s{<(?:[^>'"]*|".*?"|'.*?')+>}{}gs; #### s{ < # opening angle bracket (?: # Non-backreffing grouping paren [^>'"] * # 0 or more things that are neither > nor ' nor " | # or else ".*?" # a section between double quotes (stingy match) | # or else '.*?' # a section between single quotes (stingy match) ) + # all occurring one or more times > # closing angle bracket }{}gsx; # replace with nothing, i.e. delete