Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

command line

American  
[kuh-mand lahyn] / kəˈmænd ˌlaɪn /

noun

Computers.
  1. an interface by which the user types in instructions to be carried out instantly by the operating system or other program.


Etymology

Origin of command line

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Video games have taught me that hacking mainly involves two things: capturing little computer-shaped nodes and typing in a command line.

From The Verge • Nov. 15, 2021

Additionally, it revealed a simple command line that CIA officials used to launch attacks that compromised Macs and hack network switches from Cisco.

From Salon • Jun. 17, 2020

Eric Lyons, a computational biologist at the University of Arizona in Tucson, uses the video-capture tool asciinema to record what he types into the command line, but lower-tech solutions can also work.

From Nature • Jan. 12, 2020

I asked them to set it in a monospaced, sans serif font, like a command line, and the production people did the rest.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 8, 2019

To have find search for files whose names match XF86Config, you'd have to use a wildcard: $ find / -name '*XF86Config*' Like most of the command line tools, find accepts wildcards as arguments.

From Debian GNU/Linux : Guide to Installation and Usage by Goerzen, John

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Look it up. Learn it forever.

Remember "command line" for good with VocabTrainer. Expand your vocabulary effortlessly with personalized learning tools that adapt to your goals.

Take me to Vocabulary.com