Skip to main content
In this lesson, you’ll learn two key operations for managing Bash arrays:
  1. Removing a specific element by its index
  2. Clearing all elements in one command
The image is a slide titled "Arrays remove," showing two checked items: "How to remove a specific element from an array" and "How to remove all of the elements from an array in one shot."

​
Removing a Specific Element by Index

To delete a single entry in a Bash array, use unset with the array name and the target index: 
#!/usr/bin/env bash
declare -a servers=("server1" "server2" "server3")
unset 'servers[1]'
echo "Remaining elements: ${servers[@]}"
Running this script produces: 
$ ./removing.sh
server1 server3
Bash does not reindex arrays after removal. The original indices remain, leaving gaps in the sequence.
To view both values and their indices after deletion: 
#!/usr/bin/env bash
declare -a servers=("server1" "server2" "server3")
unset 'servers[1]'
echo "Values : ${servers[@]}"
echo "Indices: ${!servers[@]}"

$ ./removing_indices.sh
Values : server1 server3
Indices: 0 2

​
Clearing All Elements

If you need to empty an array completely, omit the brackets when using unset: 
#!/usr/bin/env bash
declare -a servers=("server1" "server2" "server3")
unset servers
echo "After clearing: ${servers[@]}"

$ ./removing_all.sh
No output appears because the array has been removed.
Using unset array deletes the entire variable. You must redeclare it before adding new elements.

​
Summary of Removal Operations

OperationCommand UsageResult
Remove by indexunset 'array[index]'Deletes the specified element only
Clear entire arrayunset arrayRemoves all elements and the variable

Watch Video