How do I navigate and operate on sentences and paragraphs in Vim?
( / ) / { / }
Vim treats sentences and paragraphs as first-class navigation units.
navigation #navigation #motions #text-objects #prose #editing
Tag: motions
How do I force a motion to act blockwise, linewise, or characterwise?
d<C-v>2j
Vim lets you override the natural type of any motion by pressing v, V, or between the operator and the motion.
editing #editing #motions #visual-mode #advanced #normal-mode
How do I get more powerful text objects for quotes, brackets, and arguments in Vim?
cin)
The targets.
How do I jump to any location on screen using a two-character search in Vim?
s{char}{char}
The vim-sneak plugin by Justin Keyes provides a motion that lets you jump to any visible location by typing just two characters.
How do I jump to any visible word or character on screen instantly in Vim?
<Leader><Leader>w
The vim-easymotion plugin replaces Vim's default motion commands with a visual overlay system that lets you jump to any visible position on screen in just two o
How do I land the cursor a few lines above or below a search match?
/pattern/+3
Vim's search command accepts an offset after the pattern that shifts where the cursor lands relative to the match.
How do I search for the word under the cursor without whole-word boundaries?
g*
The g command searches forward for the text under the cursor without adding word boundary anchors.
search #search #navigation #normal-mode #motions #productivity
How do I repeat the last f, t, F, or T character search on a line?
; / ,
After using f, t, F, or T to jump to a character on the current line, pressing ; repeats the same search in the same direction, and , repeats it in the opposite
navigation #navigation #motions #normal-mode #editing #productivity
How do I quickly jump between function or method definitions in code?
]] / [[
The ]] and [[ commands let you jump forward and backward between section boundaries, which in most programming languages correspond to function or method defini
navigation #navigation #motions #normal-mode #code #functions
How do I visually select the next occurrence of my last search pattern?
gn
The gn motion searches forward for the next match of the last search pattern and visually selects it.
search #navigation #search #motions #normal-mode #repeat #editing
How do I jump to a specific percentage position in a file?
{N}%
The {N}% command jumps the cursor to the line that is N percent of the way through the file.
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
What is the difference between backtick and single quote when jumping to marks?
` vs '
Vim offers two ways to jump to a mark, and the difference is crucial: the backtick (` `) jumps to the exact line and column where the mark was set, while the si
How do I quickly change an entire sentence in Vim?
cis
The cis command deletes the entire sentence under the cursor and drops you into insert mode, ready to type a replacement.
How do I change text from the cursor up to a specific character?
ct{char}
The ct{char} command deletes everything from the cursor up to (but not including) the specified character and drops you into insert mode.
editing #editing #motions #normal-mode #text-objects #productivity
What is the difference between cw and ciw when changing a word?
cw vs ciw
The cw and ciw commands both change a word, but they behave differently depending on cursor position.
editing #editing #text-objects #motions #normal-mode #productivity
How do I scroll down half a page in Vim?
<C-d>
The (Ctrl+d) command scrolls the window down by half a screen, moving both the viewport and the cursor.
How do I scroll up half a page in Vim?
<C-u>
The (Ctrl+u) command scrolls the window up by half a screen, moving the cursor along with it.
How do I move the cursor to the end of a line?
$
The $ command moves the cursor to the last character of the current line.
How do I move to the first non-blank character of a line?
^
The ^ command moves the cursor to the first non-blank character of the current line.