Key/Mac/Command

• Command (⌘)

  • macOS-exclusive modifier key; the primary action key for most Mac keyboard shortcuts, equivalent to Ctrl on Windows and Linux.

  • Larger Context

    • Origin

      • Introduced by Apple in 1984 with the original Macintosh. The ⌘ symbol (the "Place of Interest" sign, U+2318) was chosen by Susan Kare. Steve Jobs wanted to avoid overloading the Apple logo, so a new symbol was picked from a Scandinavian road sign.

    • macOS role

      • ⌘ is the primary modifier for app-level shortcuts: ⌘C (copy), ⌘V (paste), ⌘Z (undo), ⌘Q (quit), ⌘Tab (app switcher).
      • Most cross-platform apps document their shortcuts as Ctrl on Windows/Linux and ⌘ on macOS — they are functionally equivalent in that context.

    • Cross-platform equivalence

      • In terminal emulators and CLI tools, ⌘ is not forwarded to the shell. Cross-platform shortcuts that use Ctrl on other platforms use ⌘ only at the macOS GUI layer.
      • When a tool says "use Ctrl+C to copy" on Windows, the Mac equivalent is ⌘C — the [[Key/Control]] alias captures this convention.

    • Notation

      • Notation	Meaning
        ⌘	Command key symbol
        Cmd	Common text abbreviation
        Meta / M-	Not the same — see Key/Meta

    • Related keys

      • Key/Meta — distinct key; maps to Option/Alt in terminals, not to Command.
      • Key/Mac/Option — the ⌥ modifier; maps to Key/Meta / Key/Alt in terminals.
      • Key/Control — Ctrl modifier; cross-platform equivalent of Command in GUI shortcuts.