clrtoeol - Linux

Overview

clrtoeol is a text manipulation utility that clears all characters from the current cursor position to the end of the line. It is commonly used for interactive text editing in terminals and command-line interfaces.

Syntax

clrtoeol [-e] [-u] [--]

Options/Flags

• -e: Erase to the end of the screen.
• -u: Erase to the beginning of the line (default behavior).

Examples

Simple Example:

Clear from the cursor position to the end of the current line:

clrtoeol

Erase to End of Screen:

Clear all text from the cursor position to the bottom of the terminal:

clrtoeol -e

Erase to Beginning of Line:

Clear from the cursor position to the start of the current line:

clrtoeol -u

Common Issues

No Output:

Ensure that the terminal supports ANSI escape sequences.

Integration

With grep:

Combine clrtoeol with grep to quickly clear matching lines from a text file:

grep -v pattern | clrtoeol

With Shell Prompt:

Add clrtoeol to the shell prompt to automatically clear the current line after each command:

PS1="\u@\h \w \[\033[K\]\n\$ "

Related Commands

• tput: Control terminal settings.
• printf: Format and display text.
• clear: Clear the entire terminal screen.