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clear

terminal controlLinux/Unix
The clear command is one of the most frequently used commands in Linux/Unix-like operating systems. clear Clear the terminal screen
See ExamplesView Syntax

Quick Reference

Command Name:

clear

Category:

terminal control

Platform:

Linux/Unix

Basic Usage:

clear [options] [arguments]

Common Use Cases

  • 1

    Terminal cleanup

    Clear the terminal screen for better readability

  • 2

    Presentation preparation

    Prepare terminal for demonstrations or presentations

  • 3

    Workflow organization

    Organize terminal workspace by clearing clutter

  • 4

    Debugging assistance

    Clear screen to focus on specific output or errors

Syntax

clear [OPTION]

Options

Option Description
-T TERM Use this terminal type instead of the value of $TERM
-V Display version information and exit
-x Do not attempt to clear terminal's scrollback buffer

Examples

How to Use These Examples

The examples below show common ways to use the clear command. Try them in your terminal to see the results. You can copy any example by clicking on the code block.

Basic Examples:

Clear the entire screen
clear
Clear screen and display program version
clear -V
Use with other commands to provide clean output
clear && ls -la
Use ANSI escape sequence (alternative method)
echo -e "\033c"

Advanced Examples:

Clear screen before running a script
clear && ./myscript.sh
Add to .bashrc to create a custom clear command
echo 'alias cls="clear && echo \"Terminal cleared on $(date)\""' >> ~/.bashrc
Clear screen and show system information
clear && echo "$(hostname) - $(date)" && uptime
Create a function that clears and shows a header
echo 'function clear_with_header() { clear; echo "===== $(hostname) ====="; }' >> ~/.bashrc

Try It Yourself

Practice makes perfect! The best way to learn is by trying these examples on your own system with real files.

Understanding Syntax

Pay attention to the syntax coloring: commands, options, and file paths are highlighted differently.

Notes

The clear command clears your terminal screen. It uses terminal capabilities in the terminfo database to determine how to clear the screen for the current terminal type.

Key points about the clear command:

  • It is a simple utility that's available on virtually all Unix-like systems
  • It works by sending the appropriate control sequences to the terminal
  • It respects the current terminal type specified in the TERM environment variable
  • By default, it attempts to clear both the visible screen and the scrollback buffer
  • The command is equivalent to the Control+L keystroke in many terminal emulators

Alternative methods to clear the screen:

  • Using the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+L in most terminals
  • Using the ANSI escape sequence: echo -e "\033c"
  • Using reset command for a more thorough reset (slower but fixes terminal issues)
  • Using tput clear (more portable across different terminal types)

The clear command is commonly used in scripts when you want to provide a clean interface for the user, removing previous output before displaying new information.

Common Use Cases

Terminal cleanup

Clear the terminal screen for better readability

Presentation preparation

Prepare terminal for demonstrations or presentations

Workflow organization

Organize terminal workspace by clearing clutter

Debugging assistance

Clear screen to focus on specific output or errors

User experience improvement

Improve terminal usability with clean display

Related Commands

These commands are frequently used alongside clear or serve similar purposes:

reset
tput
echo
printf
cat
less
more
screen
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Use Cases

1

Terminal cleanup

Clear the terminal screen for better readability

2

Presentation preparation

Prepare terminal for demonstrations or presentations

3

Workflow organization

Organize terminal workspace by clearing clutter

4

Debugging assistance

Clear screen to focus on specific output or errors

5

User experience improvement

Improve terminal usability with clean display

Learn By Doing

The best way to learn Linux commands is by practicing. Try out these examples in your terminal to build muscle memory and understand how the clear command works in different scenarios.

See ExamplesTry Lab Exercises
$ clear
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