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LPIC-1 Shells, Scripting and Data Management Practice Question

Which TWO of the following are valid ways to capture the output of a command into a variable in Bash?

⚠ Common exam trap

LPI often tests the distinction between command substitution syntax and other shell constructs like brace expansion or simple assignment, leading candidates to confuse var=$(command) with var={command} or var=command.

Answer choices

Why each option matters

Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.

Correct answer & explanation

✓

var=`command`

Both var=`command` (backticks) and var=$(command) (dollar-parentheses) are valid command substitution syntaxes in Bash. While backticks are older and can cause issues with nesting, they are still valid and widely used. Option B uses braces, which is not a valid syntax. Option D uses a pipe, which is for chaining commands, not variable assignment. Option E assigns the literal string 'command' to the variable, not the output of the command. Therefore, A and C are the correct choices.

Answer analysis

Option-by-option breakdown

For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.

✓
var=`command`
Why this is correct
Backticks are an older syntax for command substitution, but still valid.
✗
var={command}
Why it's wrong here
Braces are not valid for command substitution in Bash.
✓
var=$(command)
Why this is correct
This is a modern and preferred syntax for command substitution.
✗
var|command
Why it's wrong here
This is a pipe, not assignment; it would pipe the value of var to command.
✗
var=command
Why it's wrong here
This assigns the string 'command' to var, not the output of the command.

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LPIC-1 Shells, Scripting and Data Management Practice Question

Why each option matters

Option-by-option breakdown

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