Merge corresponding or subsequent lines of files
Syntax
paste [-s] [-d list] file ...
Options
-d list Use one or more of the provided characters to replace the newline characters
instead of the default tab. The characters in list are used circularly,
i.e., when list is exhausted the first character from list is reused.
This continues until a line from the last input file (in default operation)
or the last line in each file (using the -s option) is displayed, at which time paste
begins selecting characters from the beginning of list again.
The following special characters can also be used in list:
\n newline character
\t tab character
\\ backslash character
\0 Empty string (not a null character).
Any other character preceded by a backslash is equivalent to the character itself.
-s Concatenate all of the lines of each separate input file in command line order.
The newline character of every line except the last line in each input file is
replaced with the TAB character, unless otherwise specified by the -d option.
If '-' is specified for one or more of the input files, the standard input is used; standard input is read one line at a time, circularly, for each instance of '-'.
paste exits 0 on success, and >0 if an error occurs.
Combines the lines from two files:
$ paste file1.txt file2.txt > result.txt
List the files in the current directory in three columns:
ls | paste - - -
Combine pairs of lines from a file into single lines:
paste -s -d '\t\n' myfile
Number the lines in a file, similar to nl:
sed = myfile | paste -s -d '\t\n' - -
Create a colon-separated list of directories named bin, suitable for use in the PATH environment variable:
find / -name bin -type d | paste -s -d : -
“I have yet to hear a man ask for advice on how to combine marriage and a career” ~ Gloria Steinem
cut - Divide a file into several parts.
fmt - Reformat paragraph text.
fold - Wrap input lines to fit in specified width.
head - Output the first part of file(s).
join - Join lines on a common field.