Subject: [PATCH v3 2/6] doc: git-checkout: clarify `git checkout <branch>`

From: "Julia Evans via GitGitGadget" <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 03 Sep 2025 16:49:58 +0000

From: Julia Evans <[email-masked]>

- Reduce use of jargon ("index", "HEAD")
- Clarify that only identical files will be left unchanged, and that
  `git checkout` will fail rather than overwrite an unchanged file
- Explain what `git checkout` with no arguments does in a more direct
  way

Signed-off-by: Julia Evans <[email-masked]>
---
 Documentation/git-checkout.adoc | 17 ++++++++---------
 1 file changed, 8 insertions(+), 9 deletions(-)

diff --git a/Documentation/git-checkout.adoc b/Documentation/git-checkout.adoc
index 218d3dd13d..50923ff118 100644
--- a/Documentation/git-checkout.adoc
+++ b/Documentation/git-checkout.adoc
@@ -28,11 +28,12 @@ DESCRIPTION
 See ARGUMENT DISAMBIGUATION below for how Git decides which one to do.
 
 `git checkout [<branch>]`::
-	To prepare for working on _<branch>_, switch to it by updating
-	the index and the files in the working tree, and by pointing
-	`HEAD` at the branch. Local modifications to the files in the
-	working tree are kept, so that they can be committed to the
-	_<branch>_.
+	Switch to _<branch>_. This sets the current branch to _<branch>_ and
+	updates the files in your working directory. Files which are
+	identical in _<branch>_ and your current commit are left unchanged
+	so that you can keep your uncommitted changes to those files.
+	This will not overwrite uncommitted changes to a file: instead it
+	will fail without making any changes.
 +
 If _<branch>_ is not found but there does exist a tracking branch in
 exactly one remote (call it _<remote>_) with a matching name and
@@ -42,10 +43,8 @@ exactly one remote (call it _<remote>_) with a matching name and
 $ git checkout -b <branch> --track <remote>/<branch>
 ------------
 +
-You could omit _<branch>_, in which case the command degenerates to
-"check out the current branch", which is a glorified no-op with
-rather expensive side-effects to show only the tracking information,
-if it exists, for the current branch.
+Running `git checkout` without specifying a branch has no effect except
+to print out the tracking information for the current branch.
 
 `git checkout (-b|-B) <new-branch> [<start-point>]`::
 
-- 
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