In Unix and Unix-like operating systems, type is a command that describes how its arguments would be interpreted if used as command names.
Function
Where applicable, type will display the command name's path.12 Possible command types are:
- shell built-in
- function
- alias
- hashed command
- keyword
The command returns a non-zero exit status if command names cannot be found.
Examples
$ type test test is a shell builtin $ type cp cp is /bin/cp $ type unknown unknown not found $ type type type is a shell builtinHistory
The type command was a shell builtin for Bourne shell that was introduced in AT&T's System V Release 2 (SVR2) in 1984,3 and continues to be included in many other POSIX-compatible shells such as Bash. However, type is not part of the POSIX standard. With a POSIX shell, similar behavior is retrieved with
command -V nameIn the KornShell, the command whence provides similar functionality.4
The command is available as a separate package for Microsoft Windows as part of the UnxUtils collection of native Win32 ports of common GNU Unix-like utilities.5
See also
The Wikibook Guide to Unix has a page on the topic of: CommandsReferences
"Use Type Command in Linux to Get More Info About Commands". Linux Handbook. 2020-05-11. Retrieved 2025-02-09. https://linuxhandbook.com/type-command/ ↩
"type command in Linux with Examples". GeeksforGeeks. 2019-05-06. Retrieved 2025-02-09. https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/type-command-in-linux-with-examples/ ↩
"traditional Bourne shell family / history and development". www.in-ulm.de. Retrieved 2018-10-07. https://www.in-ulm.de/~mascheck/bourne/index.html ↩
Siever, Ellen (27 July 2005). Linux in a Nutshell. Nutshell handbooks. O'Reilly Media, Inc. (published 2005). p. 695. ISBN 9780596009304. Retrieved 2016-07-05. whence [...] Korn shell only. Show whether each command is a Unix command, a built-in command, a defined shell function, or an alias. 9780596009304 ↩
Native Win32 ports of some GNU utilities http://unxutils.sourceforge.net/ ↩