A relative pathname specifies a file in relation to the current (or working) directory.

The current directory is the directory in which the user is currently working. For example, after logging into the system, the current directory would be the user's home directory.

Examples:

If the current directory is: /home, then the relative pathname to charles is charles.

If the current directory is: /home, then the relative pathname to pigpen is charles/pigpen.

If the current directory is: /home, then the relative pathname to baseball is charles/franklin/baseball.