case is a flow control construct that provides for multi-way branching based on patterns. ... This word is compared with each pattern in order until a match is found, at which point the associated command ( s ) are executed. case word in pattern1 ) command(s) ;; pattern2 ) command(s) ;; patternN ) command(s) ;; esac . When all the commands are executed control is passed to the first statement after the esac . ... A command can be associated with more than one pattern. ...