---
name: kill
status: documented
runtime: pp
source: src/runtime/pp/process.rs
---
```{index} single: kill; Perl built-in (pp runtime)
```

# kill

## Synopsis

```perl
kill 'TERM', $pid;                # send SIGTERM by name
kill 15, $pid;                    # send SIGTERM by number
kill 'TERM', $pid1, $pid2;        # signal multiple processes
kill 0, $pid;                     # check if process exists
kill -15, $pgrp;                  # signal a process group
```

## Description

Sends a signal to one or more processes or process groups.

The first argument is the signal, specified either as a name
(`'TERM'`, `'HUP'`, with or without `SIG` prefix) or as a number.
The remaining arguments are PIDs to signal.

If the signal is negative, the absolute value is sent to the
process **group** identified by each PID (using `kill(-sig, -abs(pid))`).

Signal `0` does not actually send a signal but checks whether the
process exists and is reachable (permission check).

Returns the number of processes successfully signaled.

## See also

`%SIG`, POSIX signals, fork, waitpid