How do I show context lines around each match when using the :global command?
:g/pattern/z#.5
The :global command is great for finding lines matching a pattern, but by default it only shows the matching lines themselves.
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How do I move the current line up or down using an Ex command?
:m.+1 and :m.-2
The :move (:m) command relocates a line to a new position without cutting and pasting.
How do I center the screen on the cursor line?
zz
The zz command scrolls the window so that the current cursor line appears in the middle of the screen.
How do I enable spell checking in Vim?
:set spell
The :set spell command activates Vim's built-in spell checker, which highlights misspelled words directly in your buffer.
How do I run tests directly from Vim without switching to a terminal?
:TestNearest
The vim-test plugin by Janko Marohnić provides a universal interface for running tests from within Vim.
How do I temporarily disable all autocommands when running an Ex command?
:noautocmd {command}
The :noautocmd prefix (abbreviated :noa) suppresses all autocommand events for the duration of the following command.
command-line #ex-commands #autocommands #performance #command-line #scripting
How do I display multiple column guide lines at different widths simultaneously in Vim?
:set colorcolumn=80,120
colorcolumn highlights one or more screen columns to serve as a visual ruler.
How do I move my cursor into the preview window to interact with its contents?
<C-w>P
The preview window is a special auxiliary split — usually at the top — opened by commands like :ptag, :pedit, and omni-completion to display reference infor
How do I display the current filename in the terminal window title bar while editing in Vim?
:set title
Enabling title tells Vim to update the terminal window's title bar with information about the current file.
How do I jump to the beginning of the previous word?
b
The b command moves the cursor backward to the beginning of the previous word.
How do I center or right-align lines of text using Vim's built-in Ex commands?
:%center 80
Vim has three built-in Ex formatting commands — :left, :center, and :right — that align text within a specified column width.
How do I run an interactive replacement across quickfix entries and only save changed files?
:cdo keeppatterns s/\<foo\>/bar/gec | update
When quickfix already contains precise targets, :cdo gives you a safer multi-file replace loop than broad project substitutions.
command-line #command-line #quickfix #substitute #refactoring
How do I define the comment format Vim uses for auto-commenting and plugins like vim-commentary?
:set commentstring=//\ %s
The commentstring option controls the template Vim uses to represent commented-out lines.
How do I create and auto-format Markdown or textile tables in Vim?
<Leader>tm
The vim-table-mode plugin by Dhruva Sagar turns Vim into a powerful table editor that automatically formats and aligns table columns as you type.
How do I remove trailing spaces only within the currently selected visual block?
:'<,'>s/\%V\s\+$//
Sometimes you need to clean alignment artifacts in a rectangular region without touching the rest of each line.
visual-mode #visual-mode #substitution #regex #formatting #editing
How do I force Vim to recompute all folds in the current window?
zx
The zx command resets and recomputes all folds in the current window based on the current foldmethod.
How do I move the cursor to the last non-blank character on the current line?
g_
g moves the cursor to the last non-blank character of the current line — skipping trailing spaces and tabs.
How do I add or remove words from Vim's spell check dictionary?
zg and zw
When Vim's spell checker marks a word as incorrect but it is intentionally spelled that way (a name, abbreviation, or domain-specific term), you can permanently
How do I delete or change an entire paragraph of text in one motion?
dap / dip
The dap and dip commands use Vim's paragraph text objects to delete an entire block of contiguous text in a single motion.
editing #editing #text-objects #normal-mode #delete #motions
How do I prevent cursor movement in insert mode from splitting the undo block?
inoremap <Left> <C-g>U<Left>
In insert mode, any cursor movement — including arrow keys, Home, and End — causes Vim to split the undo block at that point.