# Why does MemberQ need {} around the expression? [closed]

Suppose I was trying to find out if the sequence 34 appeared in the digits of 344444. I tried to do this with MemberQ and get:

MemberQ[RealDigits[344444][[1]], {x___, 3, 4, y___}]


False

But if I add parentheses around the argument I get:

MemberQ[{RealDigits[344444][[1]]}, {x___, 3, 4, y___}]


True

RealDigits[344444][[1]] already gives me a list, why do I need to nest it inside another one? I thought it could be due to whether or not MemberQ checks the head of the list, but putting Heads -> True or Heads -> False does not alter the result.

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I believe that MatchQ[RealDigits[344444][[1]], {x___, 3, 4, y___}] is what you want. –  David Carraher Jun 5 '13 at 1:57
Thanks for that, I see how that works. –  Andrew Ledesma Jun 5 '13 at 2:12

## closed as too localized by Oleksandr R., Sjoerd C. de Vries, Rojo, Artes, SilviaJun 5 '13 at 12:32

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The answer is simple, you used the wrong function. If you want to find out whether some expression matches a pattern, you have to use MatchQ
MatchQ[RealDigits[344444][[1]], {x___, 3, 4, y___}]

MemberQ is used when you want to test whether any member of a list matches some pattern. If you put additional braces around your expression, then you make a list with one member you want to test. That's why it returns true with additional braces.