Linux in a Nutshell, 6th Edition

Name

append

Synopsis

[address] a[!]
text
.

Append new text at specified address, or at present address if none is specified. Add a ! to toggle the autoindent setting that is used during input. That is, if autoindent was enabled, ! disables it. Enter new text after entering the command. Terminate input of new text by entering a line consisting of just a period.

Example

:a                    Begin appending to current line.
Append this line
and this line too.
.                     Terminate input of text to append.