re = /(?:0[1-9]|1[012])([-.\/])(?:0[1-9]|[1-2][0-9]|3[01])\1(?:[0-9]{4})/
str = 'mm-dd-yyyy
12-12-1212
12.12.1212
12/12/1212
But NOT match to dates using any other symbols like this:
12~12~1212
12=12=1212'
subst = '$1\\n$2string$3$4'
result = str.gsub(re, subst)
# Print the result of the substitution
puts result
Please keep in mind that these code samples are automatically generated and are not guaranteed to work. If you find any syntax errors, feel free to submit a bug report. For a full regex reference for Ruby, please visit: http://ruby-doc.org/core-2.2.0/Regexp.html