chmod

C3H4M3O1D2

verb

To change the access permissions and related special flags of (a file or directory).

Less commonScrabble 13
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Meanings

verbchmod (third-person singular simple present chmods, present participle chmodding, simple past and past participle chmodded)

present singular third person chmods · participle present chmodding · participle past chmodded · past chmodded

  1. UnixtransitiveLinuxTo change the access permissions and related special flags of (a file or directory).

    Try this out by chmodding a directory 644!

    2010, Machtelt Garrels, Introduction to Linux (Third Edition) (page 93)

Origin

From the name of the program for this purpose, short for "change mode".

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

chmod. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chmod

MLA

“chmod.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chmod. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “chmod,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chmod.

Source: chmod on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.