How do I paste register contents at the beginning of a file without moving the cursor there first?
:0put
The :put Ex command inserts register contents as a new line below the specified line number.
Search: i" a"
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How do I populate a window-local location list from the current file and open it immediately?
:lgrep /pattern/ % | lopen
Quickfix is global, but sometimes you want a narrower search workspace tied to one window.
How do I run a macro across all open buffers at once?
:bufdo normal @a
The :bufdo command executes an Ex command in every open buffer, and when combined with :normal @a, it replays macro a across all of them.
macros #macros #buffers #ex-commands #automation #productivity
How do I send commands from a Vim buffer to an embedded terminal?
:term then <C-w>N for normal mode
Vim 8+ and Neovim have a built-in terminal emulator that runs inside a buffer.
command-line #command-line #terminal #workflow #productivity
How do I view all LSP diagnostics in a structured list with Trouble?
:Trouble diagnostics
trouble.
How do I rearrange or transform captured groups in a substitution using Vimscript?
:s/\(\w\+\) \(\w\+\)/\=submatch(2) . ' ' . submatch(1)/
The submatch(N) function lets you access individual capture groups inside a \= (expression replacement) in a substitution.
How do I show the current buffer in a new tab without re-reading it from disk?
:tab sbuffer
Sometimes you want a second workspace for the same file: one tab for broad navigation, another for focused edits or test-driven jumps.
buffers-windows #buffers-windows #tabs #workflow #navigation
How do I refactor a recorded macro by rewriting its keystrokes with substitute()?
:let @q = substitute(@q, 'foo', 'bar', 'g')
Recorded macros are plain text stored in registers, which means you can refactor them instead of re-recording from scratch.
How do I paste over a visual selection and automatically save the replaced text to a register?
{visual}p
When you visually select text and press p, Vim replaces the selection with the contents of the default register and saves the replaced text into the unnamed reg
How do I jump to a tag in a new split window showing all matching tags?
<C-w>g]
g] splits the window and then runs :tselect for the identifier under the cursor, displaying a numbered list of all matching tags so you can pick the exact defin
How do I reformat a paragraph to fit a specific line width?
gqip
The gqip command reformats the current paragraph to fit within the configured textwidth.
How do I run a dynamically constructed Ex command or pass special keys to :normal?
:execute
:execute evaluates a string as an Ex command, letting you build commands dynamically or embed special key sequences (like or ) as literal characters.
How do I rename a variable across all its case variants (camelCase, snake_case, SCREAMING_CASE) in one command?
:Subvert/{src}/{tgt}/g
vim-abolish provides :Subvert, a smarter substitute that detects and preserves the case style of each match.
How do I jump back and forth between my two most recent cursor positions?
<C-o> / <C-i>
Vim maintains a jumplist — a history of every "jump" you make (searches, marks, gg, G, %, etc.
How do I prevent a macro from stopping when a command fails?
Use :s/pat/rep/e flag or :silent! prefix
By default, Vim macros abort on the first error — a failed search, a substitute with no matches, or a movement that can't be performed.
How do I insert a Unicode character by its codepoint in insert mode?
<C-v>u{hex}
In insert mode, pressing followed by u and a 4-digit hexadecimal codepoint inserts the corresponding Unicode character directly into the buffer.
How do I run a Vim command without triggering any autocommands?
:noautocmd write
The :noautocmd modifier (abbreviated :noa) runs any subsequent Ex command while temporarily disabling all autocommand events.
How do I prevent Vim from automatically resizing a window when others open or close?
:set winfixwidth
Setting winfixwidth on a window tells Vim not to adjust its width when other windows are created, closed, or resized with =.
How do I rerun a previous search pattern from history directly on the / prompt?
/\V<C-r>=histget('/', -2)<CR>
If you often alternate between two complex search patterns, opening q/ each time is slow.
How do I execute Ctrl-W window commands from a Vimscript mapping or function without using :normal?
:wincmd {key}
:wincmd is the Ex command equivalent of any keystroke.