Bash Shortcuts Cheat Sheet
Ensure that your terminal emulator is properly configured to treat the OPTION key as a modifier key
For macOS Terminal:
- Open Terminal preferences (Cmd + ,).
- Go to the Profiles tab and select your current profile.
- Under the Keyboard tab, check the option Use Option as Meta key.
- This setting ensures that the OPTION key is used as a modifier for key combinations like OPTION+B.
For iTerm2:
- Open iTerm2 preferences (Cmd + ,).
- Go to Profiles -> Keys.
- Under Left Option Key (or Right Option Key), set it to Esc+ (this makes OPTION act like the Meta key).
- Make sure that Send escape sequences is not causing unexpected behavior.
Command Editing Shortcuts
| Shortcut | Description |
|---|---|
CTRL+A |
Go to the start of the command line |
CTRL+E |
Go to the end of the command line |
CTRL+U |
Delete from cursor to the start of the command line |
CTRL+K |
Delete from cursor to the end of the command line |
CTRL+W |
Delete from cursor to the start of the word |
OPTION+D |
Delete from cursor to the end of the word (whole word if at the boundary) |
CTRL+Y |
Paste the last cut text after the cursor |
CTRL+XX |
Move between the start of the command line and the current cursor position (toggle) |
OPTION+B |
Move backward one word (or go to the start of the current word) |
OPTION+F |
Move forward one word |
OPTION+C |
Capitalize to the end of the current word |
OPTION+U |
Make uppercase from the cursor to the end of the word |
OPTION+L |
Make lowercase from the cursor to the end of the word |
OPTION+T |
Swap the current word with the previous word |
CTRL+F |
Move forward one character |
CTRL+B |
Move backward one character |
CTRL+D |
Delete the character under the cursor |
CTRL+H |
Delete the character before the cursor |
CTRL+T |
Swap the character under the cursor with the previous one |
Command Recall Shortcuts
| Shortcut | Description |
|---|---|
CTRL+R |
Search command history backward |
CTRL+J |
End the history search at the current entry |
CTRL+G |
Escape from history searching mode |
CTRL+P |
Go to the previous command in history |
CTRL+N |
Go to the next command in history |
CTRL+_ |
Undo the last command |
OPTION+. |
Use the last word of the previous command |
Command Control Shortcuts
| Shortcut | Description |
|---|---|
CTRL+L |
Clear the screen |
CTRL+S |
Stop output to the screen (useful for long-running verbose commands) |
CTRL+Q |
Resume output to the screen |
CTRL+C |
Terminate the current command |
CTRL+Z |
Suspend the current command |
Bash Bang Shortcuts
| Shortcut | Description |
|---|---|
!! |
Run the last command |
!blah |
Run the most recent command starting with "blah" |
!blah:p |
Print the command that !blah would run |
!$ |
The last word of the previous command |
!$:p |
Print the last word of the previous command |
!* |
All arguments of the previous command except the first word |
!*:p |
Print what !* would substitute |