paste
Merge lines of files side by side, separated by tabs.
Synopsis
paste [OPTION]... [FILE]...
Examples
paste names.txt scores.txt
paste -d',' file1.txt file2.txt
paste -s -d'+' numbers.txt
seq 10 | paste - - - -
Common options
| Flag | Description |
|---|---|
| -d | Use specified delimiter instead of tab |
| -s | Paste one file at a time instead of in parallel |
| -z | Use NUL as line delimiter |
About paste
The `paste` command merge lines of files side by side, separated by tabs. Text viewing and editing commands are fundamental tools in any Linux user's toolkit.
Linux treats almost everything as a file, so the ability to quickly inspect, filter, transform, and edit file contents from the command line is critical. These commands are regularly combined with pipes and redirects to build powerful data-processing pipelines.
The command accepts 3 commonly used flags shown above, though the full set of options is available in the man page (`man paste`). The 4 examples on this page cover typical real-world usage patterns that you can copy and adapt for your own workflows.
Related commands
More File Viewing & Editing Commands
Other commands in the File Viewing & Editing category