Zero-address ``commands''

: label

Label for b and t commands.

#comment

The comment extends until the next newline (or the end of a -e script fragment).

}

The closing bracket of a { } block.

Zero- or One- address commands

=

Print the current line number.

a \

text

Append text, which has each embedded newline preceded by a backslash.

i \

text

Insert text, which has each embedded newline preceded by a backslash.

q [exit-code]

Immediately quit the sed script without processing any more input, except that if auto-print is not disabled the current pattern space will be printed. The exit code argument is a GNU extension.

Q [exit-code]

Immediately quit the sed script without processing any more input. This is a GNU extension.

r filename

Append text read from filename.

R filename

Append a line read from filename. Each invocation of the command reads a line from the file. This is a GNU extension.

Commands which accept address ranges

{

Begin a block of commands (end with a }).

b label

Branch to label; if label is omitted, branch to end of script.

c \

text

Replace the selected lines with text, which has each embedded newline preceded by a backslash.

d

Delete pattern space. Start next cycle.

D

If pattern space contains no newline, start a normal new cycle as if the d command was issued. Otherwise, delete text in the pattern space up to the first newline, and restart cycle with the resultant pattern space, without reading a new line of input.

h H

Copy/append pattern space to hold space.

g G

Copy/append hold space to pattern space.

l

List out the current line in a ``visually unambiguous'' form.

l width

List out the current line in a ``visually unambiguous'' form, breaking it at width characters. This is a GNU extension.

n N

Read/append the next line of input into the pattern space.

p

Print the current pattern space.

P

Print up to the first embedded newline of the current pattern space.

s/regexp/replacement/

Attempt to match regexp against the pattern space. If successful, replace that portion matched with replacement. The replacement may contain the special character & to refer to that portion of the pattern space which matched, and the special escapes \1 through \9 to refer to the corresponding matching sub-expressions in the regexp.

t label

If a s/// has done a successful substitution since the last input line was read and since the last t or T command, then branch to label; if label is omitted, branch to end of script.

T label

If no s/// has done a successful substitution since the last input line was read and since the last t or T command, then branch to label; if label is omitted, branch to end of script. This is a GNU extension.

w filename

Write the current pattern space to filename.

W filename

Write the first line of the current pattern space to filename. This is a GNU extension.

x

Exchange the contents of the hold and pattern spaces.

y/source/dest/

Transliterate the characters in the pattern space which appear in source to the corresponding character in dest.