Expand to the first prerequisite.
Section: Automatic variables
$< first prerequisite
makefile
makefile
%.o: %.c
cc -c $< -o $@Explanation
Often used in single-input compilation rules.
Learn the surrounding workflow
Compare similar commands or jump into common fixes when this command is part of a bigger troubleshooting path.
Related commands
Same sheet · prioritizing Automatic variables
$? newer prerequisites
Expand to prerequisites newer than the target.
$* stem in pattern rules
Use the matched stem from the target pattern.
dir and notdir with automatic vars
Extract target directory or file name.
Update archive with newer objects
Use `$?` to add only changed prerequisites.