diff --git a/src/lib/options.test.ts b/src/lib/options.test.ts
index 77c08cd..9e72e01 100644
--- a/src/lib/options.test.ts
+++ b/src/lib/options.test.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
-import { parse } from "../parser";
-import { Script, TextPiece } from "../words";
-import { getOpt, Options } from "./options";
+import { parse } from '../parser';
+import { Script, TextPiece } from '../words';
+import { getOpt, Options } from './options';
 
 describe("getOpt", () => {
   const expectOpts = <P extends Options>(command: string, opts: P) => {
@@ -16,13 +16,41 @@ describe("getOpt", () => {
     expectOpts("cmd apple banana", {}).toEqual([{}, "apple", "banana"]));
 
   it("enforces minimum # of arguments", () =>
-    expectOpts("cmd", { $min: 1 }).toEqual([
-      { error: "cmd: Not enough arguments" },
+    expectOpts("extrovert", { $min: 1 }).toEqual([
+      { error: "extrovert: Not enough arguments" },
     ]));
   it("enforces maximum # of arguments", () =>
-    expectOpts("cmd apple banana", { $max: 1 }).toEqual([
-      { error: "cmd: Too many arguments" },
+    expectOpts("introvert apple banana", { $max: 1 }).toEqual([
+      { error: "introvert: Too many arguments" },
     ]));
   it("allows # of arguments in-spec", () =>
     expectOpts("cmd apple", { $min: 1, $max: 1 }).toEqual([{}, "apple"]));
+
+  it("parses boolean switches", () =>
+    expectOpts("cmd -red", { red: 0, blue: 0 }).toEqual([
+      { red: true, blue: false },
+    ]));
+  it("parses switches that take arguments", () =>
+    expectOpts("cmd -onPepper {sneeze}", { onPepper: 1 }).toEqual([
+      { onPepper: ["sneeze"] },
+    ]));
+  it("enforces switch arguments exist", () =>
+    expectOpts("cmd -onPepper", { onPepper: 1 }).toEqual([
+      { error: "cmd: Not enough arguments to -onPepper" },
+    ]));
+  it("raises an error on unknown switches", () =>
+    expectOpts("cmd -unsolicited", {}).toEqual([
+      { error: "cmd: -unsolicited is not a switch this command knows about" },
+    ]));
+
+  it("doesn't count switches as positional arguments", () =>
+    expectOpts("cmd -yellow banana", { $min: 1, $max: 1, yellow: 0 }).toEqual([
+      { yellow: true },
+      "banana",
+    ]));
+  it("doesn't count quoted words as switches", () =>
+    expectOpts('cmd "-purple"', { purple: 0 }).toEqual([
+      { purple: false },
+      "-purple",
+    ]));
 });
diff --git a/src/lib/options.ts b/src/lib/options.ts
index 30f3aa0..e1fddf7 100644
--- a/src/lib/options.ts
+++ b/src/lib/options.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import { AsText, ErrorResult, ProcResult, TextPiece } from "../words";
+import { AsText, ErrorResult, ProcResult, TextPiece } from '../words';
 
 export type Options = Record<string, number> & {
   $min?: number;
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ type ParsedOptions<P extends Options> = {
     ? never
     : P[K] extends 0
     ? boolean
-    : string[];
+    : string[] | [];
 } & {
   error?: string;
 };
@@ -68,20 +68,66 @@ export function getOptRaw<P extends Options>(
   }
 }
 
+const SWITCH_REGEX = /^-([^]*)/;
+
 function getOptCore<P extends Options>(
   argv: TextPiece[],
   options: P
 ): [ParsedOptions<P>, TextPiece[]] {
-  const [cmd, ...textPiece] = argv;
+  const [cmd, ...textPieces] = argv;
+  const positionalArgs: TextPiece[] = [];
   const flags: ParsedOptions<P> = Object.fromEntries(
     Object.entries(options)
       .filter(([name]) => name != "$min" && name != "$max")
-      .map(([name]) => [])
-  );
+      .map(([name]) => [name, options[name] == 0 ? false : []])
+  ) as ParsedOptions<P>;
 
-  // TODO: parse switches
+  // loop over args & extract switches
+  for (let i = 0; i < textPieces.length; i++) {
+    const word = textPieces[i];
+    if (!("bare" in word)) {
+      positionalArgs.push(word);
+      continue;
+    }
 
-  if (options.$min !== undefined && options.$min > textPiece.length) {
+    const switchMatch = SWITCH_REGEX.exec(word.bare);
+    if (switchMatch == null) {
+      positionalArgs.push(word);
+      continue;
+    }
+
+    const switchName = switchMatch[1] as keyof ParsedOptions<P> & string;
+    if (!(switchName in flags)) {
+      return [
+        {
+          error: `${AsText(
+            cmd
+          )}: -${switchName} is not a switch this command knows about`,
+        } as ParsedOptions<P>,
+        [],
+      ];
+    }
+
+    const switchArgCount = options[switchName];
+    if (switchArgCount == 0) {
+      (flags[switchName] as boolean) = true;
+    } else if (i + switchArgCount >= textPieces.length) {
+      return [
+        {
+          error: `${AsText(cmd)}: Not enough arguments to -${switchName}`,
+        } as ParsedOptions<P>,
+        [],
+      ];
+    } else {
+      const takeUntil = i + switchArgCount;
+      for (i++; i <= takeUntil; i++) {
+        (flags[switchName] as string[]).push(AsText(textPieces[i]));
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  // check correct number of positional arguments
+  if (options.$min !== undefined && options.$min > positionalArgs.length) {
     return [
       {
         error: `${AsText(cmd)}: Not enough arguments`,
@@ -89,7 +135,7 @@ function getOptCore<P extends Options>(
       [],
     ];
   }
-  if (options.$max !== undefined && options.$max < textPiece.length) {
+  if (options.$max !== undefined && options.$max < positionalArgs.length) {
     return [
       {
         error: `${AsText(cmd)}: Too many arguments`,
@@ -98,5 +144,5 @@ function getOptCore<P extends Options>(
     ];
   }
 
-  return [flags, textPiece];
+  return [flags, positionalArgs];
 }