wc(C) 19 June 1992 wc(C) Name wc - counts lines, words and characters Syntax wc [ -lwc ] [ names ] Description The wc command counts lines, words and characters in the named files, or in the standard input if no names appear. It also keeps a total count for all named files. A word is a maximal string of characters delimited by spaces, tabs, or newlines. The options l, w, and c may be used in any combination to specify that a subset of lines, words, and characters are to be reported. The default is -lwc. When names are specified on the command line, they are printed along with the counts. Standards conformance wc is conformant with: AT&T SVID Issue 2; and X/Open Portability Guide, Issue 3, 1989.