What are untracked files in Git?

Untracked files in Git refer specifically to new files that have been created in your working directory but have not yet been added to the staging area or committed to the repository. This means that Git is not keeping track of any changes to these files since it has not been instructed to include them in version control.

When you create a new file in your project directory, Git will recognize its presence but will not automatically track it. To start tracking those files, you would typically use the git add command, which stages the files for the next commit. Until this step is taken, those files remain untracked.

The other options represent different scenarios regarding file states in a Git repository. Committed files are already part of the version history, deleted files would be tracked in the version history, and files currently being edited can be tracked or untracked depending on whether they have been added to Git before. However, untracked files specifically highlight new files that have yet to be included in the Git tracking system.