$s = '1START ACCOUNTA XXXXXMA 12345 XYZ111 1START ...';; print $1 while $s =~ m[((?:\S+\s+){5})]g;; 1START ACCOUNTA XXXXXMA 12345 XYZ111 1START ACCOUNTB XXXXXBR 12345 XYZ191 1START ACCOUNTA XXXXXNY 54321 XYZ131