[matja]

Simple to verify with strace -f bash -c "> file":

    openat(AT_FDCWD, "file", O_WRONLY|O_CREAT|O_TRUNC, 0666) = 3

man 2 openat:

    O_TRUNC
        If the file already exists and is a regular file and the
        access mode allows writing (i.e., is O_RDWR or O_WRONLY) it
        will be truncated to length 0.
        ...

[pdimitar]

Sure, but I just get an interactive prompt when I type `> file` and I honestly don't care to troubleshoot. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[matja]

Probably you are using zsh and need:

    MULTIOS=1 > file

- zsh isn't POSIX compatible by default

[pdimitar]

I see. But in this case it's best to just memorize `truncate -s0` which is shell-neutral.

[matja]

Ok, we'll leave that a mystery then!