# Install wtf with Homebrew, MacPorts, Nix Translate common Internet acronyms. Version 20230906 via Homebrew; verified from local package data. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:wtf ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install wtf ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata - MacPorts (94%): ```sh sudo port install wtf ``` Evidence: MacPorts ports tree: games/wtf/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ### Linux - Nix (92%): ```sh nix profile install nixpkgs#wtf ``` Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/wt/wtf/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:wtf - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Package manager page:** - **Version:** 20230906 - **Source summary:** Translate common Internet acronyms - **Homepage:** - **Upstream docs:** - **License:** LicenseRef-Homebrew-public-domain - **Source archive:** - **Generated:** 2026-07-08T18:08:21+00:00 ## Executables - wtf (cli) - wtf (alias) ## Install behavior - Post-install hook: not defined - Bottle: available on all ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-07-08 - Package-manager version: 20230906 - Local data: ok - Upstream repository: https://sourceforge.net/projects/bsdwtf/ - info: No package-manager update timestamp was available. - info: Release/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories. ## Project history and usage wtf is the small BSD command-line acronym lookup utility: users type forms such as `wtf TCP` or the natural-language `wtf is TCP`, and the command expands matching terms from acronym databases or falls back to system help sources. ### Project history The current NetBSD manual identifies `wtf` as a section 6 utility that looks up one or more terms, first in acronym databases and then through tools such as whatis, pkg_info, and pkgsrc help when appropriate. Its files include the default acronym database, an offensive acronym database enabled by option, and a computer-related acronym database. The FreeBSD 7.2 manual page records the historical origin succinctly: `wtf` first appeared in NetBSD 1.5. The current NetBSD manual adds that it initially only translated acronyms, while later versions gained the ability to look up terms in other system sources. ### Adoption history The command spread beyond NetBSD through BSD ports and redistributions of the NetBSD script and acronym databases. The SourceForge bsd-wtf project describes itself as a convenient place to get the `wtf` program and acronyms database outside the NetBSD source tree, while FreeBSD and other packaging ecosystems carried variants for users who wanted the BSD utility on non-NetBSD systems. ### How it is used The canonical usage is intentionally casual: `wtf` accepts an optional ignored `is` operand so `wtf is WTF` works naturally. Users can override the acronym database with `-f` or the ACRONYMDB environment variable, which makes the tool easy to adapt to local jargon lists. In pkgsrc-aware environments, the command is more than a slang lookup: if an acronym is not found, it can ask package and manual-page sources. That makes it a tiny bridge between Unix wordplay, system documentation, and package-tree help. ### Why package nerds care wtf is package-nerd lore because it is a deliberately unserious command that still follows Unix conventions: plain text databases, environment overrides, manpage documentation, and integration with package metadata. It is also a reminder that BSD games and misc utilities often became portable command-line packages in their own right. ### Timeline - 2000: NetBSD 1.5 era in which `wtf` first appeared. - 2007-07-27: The FreeBSD 7.2 manual page documents the NetBSD origin. - 2015-04-22: The current NetBSD manual page documents later term-lookup behavior beyond acronym translation. - 2010s: SourceForge bsd-wtf provides the NetBSD utility and acronym database outside the NetBSD source tree. ### Related projects - NetBSD supplies the canonical manual page and acronym database behavior. - SourceForge bsd-wtf mirrors the NetBSD utility and data for use outside the NetBSD tree. - FreeBSD carried a ported manual page documenting the NetBSD origin. ### Sources - - - - ## Security Notes narrow executable package without higher-risk signals. - **Geiger risk:** green / low - narrow executable package without higher-risk signals ## Source Database Details - **Source Database:** Homebrew formula API - **Tap:** homebrew/core - **Full Name:** wtf - **Version Scheme:** 0 - **Revision:** 0 - **Bottle Stable Root URL:** - **Deprecated:** no - **Disabled:** no - **Keg Only:** no - **URL Keys:** stable ## Other Package-Manager Records - Nix - wtf: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/wt/wtf/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 - MacPorts - wtf: normalized package name match | MacPorts ports tree: games/wtf/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Related links - [Terminal utility packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/terminal-utilities/) - Matched terminal and command-line workflow metadata. - [Networking and protocol packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/networking-protocol-tools/) - Matched network, protocol, or remote-service metadata. - [Productivity CLI packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/productivity-cli-packages/) - Matched curated productivity category metadata from av.db. - [Homebrew utility packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew-utility-packages/) - Matched Homebrew package provider. - [gucharmap](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gucharmap/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, productivity, reference. - [dict](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/dict/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, productivity, reference. - [gocheat](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gocheat/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, productivity, reference. - [a2ps](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/a2ps/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, productivity. - [abook](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/abook/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, productivity. - [acronym](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/acronym/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, productivity. - [ad](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/ad/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, productivity. - [aerc](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/aerc/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, productivity. - [biber](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/biber/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: cli, productivity. - [bibutils](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/bibutils/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: cli, productivity. - [esniper](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/esniper/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: cli, productivity. ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/wtf.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/wtf.yml) ## Sources - Nucleus package database - Geiger risk classifier - package-page enrichment - curated package history - package version freshness - av.db category and tag curation - package relationship graph - external package-manager database matches - cross-ecosystem install command graph