diff --git a/src/commands/jq/jq.string-key-shorthand.test.ts b/src/commands/jq/jq.string-key-shorthand.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..f1073f58
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/commands/jq/jq.string-key-shorthand.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,192 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { Bash } from "../../Bash.js";
+import { parse } from "../query-engine/parser.js";
+import type { ObjectNode } from "../query-engine/parser-types.js";
+
+function expectShorthandEntry(
+  entry: ObjectNode["entries"][number],
+  keyName: string,
+) {
+  expect(entry.key).toBe(keyName);
+  expect(entry.value).toEqual({ type: "Field", name: keyName });
+}
+
+describe("jq string key shorthand in object construction", () => {
+  describe("parser: quoted string keys without colon", () => {
+    it('should parse {"name"} as shorthand with correct AST', () => {
+      const ast = parse('{"name"}') as ObjectNode;
+      expect(ast.type).toBe("Object");
+      expect(ast.entries).toHaveLength(1);
+      expectShorthandEntry(ast.entries[0], "name");
+    });
+
+    it('should parse {"name", "label"} as shorthand with correct AST', () => {
+      const ast = parse('{"name", "label"}') as ObjectNode;
+      expect(ast.type).toBe("Object");
+      expect(ast.entries).toHaveLength(2);
+      expectShorthandEntry(ast.entries[0], "name");
+      expectShorthandEntry(ast.entries[1], "label");
+    });
+
+    it('should parse {"if"} as shorthand (keyword as string key)', () => {
+      const ast = parse('{"if"}') as ObjectNode;
+      expect(ast.type).toBe("Object");
+      expect(ast.entries).toHaveLength(1);
+      expectShorthandEntry(ast.entries[0], "if");
+    });
+
+    it('should parse {"as"} as shorthand (keyword as string key)', () => {
+      const ast = parse('{"as"}') as ObjectNode;
+      expect(ast.type).toBe("Object");
+      expect(ast.entries).toHaveLength(1);
+      expectShorthandEntry(ast.entries[0], "as");
+    });
+
+    it('should parse {"try"} as shorthand (keyword as string key)', () => {
+      const ast = parse('{"try"}') as ObjectNode;
+      expect(ast.type).toBe("Object");
+      expect(ast.entries).toHaveLength(1);
+      expectShorthandEntry(ast.entries[0], "try");
+    });
+
+    it('should parse {"true"} as shorthand (keyword as string key)', () => {
+      const ast = parse('{"true"}') as ObjectNode;
+      expect(ast.type).toBe("Object");
+      expect(ast.entries).toHaveLength(1);
+      expectShorthandEntry(ast.entries[0], "true");
+    });
+
+    it('should parse {"null"} as shorthand (keyword as string key)', () => {
+      const ast = parse('{"null"}') as ObjectNode;
+      expect(ast.type).toBe("Object");
+      expect(ast.entries).toHaveLength(1);
+      expectShorthandEntry(ast.entries[0], "null");
+    });
+
+    it('should parse mixed: {"name", "label": .x}', () => {
+      const ast = parse('{"name", "label": .x}') as ObjectNode;
+      expect(ast.type).toBe("Object");
+      expect(ast.entries).toHaveLength(2);
+      expectShorthandEntry(ast.entries[0], "name");
+      expect(ast.entries[1].key).toBe("label");
+      expect(ast.entries[1].value).toEqual({ type: "Field", name: "x" });
+    });
+
+    it('should parse non-identifier key {"a-b"} as shorthand', () => {
+      const ast = parse('{"a-b"}') as ObjectNode;
+      expect(ast.type).toBe("Object");
+      expect(ast.entries).toHaveLength(1);
+      expectShorthandEntry(ast.entries[0], "a-b");
+    });
+
+    it('should parse numeric string key {"1"} as shorthand', () => {
+      const ast = parse('{"1"}') as ObjectNode;
+      expect(ast.type).toBe("Object");
+      expect(ast.entries).toHaveLength(1);
+      expectShorthandEntry(ast.entries[0], "1");
+    });
+
+    it('should parse empty string key {""} as shorthand', () => {
+      const ast = parse('{""}') as ObjectNode;
+      expect(ast.type).toBe("Object");
+      expect(ast.entries).toHaveLength(1);
+      expectShorthandEntry(ast.entries[0], "");
+    });
+
+    it("should still parse explicit key-value with string key", () => {
+      const ast = parse('{"name": .x}') as ObjectNode;
+      expect(ast.type).toBe("Object");
+      expect(ast.entries).toHaveLength(1);
+      expect(ast.entries[0].key).toBe("name");
+      expect(ast.entries[0].value).toEqual({ type: "Field", name: "x" });
+    });
+  });
+
+  describe("evaluation: quoted string key shorthand", () => {
+    it('should evaluate {"name"} shorthand', async () => {
+      const env = new Bash();
+      const result = await env.exec(
+        `echo '{"name":"foo","extra":"bar"}' | jq -c '{"name"}'`,
+      );
+      expect(result.exitCode).toBe(0);
+      expect(result.stdout).toBe('{"name":"foo"}\n');
+    });
+
+    it('should evaluate {"name", "label"} shorthand', async () => {
+      const env = new Bash();
+      const result = await env.exec(
+        `echo '{"name":"foo","label":"bar","extra":"baz"}' | jq -c '{"name", "label"}'`,
+      );
+      expect(result.exitCode).toBe(0);
+      expect(result.stdout).toBe('{"name":"foo","label":"bar"}\n');
+    });
+
+    it('should evaluate {"if"} keyword string shorthand', async () => {
+      const env = new Bash();
+      const result = await env.exec(`echo '{"if":"val"}' | jq -c '{"if"}'`);
+      expect(result.exitCode).toBe(0);
+      expect(result.stdout).toBe('{"if":"val"}\n');
+    });
+
+    it('should evaluate {"true"} keyword string shorthand', async () => {
+      const env = new Bash();
+      const result = await env.exec(`echo '{"true":"val"}' | jq -c '{"true"}'`);
+      expect(result.exitCode).toBe(0);
+      expect(result.stdout).toBe('{"true":"val"}\n');
+    });
+
+    it("should evaluate mixed shorthand and explicit keys", async () => {
+      const env = new Bash();
+      const result = await env.exec(
+        `echo '{"name":"foo","value":42}' | jq -c '{"name", "v": .value}'`,
+      );
+      expect(result.exitCode).toBe(0);
+      expect(result.stdout).toBe('{"name":"foo","v":42}\n');
+    });
+
+    it("should evaluate string shorthand in fromjson pipeline", async () => {
+      const env = new Bash();
+      const result = await env.exec(
+        `echo '{"content":[{"text":"{\\"id\\":\\"abcde\\",\\"name\\":\\"foo\\",\\"label\\":\\"bar\\"}"}]}' | jq -c '.content[0].text | fromjson | select(.id == "abcde") | {"name", "label"}'`,
+      );
+      expect(result.exitCode).toBe(0);
+      expect(result.stdout).toBe('{"name":"foo","label":"bar"}\n');
+    });
+
+    it("should evaluate string shorthand in fromjson + array iteration pipeline", async () => {
+      const env = new Bash();
+      const result = await env.exec(
+        `echo '{"content":[{"text":"[{\\"id\\":\\"abcde\\",\\"name\\":\\"foo\\",\\"label\\":\\"bar\\"},{\\"id\\":\\"xyz\\",\\"name\\":\\"baz\\",\\"label\\":\\"qux\\"}]"}]}' | jq -c '.content[0].text | fromjson | .[] | select(.id == "abcde") | {"name", "label"}'`,
+      );
+      expect(result.exitCode).toBe(0);
+      expect(result.stdout).toBe('{"name":"foo","label":"bar"}\n');
+    });
+
+    it('should evaluate non-identifier key {"a-b"} shorthand', async () => {
+      const env = new Bash();
+      const result = await env.exec(
+        `echo '{"a-b":"val","extra":"x"}' | jq -c '{"a-b"}'`,
+      );
+      expect(result.exitCode).toBe(0);
+      expect(result.stdout).toBe('{"a-b":"val"}\n');
+    });
+
+    it('should evaluate numeric string key {"1"} shorthand', async () => {
+      const env = new Bash();
+      const result = await env.exec(
+        `echo '{"1":"val","extra":"x"}' | jq -c '{"1"}'`,
+      );
+      expect(result.exitCode).toBe(0);
+      expect(result.stdout).toBe('{"1":"val"}\n');
+    });
+
+    it('should evaluate empty string key {""} shorthand', async () => {
+      const env = new Bash();
+      const result = await env.exec(
+        `echo '{"":"val","extra":"x"}' | jq -c '{""}'`,
+      );
+      expect(result.exitCode).toBe(0);
+      expect(result.stdout).toBe('{"":"val"}\n');
+    });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/src/commands/query-engine/parser.ts b/src/commands/query-engine/parser.ts
index 8a71bc51..12991c69 100644
--- a/src/commands/query-engine/parser.ts
+++ b/src/commands/query-engine/parser.ts
@@ -1030,9 +1030,14 @@ class Parser {
             value = { type: "Field", name: ident };
           }
         } else if (this.check("STRING")) {
-          key = this.advance().value as string;
-          this.expect("COLON", "Expected ':'");
-          value = this.parseObjectValue();
+          const ident = this.advance().value as string;
+          if (this.match("COLON")) {
+            key = ident;
+            value = this.parseObjectValue();
+          } else {
+            key = ident;
+            value = { type: "Field", name: ident };
+          }
         } else {
           throw new Error(`Expected object key at position ${this.peek().pos}`);
         }
diff --git a/src/comparison-tests/fixtures/jq.comparison.fixtures.json b/src/comparison-tests/fixtures/jq.comparison.fixtures.json
index 72d0ce88..677b0c69 100644
--- a/src/comparison-tests/fixtures/jq.comparison.fixtures.json
+++ b/src/comparison-tests/fixtures/jq.comparison.fixtures.json
@@ -62,6 +62,15 @@
     "stderr": "",
     "exitCode": 0
   },
+  "348c7a17b8cc0a03": {
+    "command": "jq -c '{\"\"}'  data.json",
+    "files": {
+      "data.json": "{\"\":\"val\",\"extra\":\"x\"}"
+    },
+    "stdout": "{\"\":\"val\"}\n",
+    "stderr": "",
+    "exitCode": 0
+  },
   "3a5bd13032387ef1": {
     "command": "jq 'reverse' data.json",
     "files": {
@@ -116,6 +125,15 @@
     "stderr": "",
     "exitCode": 0
   },
+  "889ffd5c41c5b865": {
+    "command": "jq -c '{\"a-b\"}' data.json",
+    "files": {
+      "data.json": "{\"a-b\":\"val\",\"extra\":\"x\"}"
+    },
+    "stdout": "{\"a-b\":\"val\"}\n",
+    "stderr": "",
+    "exitCode": 0
+  },
   "91c885f22f4323a6": {
     "command": "jq '.' data.json",
     "files": {
@@ -195,6 +213,24 @@
     "stderr": "",
     "exitCode": 0
   },
+  "dec647b75a377ca2": {
+    "command": "jq -c '{\"true\"}' data.json",
+    "files": {
+      "data.json": "{\"true\":\"val\"}"
+    },
+    "stdout": "{\"true\":\"val\"}\n",
+    "stderr": "",
+    "exitCode": 0
+  },
+  "e32062f2c537fbe0": {
+    "command": "jq -c '{\"name\", \"v\": .value}' data.json",
+    "files": {
+      "data.json": "{\"name\":\"foo\",\"value\":42}"
+    },
+    "stdout": "{\"name\":\"foo\",\"v\":42}\n",
+    "stderr": "",
+    "exitCode": 0
+  },
   "e433b214be1f80db": {
     "command": "jq 'type' data.json",
     "files": {
@@ -213,6 +249,15 @@
     "stderr": "",
     "exitCode": 0
   },
+  "ea65254b095a5b4d": {
+    "command": "jq -c '{\"name\", \"label\"}' data.json",
+    "files": {
+      "data.json": "{\"name\":\"foo\",\"label\":\"bar\",\"extra\":\"baz\"}"
+    },
+    "stdout": "{\"name\":\"foo\",\"label\":\"bar\"}\n",
+    "stderr": "",
+    "exitCode": 0
+  },
   "eecd9132c8f55a66": {
     "command": "jq 'join(\"-\")' data.json",
     "files": {
@@ -238,6 +283,33 @@
     "stderr": "",
     "exitCode": 0
   },
+  "f3069be0bd4e62b6": {
+    "command": "jq -c '{\"1\"}' data.json",
+    "files": {
+      "data.json": "{\"1\":\"val\",\"extra\":\"x\"}"
+    },
+    "stdout": "{\"1\":\"val\"}\n",
+    "stderr": "",
+    "exitCode": 0
+  },
+  "f9870901c3117349": {
+    "command": "jq -c '{\"if\"}' data.json",
+    "files": {
+      "data.json": "{\"if\":\"val\"}"
+    },
+    "stdout": "{\"if\":\"val\"}\n",
+    "stderr": "",
+    "exitCode": 0
+  },
+  "fef2973c52922ba7": {
+    "command": "jq -c '{\"name\"}' data.json",
+    "files": {
+      "data.json": "{\"name\":\"foo\",\"extra\":\"bar\"}"
+    },
+    "stdout": "{\"name\":\"foo\"}\n",
+    "stderr": "",
+    "exitCode": 0
+  },
   "ff7f24721da0b6cc": {
     "command": "jq '.' data.json",
     "files": {
diff --git a/src/comparison-tests/jq.comparison.test.ts b/src/comparison-tests/jq.comparison.test.ts
index 779f6f11..d3551e2f 100644
--- a/src/comparison-tests/jq.comparison.test.ts
+++ b/src/comparison-tests/jq.comparison.test.ts
@@ -229,6 +229,68 @@ describe("jq command - Real Bash Comparison", () => {
     });
   });
 
+  describe("object construction with string key shorthand", () => {
+    it('should handle {"name"} shorthand', async () => {
+      const env = await setupFiles(testDir, {
+        "data.json": '{"name":"foo","extra":"bar"}',
+      });
+      await compareOutputs(env, testDir, `jq -c '{"name"}' data.json`);
+    });
+
+    it('should handle {"name", "label"} shorthand', async () => {
+      const env = await setupFiles(testDir, {
+        "data.json": '{"name":"foo","label":"bar","extra":"baz"}',
+      });
+      await compareOutputs(env, testDir, `jq -c '{"name", "label"}' data.json`);
+    });
+
+    it('should handle {"if"} keyword string shorthand', async () => {
+      const env = await setupFiles(testDir, {
+        "data.json": '{"if":"val"}',
+      });
+      await compareOutputs(env, testDir, `jq -c '{"if"}' data.json`);
+    });
+
+    it('should handle {"true"} keyword string shorthand', async () => {
+      const env = await setupFiles(testDir, {
+        "data.json": '{"true":"val"}',
+      });
+      await compareOutputs(env, testDir, `jq -c '{"true"}' data.json`);
+    });
+
+    it("should handle mixed shorthand and explicit keys", async () => {
+      const env = await setupFiles(testDir, {
+        "data.json": '{"name":"foo","value":42}',
+      });
+      await compareOutputs(
+        env,
+        testDir,
+        `jq -c '{"name", "v": .value}' data.json`,
+      );
+    });
+
+    it('should handle non-identifier key {"a-b"} shorthand', async () => {
+      const env = await setupFiles(testDir, {
+        "data.json": '{"a-b":"val","extra":"x"}',
+      });
+      await compareOutputs(env, testDir, `jq -c '{"a-b"}' data.json`);
+    });
+
+    it('should handle numeric string key {"1"} shorthand', async () => {
+      const env = await setupFiles(testDir, {
+        "data.json": '{"1":"val","extra":"x"}',
+      });
+      await compareOutputs(env, testDir, `jq -c '{"1"}' data.json`);
+    });
+
+    it('should handle empty string key {""} shorthand', async () => {
+      const env = await setupFiles(testDir, {
+        "data.json": '{"":"val","extra":"x"}',
+      });
+      await compareOutputs(env, testDir, `jq -c '{""}'  data.json`);
+    });
+  });
+
   describe("string functions", () => {
     it("should split strings", async () => {
       const env = await setupFiles(testDir, {