a value with no leading or trailing blanks.
Returns in the specified position the group separator (the current value of the
NLS_NUMERIC_CHARACTER parameter). You can specify multiple group
G 9G999 separators in a number format model.
Restriction: A group separator cannot appear to the right of a decimal
character or period in a number format model.
Returns in the specified position the local currency symbol (the current value
L L999
of the NLS_CURRENCY parameter).
Returns negative value with a trailing minus sign (-).

Returns positive value with a trailing blank.

MI 9999MI

Restriction: The MI format element can appear only in the last position of a
number format model.
Returns negative value in <angle brackets>.

Returns positive value with a leading and trailing blank.

PR 9999PR

Restriction: The PR format element can appear only in the last position of a
number format model.
Returns a value as Roman numerals in uppercase.
RN RN
Returns a value as Roman numerals in lowercase.
rn rn
Value can be an integer between 1 and 3999.
Element Example Description
Returns negative value with a leading minus sign (-).

Returns positive value with a leading plus sign (+).

S9999
Returns negative value with a trailing minus sign (-).
S
9999S
Returns positive value with a trailing plus sign (+).

Restriction: The S format element can appear only in the first or last
position of a number format model.
"Text minimum". Returns (in decimal output) the smallest number of
characters possible. This element is case-insensitive.

The default is TM9, which returns the number in fixed notation unless the
output exceeds 64 characters. If output exceeds 64 characters, then Oracle
automatically returns the number in scientific notation.
TM TM
Restrictions:

 You cannot precede this element with any other element.

 You can follow this element only with 9 or E (only one) or e (only
one).
Returns in the specified position the "Euro" (or other) dual currency symbol
U U9999
(the current value of the NLS_DUAL_CURRENCY parameter).
Returns a value multiplied by 10n (and if necessary, round it up), where n is
V 999V99
the number of 9's after the "V".
Returns the hexadecimal value of the specified number of digits. If the
specified number is not an integer, then Oracle rounds it to an integer.

Restrictions:
XXXX
X  This element accepts only positive values or 0. Negative values
xxxx return an error.

 You can precede this element only with 0 (which returns leading
zeroes) or FM. Any other elements return an error. If you specify
neither 0 nor FM with X, then the return always has 1 leading blank.
Oracle to_date function
The oracle to_date function converts a string in a specified format to an Oracle date format.

Syntax
to_date('formatted string'); (returns a date using the default oracle date format)
to_date('formatted string','format string'); (returns a date using the format string specified)
to_date('formatted string','format string','nls description');(returns a date using the format string
specified and using the specified NLS settings)

Example:
to_date('01-JAN-2006');
to_date('01-01-2004','DD-MM-YYYY');
to_date('31-12-2006 23:34:59','DD-MM-YYYY HH24:MI:SS');
to_date('01-JAN-99''DD-MON-YY,'nls_date_language = American');

Oracle date format

With the functions to_char and to_date, a date format can be used. Example:
select to_char(sysdate,'DD/MM/YYYY HH24:MI:SS') from dual;
will return something like: 24/03/2006 14:36:43

Here is a list of all the formats that can be used:

Format
Description
mask
CC Century
SCC Century BC prefixed with -
YYYY Year with 4 numbers
SYYY Year BC prefixed with -
IYYY ISO Year with 4 numbers
YY Year with 2 numbers
RR Year with 2 numbers with Y2k compatibility
YEAR Year in characters
SYEAR Year in characters, BC prefixed with -
BC BC/AD Indicator *
Q Quarter in numbers (1,2,3,4)
MM Month of year 01, 02...12
MONTH Month in characters (i.e. January)
MON JAN, FEB
WW Weeknumber (i.e. 1)
W Weeknumber of the month (i.e. 5)
IW Weeknumber of the year in ISO standard.
DDD Day of year in numbers (i.e. 365)
DD Day of the month in numbers (i.e. 28)
D Day of week in numbers(i.e. 7)
DAY Day of the week in characters (i.e. Monday)
FMDAY Day of the week in characters (i.e. Monday)
DY Day of the week in short character description (i.e. SUN)
Julian Day (number of days since January 1 4713 BC, where January 1 4713 BC is 1
J
in Oracle)
HH Hournumber of the day (1-12)
HH12 Hournumber of the day (1-12)
HH24 Hournumber of the day with 24Hours notation (0-23)
AM AM or PM
PM AM or PM
MI Number of minutes (i.e. 59)
SS Number of seconds (i.e. 59)
SSSSS Number of seconds this day.
DS Short date format. Depends on NLS-settings. Use only with timestamp.
DL Long date format. Depends on NLS-settings. Use only with timestamp.
Abbreviated era name. Valid only for calendars: Japanese Imperial, ROC Official
E
and Thai Buddha.. (Input-only)
EE The full era name
FF The fractional seconds. Use with timestamp.
The fractional seconds. Use with timestamp. The digit controls the number of
FF1..FF9
decimal digits used for fractional seconds.
FM Fill Mode: suppresses blianks in output from conversion
FX Format Exact: requires exact pattern matching between data and format model.
IYY or IY
the last 3,2,1 digits of the ISO standard year. Output only
or I
RM The Roman numeral representation of the month (I .. XII)
RR The last 2 digits of the year.
The last 2 digits of the year when used for output. Accepts fout-digit years when
RRRR
used for input.
SCC Century. BC dates are prefixed with a minus.
CC Century
Spelled format. Can appear of the end of a number element. The result is always in
SP
english. For example month 10 in format MMSP returns "ten"
SPTH Spelled and ordinal format; 1 results in first.
TH Converts a number to it's ordinal format. For example 1 becoms 1st.
TS Short time format. Depends on NLS-settings. Use only with timestamp.
TZD Abbreviated time zone name. ie PST.
TZH Time zone hour displacement.
TZM Time zone minute displacement.
TZR Time zone region
X Local radix character. In america this is a period (.)

The Oracle substr function

The substr function is a function that returns a substring from a string.

syntax
substr([input],[start],[length]) or
substr([input],[start]) or
With input the String to take a substring from,
start is the starting position where 1 is the first character. (if you pass 0, this will be substituted by 1) and
the optional length parameter is the number of characters in the substring. If length is left out, then
substr will return the substring from position start till the end of the input-string.

Sample code:
select substr('1234567890',3,2) from dual;
will return: '34'.
select substr('1234567890',7) from dual;
will return: '789'