$ source
Read and execute commands from a file in the current shell
DOCUMENTEDShell builtinsUbuntu 24.04 LTS baseline
Synopsis
source filename [arguments]What it does
- `source` is a Bash builtin and executes the file in the current shell environment.
- This matters when the file changes variables, functions, aliases, or other shell state.
Examples
Load shell settings
source ~/.bashrcUse the dot synonym
. ./settings.shImportant details
These examples are intentionally conservative. Command behavior can still depend on filesystem state, permissions, locale, shell, installed package version, and other system configuration.
For exact option semantics, the linked authoritative documentation is the source of truth.