Basic UNIX Command Syntax

Command syntax refers to how commands are formed. Most UNIX commands follow a very consistent syntax, of the following form:

  command  [flags]  [arguments]

Flags and arguments to basic UNIX commands have the following definitions:

[flags]     switches that modify the function of the base command.  Flags usually begin with a "-", such as "-f".

[arguments]     usually (but not always) the name of a file or directory to perform the operations on

The following commands show examples of the basic UNIX command syntax, including commands, flags, and arguments.