ls -a (I consider -a an option)sudo -u username (-u = option, username = arg)chmod 664 my-dir (664 = option, my-dir = arg)I can't think of an example that might say this is a flag except perhaps when looking at dir listing:-r--------. 1 david david   3344 May 19 17:48 611056.pdfThis has the read flag set for the owner, but that's all. What's to stop  me from calling that a read option?I write and edit technical documentation, primarily in DocBook XML, and I'm looking for an explanation of the difference, which is consistent and accurate as possible. However, I'm already seeing a pattern forming:flags tend to be Booleans. e.g., setenforce 0options help define how a command should behave. Some may be optional.arguments tell commands what object to operate on.I could see myself combining flags and options (some options may have a dozen possible values, but Booleans only have two). Arguments appear sufficiently different to maintain them as such.
What's the difference between a flag, an option, and an argument?
linux;arguments;options