UNIX in a Nutshell: System V Edition

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shift

shift [variable]

If variable is given, shift the words in a wordlist variable; i.e., name[2] becomes name[1]. With no argument, shift the positional parameters (command-line arguments); i.e., $2 becomes $1. shift is typically used in a while loop. See additional example under while.

Example

while ($#argv)      # while there are arguments
    if (-f $argv[1])  
       wc -l $argv[1]
    else
       echo "$argv[1] is not a regular file"
    endif
    shift           # get the next argument
end


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