How do I use PCRE-style regex in Vim without escaping every special character?
\v
Vim's default regex mode ("magic") requires backslashes before many special characters: \(, \ , \+, \{.
Category: search
How do I delete all blocks of text between two patterns throughout a file?
:g/start/,/end/d
The :g (global) command can operate on ranges, not just single lines.
How do I search for a pattern across all files in a project using Vim's built-in grep?
:vimgrep /pattern/ **/*
While external tools like grep or ripgrep are fast, Vim's built-in :vimgrep has a key advantage: it populates the quickfix list directly, so you can jump betwee
How do I swap two parts of a line using capture groups in a Vim substitution?
:s/\v(pattern1)(pattern2)/\2\1/
Vim's substitute command supports capture groups (also called backreferences), which let you rearrange matched portions of text.
How do I add line numbers to the beginning of every line using a substitute expression?
:%s/^/\=line('.').' '/
Vim's substitute command supports expressions in the replacement string using \=.
How do I find accidentally repeated words like 'the the' in a document?
/\(\<\w\+\>\)\_s\+\1\>
When writing or editing text, repeated words like "the the" or "is is" are a common typo that spell checkers often miss.
How do I search for text that appears after or before a specific pattern without including the pattern in the match?
/\v(pattern)@<=match
Vim supports zero-width assertions (lookahead and lookbehind) in its regex engine.
search #search #regex #advanced-search #lookahead #lookbehind
How do I search across files and populate the quickfix list without jumping to the first match?
:vimgrep /pattern/j **/*
By default, :vimgrep jumps your cursor to the first match it finds, which can be disorienting when you just want to collect results and browse them on your own
How do I search for a pattern in the current file and navigate results with the quickfix list?
:vimgrep /pattern/ %
When you need to find all occurrences of a pattern in the current file and jump between them systematically, :vimgrep with % is more powerful than basic / searc
How do I list all lines matching a pattern across the current file and its includes?
:ilist /pattern/
The :ilist command searches for a pattern not only in the current buffer but also in files referenced by #include directives (or whatever 'include' is set to).
How do I use Vim expressions and functions in substitute replacements?
:%s/\<\w\+\>/\=toupper(submatch(0))/g
The \= flag in the replacement part of :substitute tells Vim to evaluate what follows as a Vimscript expression instead of treating it as a literal string.
How do I repeat the last substitute command preserving its flags?
:&&
After running a :s/pattern/replacement/g command, you often need to repeat it on another line or range.
How do I run an Ex command on all lines between two pattern matches?
:/start/,/end/ {command}
Vim's range addressing lets you specify a line range using search patterns instead of explicit line numbers.
How do I search for patterns only at specific line or column positions in Vim?
/\%5l\%10cpattern
Vim provides position-matching atoms that constrain where a pattern can match based on line numbers, column positions, or virtual columns.
How do I search for a pattern repeated an exact number of times in Vim?
/pattern\{3}
Vim supports counted quantifiers that let you specify exactly how many times a pattern should repeat.
How do I search using lookahead and lookbehind patterns in Vim?
/pattern\@<=match
Vim supports zero-width assertions (lookahead and lookbehind) in its regex engine, allowing you to match text based on what precedes or follows it without inclu
How do I increment or add to all numbers in a file using Vim substitution?
:%s/\d\+/\=submatch(0)+1/g
Vim's expression replacement (\=) in substitutions lets you perform arithmetic on matched text.
How do I swap or rearrange text using captured groups in Vim substitution?
:%s/\(\w\+\) \(\w\+\)/\2 \1/g
Vim's substitute command supports captured groups (back-references) using \( and \), allowing you to capture parts of a match and rearrange them in the replacem
How do I search for non-printable or control characters in Vim?
/[\x00-\x1f]
Files sometimes contain hidden control characters that cause subtle bugs.
How do I search for a pattern that spans multiple lines in Vim?
/pattern\_s\+next
Vim's regular expressions support multi-line matching through underscore-prefixed atoms.