linux - Is there any shortcut to reference the path of the first argument in a MV command?

Question

I often find myself using mv to rename a file. E.g.

mv app/models/keywords_builder.rb app/models/keywords_generator.rb

Doing so I need to write (ok, tab complete) the path for the second parameter. In this example it isn't too bad but sometimes the path is deeply nested and it seems like quite a bit of extra typing.

Is there a more efficient way to do this?

Answer 1

And another way: brace expansion.

mv app/models/keywords_{builder,generator}.rb

In general,

before{FIRST,SECOND}after

expands to

beforeFIRSTafter beforeSECONDafter

So it's also useful for other renames, e.g.

mv somefile{,.bak}

expands to

mv somefile somefile.bak

It works in bash and zsh.

More examples:

• Eric Bergen > Bash Brace Expansion
• Bash Brace Expansion | Linux Journal