How do I let h/l and arrow keys wrap to adjacent lines at line boundaries?
:set whichwrap+=<,>,h,l
By default, h and l stop at line boundaries.
Tag: motions
How do I jump several older change locations at once in Vim instead of repeating g;?
5g;
Most users know g; moves backward through the changelist, but fewer people use a count with it.
How do I make Ctrl-O and Ctrl-I behave like browser back and forward in Vim?
:set jumpoptions+=stack
By default, Vim's jumplist can feel surprising: if you jump backward and then make a new jump, the old forward path is not always discarded like a browser histo
How do I move the cursor just after each search match instead of at match start?
/pattern/e+1<CR>
Most Vim searches place the cursor at the start of the match.
How do I jump to the next or previous method start using built-in motions?
]m / [m
When you're reviewing or refactoring C-style code, jumping by words or paragraphs is too coarse, and search can become noisy.
navigation #navigation #motions #code-navigation #normal-mode
How do I create a Visual selection for the previous search match instead of the next one?
gN
Most users know gn for selecting the next search match, but its counterpart gN is the real power move when you need to work backward through matches.
visual-mode #visual-mode #search #motions #editing #normal-mode
How do I uppercase only the text inside braces using a visual text object?
f{vi{U
When editing structured text, you often need to transform content inside delimiters without touching the delimiters themselves.
How do I uppercase only the current search match using gn as a motion?
*NgUgn
gn is often treated as a visual selection command, but it is more powerful when used as a motion target for operators.
How do I record a macro that uppercases a word and advances so I can replay it across words?
qagUiwWq2@a
Macros are most powerful when they encode both the edit and the movement to the next target.
How do I uppercase a word and then jump back to my exact original cursor position?
mzgUiw`z
When you run an operator like gUiw, Vim can leave your cursor in a slightly different place than where you started.
How do I delete through the end of the next search match from the cursor?
d/END/e<CR>
When you need to remove text up to a known marker, a plain search motion is often almost right but stops at the start of the match.
How do I jump back several entries in the jumplist with a single command?
5<C-o>
Most Vim users know jumps backward in the jumplist, but fewer use a count with it.
How do I jump to the previous change and reveal it clearly in Vim?
g;zvzz
Jumping through the changelist with g; is useful, but in real files the destination can land inside a closed fold or off-center on screen, which slows review.
How do I repeat the last f/t/F/T motion in the opposite direction?
,
After using f, t, F, or T for single-character motion on a line, Vim lets you repeat that character search without retyping the target.
How do I jump to the next lowercase mark in Vim's mark order?
]`
Most users jump to marks directly ('a, ` a `), but when a file has many lowercase marks, stepping through them in order is faster than remembering each name.
How do I target a substitution at the cursor position using \%#?
:s/\%#\k\+/REPL/
Most substitutions operate on broad ranges, but sometimes you want a precise edit anchored to where your cursor is right now.
How do I jump back to the previous context line without preserving exact column?
''
When you jump around a file, Vim tracks prior locations.
navigation #navigation #motions #marks #jumplist #normal-mode
How do I enable matchit so % jumps between if/else/end style pairs?
:packadd matchit<CR>
The default % motion is great for simple delimiters, but many code structures use semantic pairs like if/else/endif, try/catch, or HTML tags.
How do I jump to the Nth next search match instead of pressing n repeatedly?
{count}n
Like most Vim motions, the n and N search repeat commands accept a count prefix.
How do I force a normally linewise motion to operate characterwise when combined with an operator?
dv{motion}
In operator-pending mode — after typing an operator like d, y, or c but before the motion — you can press v, V, or to override the motion type to characterw