compopt

Print the completion options for given command

$ compopt [command]

$ compopt [-o|+o] [option1] [-o|+o] [option2] [command]

$ compopt

$ compopt [-o|+o] [option1] [-o|+o] [option2]

compopt [-D | -E | -I] [-o option] [name ...]

-D
    Display the default completion option list for the current command

-E
    Remove completion options for any names that are not found

-I
    Remove completion options for names that are not function names

-o option
    Enable or disable the specified option (repeatable) for each name

name ...
    Completion function names to modify (defaults to current command)

compopt is a Bash shell builtin used in programmable completion functions to enable, disable, or query completion options dynamically. It allows customization of tab-completion behavior for commands or functions, such as restricting to filenames (-o default), directories (-o dirnames), no space after completion (-o nospace), or case-insensitive matching (-o nocaseglob).

Typically invoked inside a complete-defined function (e.g., _comp_foo), it modifies options for the current command or specified names. Without options, it prints current settings like complete -p. Flags -D, -E, -I handle defaults and cleanup. This provides context-aware completion, improving shell interactivity without global changes.

Bash 4.0+ builtin only; not portable to other shells.
Intended for use inside completion functions, not direct invocation.
Options mirror those of complete; invalid options ignored.

In a completion function:
compopt -o nospace -o default
Disables space insertion and defaults to filenames.

compopt -o
Shows current options for the command.

Introduced in Bash 4.0 (February 2009) to support dynamic option changes in completion scripts, enhancing flexibility over static complete settings.

complete(1), compgen(1), bash(1)