Understanding some XML EBNF

Question

I am reading the XML specification and I can't quite understand this rule:

CharData ::= [^<&]* - ([^<&]* ']]>' [^<&]*)

Here's what I think I understand:

[^<&]* - Any amount of optional characters that are not < or &

- Except if it matches

([^<&]* Anything that's not < or &

']]>' followed by ]]>

[^<&]*) followed by anything that's not < or &

Answer 1

I realized whilst writing the question that the answer was right in front of my nose all along. So I figured I'd still post it but with my realization to hopefully help someone out in the future.

CharData is a string.

It's a flamboyant way of saying a string can't contain < or &, nor is it to be considered a string if it's followed by ]]>