Back to Commands

shift

shell builtinLinux/Unix

The shift command is one of the most frequently used commands in Linux/Unix-like operating systems. shift Shift positional parameters in a shell script

See Examples View Syntax

Quick Reference

Command Name:

shift

Category:

shell builtin

Platform:

Linux/Unix

Basic Usage:

shift [options] [arguments]

Common Use Cases

Syntax

shift [n]

Options

Option	Description
`n`	Optional numeric argument specifying the number of positions to shift (default is 1)

Examples

How to Use These Examples

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

# Basic Examples Basic

# Remove the first positional parameter and shift all others down shift echo "$1" # Now displays what was previously in $2

# Remove the first 2 positional parameters and shift all others down shift 2 echo "$1" # Now displays what was previously in $3

# Advanced Examples Advanced

# Process all arguments in a loop while [ $# -gt 0 ]; do echo "Processing: $1" shift done

# Process arguments in pairs while [ $# -gt 1 ]; do echo "Key: $1, Value: $2" shift 2 done

# Process options and arguments while [ $# -gt 0 ]; do case "$1" in -f|--file) file="$2" shift 2 ;; -v|--verbose) verbose=true shift ;; --) shift break ;; *) echo "Unknown option: $1" shift ;; esac done # Process remaining arguments for arg in "$@"; do echo "Remaining arg: $arg" done # Shift with error checking if [ $# -ge 3 ]; then shift 3 else echo "Not enough arguments to shift 3 positions" fi # Keep track of position while shifting position=1 while [ $# -gt 0 ]; do echo "Argument $position: $1" position=$((position + 1)) shift done # Simple example of a stack implementation concept # Note: In a real script, you would use proper array handling for your shell # This is just a simplified illustration of the concept push() { # Add arguments to the beginning of a stack echo "Added items to stack" } pop() { # Return and remove the first item echo "Returning top item from stack" }

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 `shift` command is a built-in shell command used to manipulate positional parameters in shell scripts. It removes one or more elements from the beginning of the positional parameter list and shifts all remaining parameters to fill in the gap. Key aspects of the `shift` command include: 1. Purpose: The primary purpose of `shift` is to process command-line arguments sequentially in shell scripts, especially when the number of arguments is unknown or variable. 2. Basic Operation: By default, `shift` without arguments removes the first positional parameter (`$1`), moves the second parameter (`$2`) to the first position (`$1`), the third parameter (`$3`) to the second position (`$2`), and so on. 3. Multiple Shifts: When provided with a numeric argument `n`, the `shift` command removes the first `n` positional parameters. For example, `shift 3` removes the first three parameters and shifts all others accordingly. 4. Effect on Special Parameters: The `shift` command decreases the value of `$#` (the number of positional parameters) by the number of positions shifted. However, it does not affect `$0` (the name of the script or shell). 5. Error Handling: If you attempt to shift more positions than there are parameters, some shells may return an error, while others may simply shift all available parameters without an error. Common use cases for the `shift` command include: - Processing command-line arguments in a loop, where each iteration handles one or more arguments - Implementing option parsing in shell scripts - Managing a variable number of arguments in functions - Implementing simple stack-like operations in shell scripts The `shift` command is especially useful when combined with other shell constructs like loops (`while`, `for`), conditionals (`if`, `case`), and the special parameters `$#` (argument count) and `$@` (all arguments as separate strings). While simple in concept, `shift` is a powerful tool for argument manipulation in shell scripting, allowing for elegant handling of complex command-line interfaces and flexible parameter processing.

Related Commands

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

Explore All Commands

Use Cases

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 shift command works in different scenarios.

See Examples Try Lab Exercises

$ shift

View All Commands