file-or-folder-based-overrides.md

Use an Extra Dictionary Based on the Folder or Filename

By default, the Bash dictionary is only applied to files of type shellscript. This example shows how to enable the Bash dictionary for specific folders or filenames using overrides in your cspell configuration.

Note: pre-commit uses the same cspell configuration, so overrides work identically when running cspell via pre-commit.

Example: Enable the Bash Dictionary for Markdown Files

Consider a project where Markdown files contain Bash code blocks. Words like esac, getopts, and shopt will be flagged as unknown because the Bash dictionary is not active for .md files by default.

Configuration

Add an overrides section to your cspell.json:

{
  "overrides": [
    {
      "filename": ["**/bash_docs/**/*.md", "**/bash_examples/**"],
      "dictionaries": ["bash"]
    }
  ],
  "version": "0.2"
}

With this configuration:

• docs/bash_docs/pipes.md — will use the Bash dictionary (no errors for bash words)
• docs/about.md — will not use the Bash dictionary (bash words flagged as errors)

Alternative: Enable the Dictionary in a Single File

For a single file, use an inline directive instead of configuring overrides:

<!--- cspell:dictionaries bash --->

This is useful when only one or two files need the extra dictionary.

See Also

• Use Dictionaries from cspell-dicts
• Use a Custom Dictionary
• Setup pre-commit Hook