Git commands and syntax

How to understand command line syntax?

Reference: https://developers.google.com/style/code-syntax

Required items (commands, arguments, etc.)

Text without brackets or braces.

command
command --argument

Optional arguments

Text enclosed in square brackets.

command [--argument]

If there's more than one optional argument, each item is enclosed in its own set of square brackets.

command [--argument1] [--argument2]

Mutually exclusive arguments

If only one of the specified items should be chosen, the items are enclosed inside curly brackets (aka. braces), with vertical bars (aka. pipes) separating the options. There can be more than two mutually exclusive choices, separated from each other by pipes.

command {--argument1 | --argument2}
command {--required1 --also-required1 | --or-required2 [--optional2]}

Arguments that can repeat

Arguments that can have multiple values specified by the user are indicated with an ellipsis (...) .

command [--repeatable-argument ...]

User input

User provided information is enclosed in angle brackets (aka. chevrons).

command --argument <user-input>

List of git commands

For the complete list of all commands, see https://git-scm.com/docs.

Command	Description	Documentation
	Setup and Config
git	Git	https://git-scm.com/docs/git
git-config	Get and set repository or global options	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-config
git-help	Display help information about Git	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-help
git-bugreport	Collect information for user to file a bug report	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-bugreport
	Getting and Creating Projects
git-init	Create an empty Git repository or reinitialize an existing one	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-init
git-clone	Clone a repository into a new directory	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-clone
	Basic Snapshotting
git-add	Add file contents to the index	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-add
git-status	Show the working tree status	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-status
git-diff	Show changes between commits, commit and working tree, etc	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-diff
git-commit	Record changes to the repository	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-commit
git-notes	Add or inspect object notes	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-notes
git-restore	Restore working tree files	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-restore
git-reset	Reset current HEAD to the specified state	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-reset
git-rm	Remove files from the working tree and from the index	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-rm
git-mv	Move or rename a file, a directory, or a symlink	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-mv
	Branching and Merging*
git-branch	List, create, or delete branches	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-branch
git-checkout	Switch branches or restore working tree files	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-checkout
git-switch	Switch branches	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-switch
git-merge	Join two or more development histories together	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-merge
git-mergetool	Run merge conflict resolution tools to resolve merge conflicts	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-mergetool
git-log	Show commit logs	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-log
git-stash	Stash the changes in a dirty working directory away	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-stash
git-tag	Create, list, delete or verify a tag object signed with GPG	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-tag
git-worktree	Manage multiple working trees	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-worktree
	Sharing and Updating Projects
git-fetch	Download objects and refs from another repository	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-fetch
git-pull	Fetch from and integrate with another repository or a local branch	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-pull
git-push	Update remote refs along with associated objects	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-push
git-remote	Manage set of tracked repositories	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-remote
git-submodule	Initialize, update or inspect submodules	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-submodule
	Inspection and Comparison*
git-show	Show various types of objects	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-show
git-log	Show commit logs	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-log
git-diff	Show changes between commits, commit and working tree, etc	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-diff
git-difftool	Show changes using common diff tools	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-difftool
git-range-diff	Compare two commit ranges (e.g. two versions of a branch)	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-range-diff
git-shortlog	Summarize git log output	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-shortlog
git-describe	Give an object a human readable name based on an available ref	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-describe
	Patching
git-apply	Apply a patch to files and/or to the index	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-apply
git-cherry-pick	Apply the changes introduced by some existing commits	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-cherry-pick
git-diff	Show changes between commits, commit and working tree, etc	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-diff
git-rebase	Reapply commits on top of another base tip	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-rebase
git-revert	Revert some existing commits	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-revert
	Debugging
git-bisect	Use binary search to find the commit that introduced a bug	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-bisect
git-blame	Show what revision and author last modified each line of a file	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-blame
git-grep	Print lines matching a pattern	https://git-scm.com/docs/git-grep