The error appears when the FIELDS or LINES terminator strings in a LOAD DATA or SELECT ... INTO OUTFILE statement are invalid, duplicated, or wrongly escaped.
MySQL Error 1083: ER_WRONG_FIELD_TERMINATORS means the FIELDS or LINES terminator strings in LOAD DATA/SELECT ... INTO OUTFILE are malformed. Use single-character delimiters, escape backslashes, and keep FIELD and LINE terminators distinct to resolve the issue.
Field separator argument is not what is expected; check
Error 1083 is raised when MySQL cannot parse the FIELDS TERMINATED BY or LINES TERMINATED BY clauses in bulk import or export statements.
The server checks that each terminator string is valid, properly quoted, and does not conflict with the other delimiters.
When a check fails, it aborts the statement and returns 1083.
Supplying multi-character or duplicate terminators causes a format mismatch that MySQL rejects.
Using the same string for both FIELDS and LINES delimiters prevents the parser from identifying field boundaries.
Unescaped backslashes, tabs, or newline symbols inside the quoted string break the normal escape-processing path and trigger 1083.
Character-set mismatches, especially in UTF-8 multibyte environments, lead to invalid byte sequences that MySQL flags as wrong separators.
Choose simple, distinct single-character delimiters such as ',' for fields and '\n' for lines.
Always wrap delimiters in single quotes and double-escape backslashes when the statement is executed from within a client language.
Test the statement with EXPLAIN FORMAT=JSON to confirm the parser accepts the syntax before running the full import.
A LOAD DATA statement copied from spreadsheets often contains CRLF (\r\n) line endings.
Replace with just \n in Unix systems to avoid 1083.
When exporting to CSV, SELECT ... INTO OUTFILE may use '\n' implicitly.
Explicitly add FIELDS TERMINATED BY ',' LINES TERMINATED BY '\n' to guarantee compatibility.
Document field and line terminators in your ETL specs so all team members use the same format.
Validate input files with a small sample load inside a transaction; rollback if 1083 appears.
Galaxy's SQL editor highlights escape sequences and flags conflicting options, letting you correct terminators before running the statement.
Error 1082 ER_WRONG_FIELD_COUNT_IN_RECORD appears when the field count per line is inconsistent; fix by auditing the delimiter placement.
Error 1045 ER_ACCESS_DENIED is unrelated to delimiters but often surfaces in the same bulk-load workflows; ensure proper privileges.
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Yes, but wrap it in single quotes and double-escape in client libraries: FIELDS TERMINATED BY '\\t'.
No. Delimiters must be simple, single-byte characters to avoid ambiguity.
CRLF (\r\n) may be interpreted as two delimiters. Convert to \n or specify LINES TERMINATED BY '\r\n'.
Galaxy highlights unmatched quotes and duplicate terminator strings in the editor, preventing execution until the syntax is valid.
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