I thought this was a weird bug until I discovered what was happening. % is used as a variable sigil.
For example
```bash
echo %d %f
```
will print
```plaintext
/path/to thefile
```
if thefile is selected and we are in dir %d.

| Macro | What it Expands To |
| --- | --- |
| **`%f`** | The currently highlighted/selected file name |
| **`%F`** | The selected file in the unselected panel |
| **`%d`** | The path of the current working directory |
| **`%D`** | The path of the directory in the unselected panel |
| **`%s`** | All currently tagged/selected files |
| **`%%`** | A literal `%` symbol |

### How to Bypass Macro Parsing

If you want to pass raw commands directly to your shell without MC expanding `%` macros:

1. **Hide the panels:** Press **`Ctrl` + `o`** to toggle off the MC panels and jump directly into your subshell. Typing `echo %%` here will output `%%` (or behave according to your shell's rules). Press **`Ctrl` + `o`** again to return to the MC layout.
2. **Escape manually:** Continue using `%%` whenever you want a single `%` passed through the MC command prompt.