What Does rv Mean in a Script File?

If you've been digging through shell scripts, batch files, or configuration scripts and stumbled across rv — you're not alone. It's one of those shorthand notations that looks obvious once you know it, but can be genuinely confusing without context. Here's what it means, where it shows up, and why it matters.

The Short Answer: rv Usually Stands for "Return Value"

In most scripting contexts, rv is a variable name used to store the return value of a command, function, or process. It's a developer convention — not a reserved keyword in most languages — but it's widely understood shorthand in shell scripting, Python, Perl, Ruby, and similar environments.

When a function or command finishes executing, it typically hands back a number or result. That result gets captured in a variable, and rv is a common name for that variable.