PostgreSQL 7.2 Documentation
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# TRUNCATE

## Name

TRUNCATE -- empty a table

## Synopsis

    TRUNCATE [ TABLE ] name

### Inputs

`name`

  The name of the table to be truncated.

### Outputs

`TRUNCATE`

  Message returned if the table is successfully truncated.

## Description

TRUNCATE quickly removes all rows from a table. It has the same effect as an unqualified DELETE but since it does not actually scan the table it is faster. This is most useful on large tables.

TRUNCATE cannot be executed inside a transaction block (BEGIN/COMMIT pair), because there is no way to roll it back.

## Usage

Truncate the table `bigtable`:

    TRUNCATE TABLE bigtable;

## Compatibility

### SQL92

There is no TRUNCATE in SQL92.

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