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Asked: 2026-05-29T19:57:16+00:00

I am trying to understand a simple command-line string that executes Javac and passes

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I am trying to understand a simple command-line string that executes Javac and passes it some simple arguments. The complete command line is:

javac -d $(OUTPATH) -sourcepath $(SOURCEPATH) $<

Everything in this line is straightforward and understandable to me except for the final tokens: $<.

What do these tokens mean?

ADDENDUM: Indeed, the commenters are correct. This line occurs within a makefile. It is obvious to me now, but not when I wrote this question, that a makefile is passed to make and is not a shell script.

Please note: What do $< and $@ represent in a Makefile? also discusses this (I did not see it when I looked for previous questions about this).

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1 Answer

  1. Editorial Team

    This looks like something from a makefile, not a command line. In that case, $< expands to the first prerequisite of the current target. That is, the .java file that the .class target depends on.

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