Instead of staging entire files, git add -p (or --patch) lets you interactively review and stage individual chunks (hunks) of changes. This is perfect for creating focused, logical commits from a file with mixed changes.

Usage:

git add -p [file]

Git will show each hunk and prompt you with options:

Common options:

• y - Stage this hunk
• n - Don’t stage this hunk
• s - Split into smaller hunks
• e - Manually edit the hunk
• q - Quit (don’t stage this or remaining hunks)
• ? - Show help for all options

Example scenario:

You have a file with both bug fixes and new features. Using git add -p, you can:

1. Stage only the bug fix hunks → commit them separately
2. Stage the feature hunks → commit them as a different logical change

Why use it:

• Create clean, focused commits
• Separate unrelated changes in the same file
• Review each change before staging
• Build a more readable git history
• Make code reviews easier by grouping related changes

Split large hunks:

If Git’s hunks are too large, use s to split them into smaller pieces, or e to manually edit which lines to stage.

This approach encourages better commit hygiene and makes it easier to revert specific changes later without affecting unrelated code.

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