How do I refer to all files in the argument list at once in an Ex command?
##
The ## special token expands to the names of all files currently in Vim's argument list.
Search: g* g#
795 results for "g* g#"
How do I preview a macro register with escaped keycodes before executing it?
:put =strtrans(@q)<CR>
Macro failures are often caused by hidden control keys like , , or tabs that are hard to see in raw register output.
How do I search for a pattern only on a specific line number or at a specific column position?
\%l and \%c
Vim's \%l and \%c pattern atoms anchor a search to a particular line number or column, enabling surgical searches and substitutions that standard regex cannot e
How do I force a case-sensitive or case-insensitive search for just one pattern without changing my settings?
\C
Vim's \C and \c atoms let you override ignorecase and smartcase on a per-pattern basis.
How do I put a register as true line list so embedded newlines stay split correctly?
:put =getreg('a', 1, 1)
Most register pastes are character-oriented, but advanced edits often need to preserve exact line structure.
registers #registers #ex-commands #scripting #text-processing
How do I convert the entire current line to lowercase or uppercase in one command?
guu / gUU
Vim's case operators gu (lowercase) and gU (uppercase) follow the same doubling convention as dd and yy: repeating the operator letter applies it to the whole c
How do I run an Ex command without changing the current search pattern?
:keeppattern {cmd}
Many Ex commands silently overwrite the search register (@/), which changes your hlsearch highlighting and n/N behavior.
How do I use zero-width lookbehind assertions in Vim search patterns to match text only when preceded (or not preceded) by a pattern?
\@<= and \@<!
Vim's \@<= and \@<! atoms let you write zero-width lookbehind assertions — they check what comes before the match position without consuming characters.
How do I enable Ctrl-A and Ctrl-X to increment and decrement binary numbers like 0b1010 in Vim?
:set nrformats+=bin
Vim's and commands increment and decrement numbers under the cursor, but by default they only handle decimal and hexadecimal.
How do I run a normal mode command on multiple lines at once?
:'<,'>norm! A;
The :normal Ex command lets you execute any Normal mode keystrokes on a range of lines simultaneously, turning a single-line operation into a multi-line batch e
editing #editing #normal-mode #ex-commands #visual-mode #text-manipulation
How do I inspect only Ex command history so I can quickly rerun a complex command?
:history :
When you work with long substitution pipelines or multi-part Ex commands, digging through all history (:history) adds noise.
How do I load shell command output into quickfix without running :grep?
:cgetexpr systemlist('rg --vimgrep TODO')
When you already have a shell command that emits file:line:col:message records, :cgetexpr is a fast way to populate quickfix directly.
How do I look up documentation for the keyword under the cursor?
K
Pressing K in normal mode runs a lookup program on the word under the cursor.
navigation #navigation #help #documentation #normal-mode #keywordprg
How do I reorder tab pages in Vim without specifying an absolute position?
:tabmove +1
:tabmove normally takes an absolute position (:tabmove 0 moves the tab to the far left), but it also accepts relative offsets using + and -.
How do I convert a word between snake_case, camelCase, MixedCase, and kebab-case with a single keystroke?
cr{s/m/c/k/u}
The vim-abolish plugin provides cr{type} coercions that instantly convert the word under the cursor to a different naming convention.
How do I accept a flagged word as correct for the current session without permanently adding it to my spellfile?
zG
zG marks the word under the cursor as correctly spelled in Vim's internal word list, which exists only for the current session.
How do I programmatically set the contents of a register from the command line?
:let @a = "value"
The :let @{reg} = expr command lets you assign any string or expression directly into a named register without entering insert mode or performing a yank.
How do I change the filename associated with the current buffer in Vim without saving to disk?
:file {newname}
:file {newname} (short form: :f {newname}) changes the filename Vim associates with the current buffer.
How do I write a Vim regex that matches any character including newlines for multi-line pattern matching?
\_.
In Vim's regular expressions, .
How do I turn a visual selection of lines into a numbered list?
:s/^/\=line('.') - line("'<") + 1 . '. '/
When you need to quickly number a set of lines — such as TODO items, steps, or bullet points — you can use a visual selection combined with a substitution e
visual-mode #visual-mode #editing #ex-commands #formatting #substitute