HB-SHAPE(1)

📦
version 15.0.0 · 2 versions
, in arch rolling

🦋 hb-shape(1) — the bestie edit 🦋

okay so welcome to hb-shape(1) from the User Commands section — this is the command that shapes text with the font you give it, and it’s genuinely giving main-character energy in the terminal. Here’s every detail, no skips, no cap. 💅✨

🏷️ NAME 🏷️

hb-shape — shape text with given font.

💖 DESCRIPTION 💖

📎 Usage

hb-shape [OPTION???] [FONT-FILE] [TEXT]

Shape text with given font. literally that’s the whole vibe: you bring the text, you bring the font, it does the shaping. periodt. 🌸

🆘 Help Options

  • -h, --help — Show help options.
  • --help-all — Show all help options.
  • --help-face — Options for the font face.
  • --help-font — Options for the font instance.
  • --help-variations — Options for font variations used.
  • --help-text — Options for the input text.
  • --help-text-context — Options for the input context text.
  • --help-shape — Options for the shaping process.
  • --help-features — Options for font features used.
  • --help-output — Options for the destination & form of the output.
  • --help-output-syntax — Options for the syntax of the output.

🔤 Font-face options

  • --font-file=filename — Set font file-name.
  • -y, --face-index=index — Set face index (default: 0).
  • --face-loader=loader — Set face loader to use (default: ot).
    • Supported face loaders are: ot/ft.
  • --list-face-loaders — List available face loaders and quit.

🧸 Font-instance options

  • --font-size=1/2 integers or 'upem' — Font size (default: upem).
  • --font-ppem=1/2 integers — Set x,y pixels per EM (default: 0; disabled).
  • --font-ptem=point-size — Set font point-size (default: 0; disabled).
  • --font-bold=1/2 numbers; eg. 0.05 — Set synthetic bold (default: 0).
  • --font-grade=1/2 numbers; eg. 0.05 — Set synthetic grade (default: 0).
  • --font-slant=slant ratio; eg. 0.2 — Set synthetic slant (default: 0).
  • --font-funcs=impl — Set font functions implementation to use (default: ot).
    • Supported font function implementations are: ot/ft.
  • --list-font-funcs — List available font functions and quit.
  • --ft-load-flags=integer — Set FreeType load-flags (default: 2).

🎚️ Variations options

  • --named-instance=index — Set named-instance index (default: none).
  • --variations=list — Comma-separated list of font variations.

Variations are set globally. The format for specifying variation settings follows. All valid CSS font-variation-settings values other than 'normal' and 'inherited' are also accepted, though, not documented below.

The format is a tag, optionally followed by an equals sign, followed by a number. For example:

"wght=500" "slnt=-7.5"

💬 Text options

If no text is provided, standard input is used for input.

  • --text=string — Set input text.
  • --text-file=filename — Set input text file-name.
  • -u, --unicodes=list of hex numbers — Set input Unicode codepoints.
  • --single-par — Treat text as single paragraph.

🫧 Textual context options

  • --text-before=string — Set text context before each line.
  • --text-after=string — Set text context after each line.
  • --unicodes-before=list of hex numbers — Set Unicode codepoints context before each line.
  • --unicodes-after=list of hex numbers — Set Unicode codepoints context after each line.

🪄 Shape options

  • --shapers=comma-separated list — Set shapers to use (default: graphite2,ot,fallback).
    • Supported shapers are: graphite2/ot/fallback.
  • --list-shapers — List available shapers and quit.
  • --direction=ltr/rtl/ttb/btt — Set text direction (default: auto).
  • --language=BCP 47 tag — Set text language (default: $LANG).
  • --script=ISO-15924 tag — Set text script (default: auto).
  • --bot — Treat text as beginning-of-paragraph.
  • --eot — Treat text as end-of-paragraph.
  • --preserve-default-ignorables — Preserve Default-Ignorable characters.
  • --remove-default-ignorables — Remove Default-Ignorable characters.
  • --invisible-glyph — Glyph value to replace Default-Ignorables with.
  • --not-found-glyph — Glyph value to replace not-found characters with.
  • --not-found-variation-selector-glyph — Glyph value to replace not-found variation-selector characters with.
  • --utf8-clusters — Use UTF8 byte indices, not char indices.
  • --cluster-level=0/1/2/3 — Cluster merging level (default: 0).
  • --normalize-glyphs — Rearrange glyph clusters in nominal order.
  • --unsafe-to-concat — Produce unsafe-to-concat glyph flag.
  • --safe-to-insert-tatweel — Produce safe-to-insert-tatweel glyph flag.
  • --glyphs — Interpret input as glyph string.
  • --verify — Perform sanity checks on shaping results.

🎀 Features options

  • --features=list — Comma-separated list of font features.

Features can be enabled or disabled, either globally or limited to specific character ranges. The format for specifying feature settings follows. All valid CSS font-feature-settings values other than 'normal' and the global values are also accepted, though not documented below. CSS string escapes are not supported. The range indices refer to the positions between Unicode characters, unless the --utf8-clusters is provided, in which case range indices refer to UTF-8 byte indices. The position before the first character is always 0.

The format is Python-esque. Here is how it all works:

Syntax:
       Value:    Start:    End:

       Setting value:

"kern" 1         0         ???         # Turn feature on

"+kern"
       1         0         ???         # Turn feature on

"-kern"
       0         0         ???         # Turn feature off

"kern=0"
       0         0         ???         # Turn feature off

"kern=1"
       1         0         ???         # Turn feature on

"aalt=2"
       2         0         ???         # Choose 2nd alternate

       Setting index:

"kern[]"
       1         0         ???         # Turn feature on

"kern[:]"
       1         0         ???         # Turn feature on

"kern[5:]"
       1         5         ???         # Turn feature on, partial

"kern[:5]"
       1         0         5         # Turn feature on, partial

"kern[3:5]"
       1         3         5         # Turn feature on, range

"kern[3]"
       1         3         3+1       # Turn feature on, single char

       Mixing it all:

"aalt[3:5]=2" 2
       3         5         # Turn 2nd alternate on for range

🖨️ Output destination & format options

  • -o, --output-file=filename — Set output file-name (default: stdout).
  • -O, --output-format=format — Set output format (default: text).
    • Supported output formats are: text/json.

🧾 Output syntax

text: [<glyph name or index>=<glyph cluster index within input>@<horizontal displacement>,<vertical displacement>+<horizontal advance>,<vertical advance>|...]  json: [{"g": <glyph name or index>, "ax": <horizontal advance>, "ay": <vertical advance>, "dx": <horizontal displacement>, "dy": <vertical displacement>, "cl": <glyph cluster index within input>}, ...]

🎛️ Output syntax options

  • --show-text — Prefix each line of output with its corresponding input text.
  • --show-unicode — Prefix each line of output with its corresponding input codepoint(s).
  • --show-line-num — Prefix each line of output with its corresponding input line number.
  • -v, --verbose — Prefix each line of output with all of the above.
  • --no-glyph-names — Output glyph indices instead of names.
  • --no-positions — Do not output glyph positions.
  • --no-advances — Do not output glyph advances.
  • --no-clusters — Do not output cluster indices.
  • --show-extents — Output glyph extents.
  • --show-flags — Output glyph flags.
  • --ned — No Extra Data; Do not output clusters or advances.
  • -V, --trace — Output interim shaping results.

🚀 Application Options

  • --version — Show version numbers.
  • -n, --num-iterations=N — Run N iterations (default: 1).

Shows results of shaping text with a given font in textual or JSON format.

🚪 EXIT CODES 🚪

  • 0: Success.
  • 1: Option parsing failed.
  • 2: Failed loading font face.
  • 3: Operation failed.
  • 4: Failed setting font functions.

🌿 ENVIRONMENT 🌿

  • HB_FACE_LOADER=face-loader; Overrides the default face loader.
  • HB_FONT_FUNCS=font-funcs; Overrides the default font-funcs.
  • HB_SHAPER_LIST=shaper-list; Overrides the default shaper list.

👀 SEE ALSO 👀

Find more information or report bugs at https://github.com/harfbuzz/harfbuzz.

💖 that’s the whole hb-shape(1) bestie briefing — brought to you by HarfBuzz 15.0.0 and stamped October 2026. go shape something iconic 💅✨

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