The autoload command in Zsh is used to mark a function for autoloading. When the function is first invoked, Zsh looks for its definition in the function search path ($fpath). If found, it’s read into memory and executed.
A practical example: Let’s say we have a function ‘myfunc’ stored in a file with the same name. We can use autoload to load this function only when needed:
Now, whenever ‘myfunc’ is called, Zsh will automatically load and execute it from the appropriate file in $fpath. This approach optimizes performance by loading functions on-demand rather than at shell startup.
