DOT-Files/Gentoo/gentooamd/home/user/.tldrc/tldr/pages/common/ifs.md

IFS

$IFS (Internal Field Separator) is a special environment variable that defines the delimiter used for word splitting in Unix shells. The default value of $IFS is a space, tab, and newline. The three characters serve as delimiters. More information: https://www.gnu.org/software/bash/manual/bash.html#Word-Splitting.

• View the current $IFS value:

echo "$IFS"

• Change the $IFS value:

IFS="{{:}}"

• Reset $IFS to default:

IFS=$' \t\n'

• Temporarily change the $IFS value in a subshell:

(IFS="{{:}}"; echo "{{one:two:three}}")