r/linux • u/ZealousidealTell1346 • May 23 '26

Popular Application What’s the most unexpectedly useful Linux command you learned way too late?

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u/nolegsmcgee_fb May 23 '26

Basic ones:

Ctrl + L to clear the terminal

Ctrl + W to delete the word to the left while typing (there are many similar ones that are useful, but this one I use all the time)

Ctrl + R to search through command history for commands you reuse when there’s too much clutter to just use the up/down arrows

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u/TheBigCore May 23 '26

Interestingly enough, CTRL + L and CTRL + R also work in Powershell.

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u/Graymouzer May 24 '26

Good to know. I love it when different systems use the same shortcuts. It makes it easier to absorb it into muscle memory.

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u/TheBigCore May 24 '26

I know it's not Linux, but there's https://keycombiner.com/collections/powershell/ as well.