1 *change.txt* For Vim version 7.2. Last change: 2008 Oct 04
4 VIM REFERENCE MANUAL by Bram Moolenaar
7 This file describes commands that delete or change text. In this context,
8 changing text means deleting the text and replacing it with other text using
9 one command. You can undo all of these commands. You can repeat the non-Ex
10 commands with the "." command.
12 1. Deleting text |deleting|
13 2. Delete and insert |delete-insert|
14 3. Simple changes |simple-change| *changing*
15 4. Complex changes |complex-change|
16 4.1 Filter commands |filter|
17 4.2 Substitute |:substitute|
18 4.3 Search and replace |search-replace|
19 4.4 Changing tabs |change-tabs|
20 5. Copying and moving text |copy-move|
21 6. Formatting text |formatting|
22 7. Sorting text |sorting|
24 For inserting text see |insert.txt|.
26 ==============================================================================
27 1. Deleting text *deleting* *E470*
29 ["x]<Del> or *<Del>* *x* *dl*
30 ["x]x Delete [count] characters under and after the cursor
31 [into register x] (not |linewise|). Does the same as
33 The <Del> key does not take a [count]. Instead, it
34 deletes the last character of the count.
35 See |:fixdel| if the <Del> key does not do what you
36 want. See |'whichwrap'| for deleting a line break
37 (join lines). {Vi does not support <Del>}
40 ["x]X Delete [count] characters before the cursor [into
41 register x] (not |linewise|). Does the same as "dh".
42 Also see |'whichwrap'|.
45 ["x]d{motion} Delete text that {motion} moves over [into register
46 x]. See below for exceptions.
49 ["x]dd Delete [count] lines [into register x] |linewise|.
52 ["x]D Delete the characters under the cursor until the end
53 of the line and [count]-1 more lines [into register
56 When the '#' flag is in 'cpoptions' the count is
59 {Visual}["x]x or *v_x* *v_d* *v_<Del>*
61 {Visual}["x]<Del> Delete the highlighted text [into register x] (for
62 {Visual} see |Visual-mode|). {not in Vi}
64 {Visual}["x]CTRL-H or *v_CTRL-H* *v_<BS>*
65 {Visual}["x]<BS> When in Select mode: Delete the highlighted text [into
68 {Visual}["x]X or *v_X* *v_D* *v_b_D*
69 {Visual}["x]D Delete the highlighted lines [into register x] (for
70 {Visual} see |Visual-mode|). In Visual block mode,
71 "D" deletes the highlighted text plus all text until
72 the end of the line. {not in Vi}
74 *:d* *:de* *:del* *:delete*
75 :[range]d[elete] [x] Delete [range] lines (default: current line) [into
78 :[range]d[elete] [x] {count}
79 Delete {count} lines, starting with [range]
80 (default: current line |cmdline-ranges|) [into
83 These commands delete text. You can repeat them with the "." command
84 (except ":d") and undo them. Use Visual mode to delete blocks of text. See
85 |registers| for an explanation of registers.
87 An exception for the d{motion} command: If the motion is not linewise, the
88 start and end of the motion are not in the same line, and there are only
89 blanks before the start and after the end of the motion, the delete becomes
90 linewise. This means that the delete also removes the line of blanks that you
91 might expect to remain.
93 Trying to delete an empty region of text (e.g., "d0" in the first column)
94 is an error when 'cpoptions' includes the 'E' flag.
97 J Join [count] lines, with a minimum of two lines.
98 Remove the indent and insert up to two spaces (see
102 {Visual}J Join the highlighted lines, with a minimum of two
103 lines. Remove the indent and insert up to two spaces
104 (see below). {not in Vi}
107 gJ Join [count] lines, with a minimum of two lines.
108 Don't insert or remove any spaces. {not in Vi}
111 {Visual}gJ Join the highlighted lines, with a minimum of two
112 lines. Don't insert or remove any spaces. {not in
116 :[range]j[oin][!] [flags]
117 Join [range] lines. Same as "J", except with [!]
118 the join does not insert or delete any spaces.
119 If a [range] has equal start and end values, this
120 command does nothing. The default behavior is to
121 join the current line with the line below it.
123 See |ex-flags| for [flags].
125 :[range]j[oin][!] {count} [flags]
126 Join {count} lines, starting with [range] (default:
127 current line |cmdline-ranges|). Same as "J", except
128 with [!] the join does not insert or delete any
131 See |ex-flags| for [flags].
133 These commands delete the <EOL> between lines. This has the effect of joining
134 multiple lines into one line. You can repeat these commands (except ":j") and
137 These commands, except "gJ", insert one space in place of the <EOL> unless
138 there is trailing white space or the next line starts with a ')'. These
139 commands, except "gJ", delete any leading white space on the next line. If
140 the 'joinspaces' option is on, these commands insert two spaces after a '.',
141 '!' or '?' (but if 'cpoptions' includes the 'j' flag, they insert two spaces
143 The 'B' and 'M' flags in 'formatoptions' change the behavior for inserting
144 spaces before and after a multi-byte character |fo-table|.
147 ==============================================================================
148 2. Delete and insert *delete-insert* *replacing*
151 R Enter Replace mode: Each character you type replaces
152 an existing character, starting with the character
153 under the cursor. Repeat the entered text [count]-1
154 times. See |Replace-mode| for more details.
157 gR Enter Virtual Replace mode: Each character you type
158 replaces existing characters in screen space. So a
159 <Tab> may replace several characters at once.
160 Repeat the entered text [count]-1 times. See
161 |Virtual-Replace-mode| for more details.
162 {not available when compiled without the +vreplace
166 ["x]c{motion} Delete {motion} text [into register x] and start
167 insert. When 'cpoptions' includes the 'E' flag and
168 there is no text to delete (e.g., with "cTx" when the
169 cursor is just after an 'x'), an error occurs and
170 insert mode does not start (this is Vi compatible).
171 When 'cpoptions' does not include the 'E' flag, the
172 "c" command always starts insert mode, even if there
173 is no text to delete.
176 ["x]cc Delete [count] lines [into register x] and start
177 insert |linewise|. If 'autoindent' is on, preserve
178 the indent of the first line.
181 ["x]C Delete from the cursor position to the end of the
182 line and [count]-1 more lines [into register x], and
183 start insert. Synonym for c$ (not |linewise|).
186 ["x]s Delete [count] characters [into register x] and start
187 insert (s stands for Substitute). Synonym for "cl"
191 ["x]S Delete [count] lines [into register x] and start
192 insert. Synonym for "cc" |linewise|.
194 {Visual}["x]c or *v_c* *v_s*
195 {Visual}["x]s Delete the highlighted text [into register x] and
196 start insert (for {Visual} see |Visual-mode|). {not
200 {Visual}["x]r{char} Replace all selected characters by {char}.
203 {Visual}["x]C Delete the highlighted lines [into register x] and
204 start insert. In Visual block mode it works
205 differently |v_b_C|. {not in Vi}
207 {Visual}["x]S Delete the highlighted lines [into register x] and
208 start insert (for {Visual} see |Visual-mode|). {not
211 {Visual}["x]R Currently just like {Visual}["x]S. In a next version
212 it might work differently. {not in Vi}
215 - You can end Insert and Replace mode with <Esc>.
216 - See the section "Insert and Replace mode" |mode-ins-repl| for the other
217 special characters in these modes.
218 - The effect of [count] takes place after Vim exits Insert or Replace mode.
219 - When the 'cpoptions' option contains '$' and the change is within one line,
220 Vim continues to show the text to be deleted and puts a '$' at the last
223 See |registers| for an explanation of registers.
225 Replace mode is just like Insert mode, except that every character you enter
226 deletes one character. If you reach the end of a line, Vim appends any
227 further characters (just like Insert mode). In Replace mode, the backspace
228 key restores the original text (if there was any). (See section "Insert and
229 Replace mode" |mode-ins-repl|).
232 Special case: When the cursor is in a word, "cw" and "cW" do not include the
233 white space after a word, they only change up to the end of the word. This is
234 because Vim interprets "cw" as change-word, and a word does not include the
235 following white space.
236 {Vi: "cw" when on a blank followed by other blanks changes only the first
237 blank; this is probably a bug, because "dw" deletes all the blanks; use the
238 'w' flag in 'cpoptions' to make it work like Vi anyway}
240 If you prefer "cw" to include the space after a word, use this mapping: >
242 Or use "caw" (see |aw|).
245 :{range}c[hange][!] Replace lines of text with some different text.
246 Type a line containing only "." to stop replacing.
247 Without {range}, this command changes only the current
249 Adding [!] toggles 'autoindent' for the time this
252 ==============================================================================
253 3. Simple changes *simple-change*
256 r{char} Replace the character under the cursor with {char}.
257 If {char} is a <CR> or <NL>, a line break replaces the
258 character. To replace with a real <CR>, use CTRL-V
259 <CR>. CTRL-V <NL> replaces with a <Nul>.
260 {Vi: CTRL-V <CR> still replaces with a line break,
261 cannot replace something with a <CR>}
262 If you give a [count], Vim replaces [count] characters
263 with [count] {char}s. When {char} is a <CR> or <NL>,
264 however, Vim inserts only one <CR>: "5r<CR>" replaces
265 five characters with a single line break.
266 When {char} is a <CR> or <NL>, Vim performs
267 autoindenting. This works just like deleting the
268 characters that are replaced and then doing
270 {char} can be entered as a digraph |digraph-arg|.
271 |:lmap| mappings apply to {char}. The CTRL-^ command
272 in Insert mode can be used to switch this on/off
273 |i_CTRL-^|. See |utf-8-char-arg| about using
274 composing characters when 'encoding' is Unicode.
277 gr{char} Replace the virtual characters under the cursor with
278 {char}. This replaces in screen space, not file
279 space. See |gR| and |Virtual-Replace-mode| for more
280 details. As with |r| a count may be given.
281 {char} can be entered like with |r|.
282 {not available when compiled without the +vreplace
286 The argument for Normal mode commands like |r| and |t| is a single character.
287 When 'cpo' doesn't contain the 'D' flag, this character can also be entered
288 like |digraphs|. First type CTRL-K and then the two digraph characters.
289 {not available when compiled without the |+digraphs| feature}
292 The following commands change the case of letters. The currently active
293 |locale| is used. See |:language|. The LC_CTYPE value matters here.
296 ~ 'notildeop' option: Switch case of the character
297 under the cursor and move the cursor to the right.
298 If a [count] is given, do that many characters. {Vi:
301 ~{motion} 'tildeop' option: switch case of {motion} text. {Vi:
302 tilde cannot be used as an operator}
305 g~{motion} Switch case of {motion} text. {not in Vi}
308 g~~ Switch case of current line. {not in Vi}.
311 {Visual}~ Switch case of highlighted text (for {Visual} see
312 |Visual-mode|). {not in Vi}
315 {Visual}U Make highlighted text uppercase (for {Visual} see
316 |Visual-mode|). {not in Vi}
319 gU{motion} Make {motion} text uppercase. {not in Vi}
321 :map! <C-F> <Esc>gUiw`]a
322 < This works in Insert mode: press CTRL-F to make the
323 word before the cursor uppercase. Handy to type
324 words in lowercase and then make them uppercase.
328 gUU Make current line uppercase. {not in Vi}.
331 {Visual}u Make highlighted text lowercase (for {Visual} see
332 |Visual-mode|). {not in Vi}
335 gu{motion} Make {motion} text lowercase. {not in Vi}
338 guu Make current line lowercase. {not in Vi}.
341 g?{motion} Rot13 encode {motion} text. {not in Vi}
344 {Visual}g? Rot13 encode the highlighted text (for {Visual} see
345 |Visual-mode|). {not in Vi}
348 g?? Rot13 encode current line. {not in Vi}.
350 To turn one line into title caps, make every first letter of a word
352 :s/\v<(.)(\w*)/\u\1\L\2/g
355 Adding and subtracting ~
357 CTRL-A Add [count] to the number or alphabetic character at
358 or after the cursor. {not in Vi}
361 CTRL-X Subtract [count] from the number or alphabetic
362 character at or after the cursor. {not in Vi}
364 The CTRL-A and CTRL-X commands work for (signed) decimal numbers, unsigned
365 octal and hexadecimal numbers and alphabetic characters. This depends on the
367 - When 'nrformats' includes "octal", Vim considers numbers starting with a '0'
368 to be octal, unless the number includes a '8' or '9'. Other numbers are
369 decimal and may have a preceding minus sign.
370 If the cursor is on a number, the commands apply to that number; otherwise
371 Vim uses the number to the right of the cursor.
372 - When 'nrformats' includes "hex", Vim assumes numbers starting with '0x' or
373 '0X' are hexadecimal. The case of the rightmost letter in the number
374 determines the case of the resulting hexadecimal number. If there is no
375 letter in the current number, Vim uses the previously detected case.
376 - When 'nrformats' includes "alpha", Vim will change the alphabetic character
377 under or after the cursor. This is useful to make lists with an alphabetic
380 For numbers with leading zeros (including all octal and hexadecimal numbers),
381 Vim preserves the number of characters in the number when possible. CTRL-A on
382 "0077" results in "0100", CTRL-X on "0x100" results in "0x0ff".
383 There is one exception: When a number that starts with a zero is found not to
384 be octal (it contains a '8' or '9'), but 'nrformats' does include "octal",
385 leading zeros are removed to avoid that the result may be recognized as an
388 Note that when 'nrformats' includes "octal", decimal numbers with leading
389 zeros cause mistakes, because they can be confused with octal numbers.
391 The CTRL-A command is very useful in a macro. Example: Use the following
392 steps to make a numbered list.
394 1. Create the first list entry, make sure it starts with a number.
395 2. qa - start recording into register 'a'
396 3. Y - yank the entry
397 4. p - put a copy of the entry below the first one
398 5. CTRL-A - increment the number
399 6. q - stop recording
400 7. <count>@a - repeat the yank, put and increment <count> times
403 SHIFTING LINES LEFT OR RIGHT *shift-left-right*
406 <{motion} Shift {motion} lines one 'shiftwidth' leftwards.
409 << Shift [count] lines one 'shiftwidth' leftwards.
412 {Visual}[count]< Shift the highlighted lines [count] 'shiftwidth'
413 leftwards (for {Visual} see |Visual-mode|). {not in
417 >{motion} Shift {motion} lines one 'shiftwidth' rightwards.
420 >> Shift [count] lines one 'shiftwidth' rightwards.
423 {Visual}[count]> Shift the highlighted lines [count] 'shiftwidth'
424 rightwards (for {Visual} see |Visual-mode|). {not in
428 :[range]< Shift [range] lines one 'shiftwidth' left. Repeat '<'
429 for shifting multiple 'shiftwidth's.
431 :[range]< {count} Shift {count} lines one 'shiftwidth' left, starting
432 with [range] (default current line |cmdline-ranges|).
433 Repeat '<' for shifting multiple 'shiftwidth's.
435 :[range]le[ft] [indent] left align lines in [range]. Sets the indent in the
436 lines to [indent] (default 0). {not in Vi}
439 :[range]> [flags] Shift {count} [range] lines one 'shiftwidth' right.
440 Repeat '>' for shifting multiple 'shiftwidth's.
441 See |ex-flags| for [flags].
443 :[range]> {count} [flags]
444 Shift {count} lines one 'shiftwidth' right, starting
445 with [range] (default current line |cmdline-ranges|).
446 Repeat '>' for shifting multiple 'shiftwidth's.
447 See |ex-flags| for [flags].
449 The ">" and "<" commands are handy for changing the indentation within
450 programs. Use the 'shiftwidth' option to set the size of the white space
451 which these commands insert or delete. Normally the 'shiftwidth' option is 8,
452 but you can set it to, say, 3 to make smaller indents. The shift leftwards
453 stops when there is no indent. The shift right does not affect empty lines.
455 If the 'shiftround' option is on, the indent is rounded to a multiple of
458 If the 'smartindent' option is on, or 'cindent' is on and 'cinkeys' contains
459 '#', shift right does not affect lines starting with '#' (these are supposed
460 to be C preprocessor lines that must stay in column 1).
462 When the 'expandtab' option is off (this is the default) Vim uses <Tab>s as
463 much as possible to make the indent. You can use ">><<" to replace an indent
464 made out of spaces with the same indent made out of <Tab>s (and a few spaces
465 if necessary). If the 'expandtab' option is on, Vim uses only spaces. Then
466 you can use ">><<" to replace <Tab>s in the indent by spaces (or use
469 To move a line several 'shiftwidth's, use Visual mode or the ":" commands.
471 Vjj4> move three lines 4 indents to the right
472 :<<< move current line 3 indents to the left
473 :>> 5 move 5 lines 2 indents to the right
474 :5>> move line 5 2 indents to the right
476 ==============================================================================
477 4. Complex changes *complex-change*
479 4.1 Filter commands *filter*
481 A filter is a program that accepts text at standard input, changes it in some
482 way, and sends it to standard output. You can use the commands below to send
483 some text through a filter, so that it is replaced by the filter output.
484 Examples of filters are "sort", which sorts lines alphabetically, and
485 "indent", which formats C program files (you need a version of indent that
486 works like a filter; not all versions do). The 'shell' option specifies the
487 shell Vim uses to execute the filter command (See also the 'shelltype'
488 option). You can repeat filter commands with ".". Vim does not recognize a
489 comment (starting with '"') after the ":!" command.
492 !{motion}{filter} Filter {motion} text lines through the external
496 !!{filter} Filter [count] lines through the external program
500 {Visual}!{filter} Filter the highlighted lines through the external
501 program {filter} (for {Visual} see |Visual-mode|).
504 :{range}![!]{filter} [!][arg] *:range!*
505 Filter {range} lines through the external program
506 {filter}. Vim replaces the optional bangs with the
507 latest given command and appends the optional [arg].
508 Vim saves the output of the filter command in a
509 temporary file and then reads the file into the
510 buffer. Vim uses the 'shellredir' option to redirect
511 the filter output to the temporary file.
512 However, if the 'shelltemp' option is off then pipes
513 are used when possible (on Unix).
514 When the 'R' flag is included in 'cpoptions' marks in
515 the filtered lines are deleted, unless the
516 |:keepmarks| command is used. Example: >
517 :keepmarks '<,'>!sort
518 < When the number of lines after filtering is less than
519 before, marks in the missing lines are deleted anyway.
522 ={motion} Filter {motion} lines through the external program
523 given with the 'equalprg' option. When the 'equalprg'
524 option is empty (this is the default), use the
525 internal formatting function |C-indenting|. But when
526 'indentexpr' is not empty, it will be used instead
530 == Filter [count] lines like with ={motion}.
533 {Visual}= Filter the highlighted lines like with ={motion}.
537 4.2 Substitute *:substitute*
539 :[range]s[ubstitute]/{pattern}/{string}/[flags] [count]
540 For each line in [range] replace a match of {pattern}
542 For the {pattern} see |pattern|.
543 {string} can be a literal string, or something
544 special; see |sub-replace-special|.
545 When [range] and [count] are omitted, replace in the
547 When [count] is given, replace in [count] lines,
548 starting with the last line in [range]. When [range]
549 is omitted start in the current line.
550 Also see |cmdline-ranges|.
551 See |:s_flags| for [flags].
553 :[range]s[ubstitute] [flags] [count]
554 :[range]&[&][flags] [count] *:&*
555 Repeat last :substitute with same search pattern and
556 substitute string, but without the same flags. You
557 may add [flags], see |:s_flags|.
558 Note that after ":substitute" the '&' flag can't be
559 used, it's recognized as a pattern separator.
560 The space between ":substitute" and the 'c', 'g' and
561 'r' flags isn't required, but in scripts it's a good
562 idea to keep it to avoid confusion.
564 :[range]~[&][flags] [count] *:~*
565 Repeat last substitute with same substitute string
566 but with last used search pattern. This is like
567 ":&r". See |:s_flags| for [flags].
570 & Synonym for ":s//~/" (repeat last substitute). Note
571 that the flags are not remembered, thus it might
572 actually work differently. You can use ":&&" to keep
576 g& Synonym for ":%s//~/&" (repeat last substitute on all
577 lines with the same flags).
578 Mnemonic: global substitute. {not in Vi}
581 :[range]sno[magic] ... Same as ":substitute", but always use 'nomagic'.
585 :[range]sm[agic] ... Same as ":substitute", but always use 'magic'.
589 The flags that you can use for the substitute commands:
591 [&] Must be the first one: Keep the flags from the previous substitute
595 < Note that ":s" and ":&" don't keep the flags.
598 [c] Confirm each substitution. Vim highlights the matching string (with
599 |hl-IncSearch|). You can type: *:s_c*
600 'y' to substitute this match
601 'l' to substitute this match and then quit ("last")
602 'n' to skip this match
603 <Esc> to quit substituting
604 'a' to substitute this and all remaining matches {not in Vi}
605 'q' to quit substituting {not in Vi}
606 CTRL-E to scroll the screen up {not in Vi, not available when
607 compiled without the +insert_expand feature}
608 CTRL-Y to scroll the screen down {not in Vi, not available when
609 compiled without the +insert_expand feature}
610 If the 'edcompatible' option is on, Vim remembers the [c] flag and
611 toggles it each time you use it, but resets it when you give a new
613 {not in Vi: highlighting of the match, other responses than 'y' or 'n'}
615 [e] When the search pattern fails, do not issue an error message and, in
616 particular, continue in maps as if no error occurred. This is most
617 useful to prevent the "No match" error from breaking a mapping. Vim
618 does not suppress the following error messages, however:
619 Regular expressions can't be delimited by letters
620 \ should be followed by /, ? or &
621 No previous substitute regular expression
626 [g] Replace all occurrences in the line. Without this argument,
627 replacement occurs only for the first occurrence in each line. If
628 the 'edcompatible' option is on, Vim remembers this flag and toggles
629 it each time you use it, but resets it when you give a new search
630 pattern. If the 'gdefault' option is on, this flag is on by default
631 and the [g] argument switches it off.
633 [i] Ignore case for the pattern. The 'ignorecase' and 'smartcase' options
637 [I] Don't ignore case for the pattern. The 'ignorecase' and 'smartcase'
638 options are not used.
641 [n] Report the number of matches, do not actually substitute. The [c]
642 flag is ignored. The matches are reported as if 'report' is zero.
643 Useful to |count-items|.
645 [p] Print the line containing the last substitute.
647 [#] Like [p] and prepend the line number.
649 [l] Like [p] but print the text like |:list|.
651 [r] Only useful in combination with ":&" or ":s" without arguments. ":&r"
652 works the same way as ":~": When the search pattern is empty, use the
653 previously used search pattern instead of the search pattern from the
654 last substitute or ":global". If the last command that did a search
655 was a substitute or ":global", there is no effect. If the last
656 command was a search command such as "/", use the pattern from that
658 For ":s" with an argument this already happens: >
661 :s//red/ or :~ or :&r
662 < The last commands will replace "green" with "red". >
666 < The last command will replace "blue" with "red".
669 Note that there is no flag to change the "magicness" of the pattern. A
670 different command is used instead, or you can use |/\v| and friends. The
671 reason is that the flags can only be found by skipping the pattern, and in
672 order to skip the pattern the "magicness" must be known. Catch 22!
674 If the {pattern} for the substitute command is empty, the command uses the
675 pattern from the last substitute or ":global" command. With the [r] flag, the
676 command uses the pattern from the last substitute, ":global", or search
679 If the {string} is omitted the substitute is done as if it's empty. Thus the
680 matched pattern is deleted. The separator after {pattern} can also be left
683 This deletes "TESTING" from all lines, but only one per line.
685 For compatibility with Vi these two exceptions are allowed:
686 "\/{string}/" and "\?{string}?" do the same as "//{string}/r".
687 "\&{string}&" does the same as "//{string}/".
689 Instead of the '/' which surrounds the pattern and replacement string, you
690 can use any other single-byte character, but not an alphanumeric character,
691 '\', '"' or '|'. This is useful if you want to include a '/' in the search
692 pattern or replacement string. Example: >
695 For the definition of a pattern, see |pattern|. In Visual block mode, use
696 |/\%V| in the pattern to have the substitute work in the block only.
697 Otherwise it works on whole lines anyway.
699 *sub-replace-special* *:s\=*
700 When the {string} starts with "\=" it is evaluated as an expression, see
701 |sub-replace-expression|. You can use that for any special characters.
702 Otherwise these characters in {string} have a special meaning:
704 When {string} is equal to "%" and '/' is included with the 'cpoptions' option,
705 then the {string} of the previous substitute command is used. |cpo-/|
707 magic nomagic action ~
708 & \& replaced with the whole matched pattern *s/\&*
710 \0 replaced with the whole matched pattern *\0* *s/\0*
711 \1 replaced with the matched pattern in the first
713 \2 replaced with the matched pattern in the second
716 \9 replaced with the matched pattern in the ninth
718 ~ \~ replaced with the {string} of the previous
720 \~ ~ replaced with ~ *s/\~*
721 \u next character made uppercase *s/\u*
722 \U following characters made uppercase, until \E *s/\U*
723 \l next character made lowercase *s/\l*
724 \L following characters made lowercase, until \E *s/\L*
725 \e end of \u, \U, \l and \L (NOTE: not <Esc>!) *s/\e*
726 \E end of \u, \U, \l and \L *s/\E*
727 <CR> split line in two at this point
728 (Type the <CR> as CTRL-V <Enter>) *s<CR>*
730 \<CR> insert a carriage-return (CTRL-M)
731 (Type the <CR> as CTRL-V <Enter>) *s/\<CR>*
732 \n insert a <NL> (<NUL> in the file)
733 (does NOT break the line) *s/\n*
734 \b insert a <BS> *s/\b*
735 \t insert a <Tab> *s/\t*
736 \\ insert a single backslash *s/\\*
737 \x where x is any character not mentioned above:
738 Reserved for future expansion
741 :s/a\|b/xxx\0xxx/g modifies "a b" to "xxxaxxx xxxbxxx"
742 :s/\([abc]\)\([efg]\)/\2\1/g modifies "af fa bg" to "fa fa gb"
743 :s/abcde/abc^Mde/ modifies "abcde" to "abc", "de" (two lines)
744 :s/$/\^M/ modifies "abcde" to "abcde^M"
745 :s/\w\+/\u\0/g modifies "bla bla" to "Bla Bla"
747 Note: In previous versions CTRL-V was handled in a special way. Since this is
748 not Vi compatible, this was removed. Use a backslash instead.
750 command text result ~
751 :s/aa/a^Ma/ aa a<line-break>a
753 :s/aa/a\\^Ma/ aa a\<line-break>a
755 (you need to type CTRL-V <CR> to get a ^M here)
757 The numbering of "\1", "\2" etc. is done based on which "\(" comes first in
758 the pattern (going left to right). When a parentheses group matches several
759 times, the last one will be used for "\1", "\2", etc. Example: >
760 :s/\(\(a[a-d] \)*\)/\2/ modifies "aa ab x" to "ab x"
762 When using parentheses in combination with '|', like in \([ab]\)\|\([cd]\),
763 either the first or second pattern in parentheses did not match, so either
764 \1 or \2 is empty. Example: >
765 :s/\([ab]\)\|\([cd]\)/\1x/g modifies "a b c d" to "ax bx x x"
768 Substitute with an expression *sub-replace-expression*
770 When the substitute string starts with "\=" the remainder is interpreted as an
771 expression. This does not work recursively: a substitute() function inside
772 the expression cannot use "\=" for the substitute string.
774 The special meaning for characters as mentioned at |sub-replace-special| does
775 not apply except for "<CR>", "\<CR>" and "\\". Thus in the result of the
776 expression you need to use two backslashes to get one, put a backslash before a
777 <CR> you want to insert, and use a <CR> without a backslash where you want to
780 For convenience a <NL> character is also used as a line break. Prepend a
781 backslash to get a real <NL> character (which will be a NUL in the file).
783 When the result is a |List| then the items are joined with separating line
784 breaks. Thus each item becomes a line, except that they can contain line
787 The whole matched text can be accessed with "submatch(0)". The text matched
788 with the first pair of () with "submatch(1)". Likewise for further
791 Be careful: The separation character must not appear in the expression!
792 Consider using a character like "@" or ":". There is no problem if the result
793 of the expression contains the separation character.
796 :s@\n@\="\r" . expand("$HOME") . "\r"@
797 This replaces an end-of-line with a new line containing the value of $HOME. >
799 s/E/\="\<Char-0x20ac>"/g
800 This replaces each 'E' character with a euro sign. Read more in |<Char->|.
803 4.3 Search and replace *search-replace*
806 :promptf[ind] [string]
807 Put up a Search dialog. When [string] is given, it is
808 used as the initial search string.
809 {only for Win32, Motif, GTK and MacVim GUI}
811 *:promptr* *:promptrepl*
812 :promptr[epl] [string]
813 Put up a Search/Replace dialog. When [string] is
814 given, it is used as the initial search string.
815 {only for Win32, Motif, GTK and MacVim GUI}
818 4.4 Changing tabs *change-tabs*
820 :[range]ret[ab][!] [new_tabstop]
821 Replace all sequences of white-space containing a
822 <Tab> with new strings of white-space using the new
823 tabstop value given. If you do not specify a new
824 tabstop size or it is zero, Vim uses the current value
826 The current value of 'tabstop' is always used to
827 compute the width of existing tabs.
828 With !, Vim also replaces strings of only normal
829 spaces with tabs where appropriate.
830 With 'expandtab' on, Vim replaces all tabs with the
831 appropriate number of spaces.
832 This command sets 'tabstop' to the new value given,
833 and if performed on the whole file, which is default,
834 should not make any visible change.
835 Careful: This command modifies any <Tab> characters
836 inside of strings in a C program. Use "\t" to avoid
837 this (that's a good habit anyway).
838 ":retab!" may also change a sequence of spaces by
839 <Tab> characters, which can mess up a printf().
841 Not available when |+ex_extra| feature was disabled at
845 Example for using autocommands and ":retab" to edit a file which is stored
846 with tabstops at 8 but edited with tabstops set at 4. Warning: white space
847 inside of strings can change! Also see 'softtabstop' option. >
849 :auto BufReadPost *.xx retab! 4
850 :auto BufWritePre *.xx retab! 8
851 :auto BufWritePost *.xx retab! 4
852 :auto BufNewFile *.xx set ts=4
854 ==============================================================================
855 5. Copying and moving text *copy-move*
858 "{a-zA-Z0-9.%#:-"} Use register {a-zA-Z0-9.%#:-"} for next delete, yank
859 or put (use uppercase character to append with
860 delete and yank) ({.%#:} only work with put).
863 :reg[isters] Display the contents of all numbered and named
864 registers. {not in Vi}
866 :reg[isters] {arg} Display the contents of the numbered and named
867 registers that are mentioned in {arg}. For example: >
869 < to display registers '1' and 'a'. Spaces are allowed
870 in {arg}. {not in Vi}
873 :di[splay] [arg] Same as :registers. {not in Vi}
876 ["x]y{motion} Yank {motion} text [into register x]. When no
877 characters are to be yanked (e.g., "y0" in column 1),
878 this is an error when 'cpoptions' includes the 'E'
882 ["x]yy Yank [count] lines [into register x] |linewise|.
885 ["x]Y yank [count] lines [into register x] (synonym for
886 yy, |linewise|). If you like "Y" to work from the
887 cursor to the end of line (which is more logical,
888 but not Vi-compatible) use ":map Y y$".
891 {Visual}["x]y Yank the highlighted text [into register x] (for
892 {Visual} see |Visual-mode|). {not in Vi}
895 {Visual}["x]Y Yank the highlighted lines [into register x] (for
896 {Visual} see |Visual-mode|). {not in Vi}
899 :[range]y[ank] [x] Yank [range] lines [into register x].
901 :[range]y[ank] [x] {count}
902 Yank {count} lines, starting with last line number
903 in [range] (default: current line |cmdline-ranges|),
907 ["x]p Put the text [from register x] after the cursor
908 [count] times. {Vi: no count}
911 ["x]P Put the text [from register x] before the cursor
912 [count] times. {Vi: no count}
915 ["x]<MiddleMouse> Put the text from a register before the cursor [count]
916 times. Uses the "* register, unless another is
918 Leaves the cursor at the end of the new text.
919 Using the mouse only works when 'mouse' contains 'n'
922 If you have a scrollwheel and often accidentally paste
923 text, you can use these mappings to disable the
924 pasting with the middle mouse button: >
925 :map <MiddleMouse> <Nop>
926 :imap <MiddleMouse> <Nop>
927 < You might want to disable the multi-click versions
928 too, see |double-click|.
931 ["x]gp Just like "p", but leave the cursor just after the new
935 ["x]gP Just like "P", but leave the cursor just after the new
939 :[line]pu[t] [x] Put the text [from register x] after [line] (default
940 current line). This always works |linewise|, thus
941 this command can be used to put a yanked block as new
943 The cursor is left on the first non-blank in the last
945 The register can also be '=' followed by an optional
946 expression. The expression continues until the end of
947 the command. You need to escape the '|' and '"'
948 characters to prevent them from terminating the
950 :put ='path' . \",/test\"
951 < If there is no expression after '=', Vim uses the
952 previous expression. You can see it with ":dis =".
954 :[line]pu[t]! [x] Put the text [from register x] before [line] (default
957 ["x]]p or *]p* *]<MiddleMouse>*
958 ["x]]<MiddleMouse> Like "p", but adjust the indent to the current line.
959 Using the mouse only works when 'mouse' contains 'n'
964 ["x][p or *[p* *[<MiddleMouse>*
965 ["x][<MiddleMouse> Like "P", but adjust the indent to the current line.
966 Using the mouse only works when 'mouse' contains 'n'
969 You can use these commands to copy text from one place to another. Do this
970 by first getting the text into a register with a yank, delete or change
971 command, then inserting the register contents with a put command. You can
972 also use these commands to move text from one file to another, because Vim
973 preserves all registers when changing buffers (the CTRL-^ command is a quick
974 way to toggle between two files).
976 *linewise-register* *characterwise-register*
977 You can repeat the put commands with "." (except for :put) and undo them. If
978 the command that was used to get the text into the register was |linewise|,
979 Vim inserts the text below ("p") or above ("P") the line where the cursor is.
980 Otherwise Vim inserts the text after ("p") or before ("P") the cursor. With
981 the ":put" command, Vim always inserts the text in the next line. You can
982 exchange two characters with the command sequence "xp". You can exchange two
983 lines with the command sequence "ddp". You can exchange two words with the
984 command sequence "deep" (start with the cursor in the blank space before the
985 first word). You can use the "']" or "`]" command after the put command to
986 move the cursor to the end of the inserted text, or use "'[" or "`[" to move
987 the cursor to the start.
989 *put-Visual-mode* *v_p* *v_P*
990 When using a put command like |p| or |P| in Visual mode, Vim will try to
991 replace the selected text with the contents of the register. Whether this
992 works well depends on the type of selection and the type of the text in the
993 register. With blockwise selection it also depends on the size of the block
994 and whether the corners are on an existing character. (Implementation detail:
995 it actually works by first putting the register after the selection and then
996 deleting the selection.)
999 If you use a blockwise Visual mode command to get the text into the register,
1000 the block of text will be inserted before ("P") or after ("p") the cursor
1001 column in the current and next lines. Vim makes the whole block of text start
1002 in the same column. Thus the inserted text looks the same as when it was
1003 yanked or deleted. Vim may replace some <Tab> characters with spaces to make
1004 this happen. However, if the width of the block is not a multiple of a <Tab>
1005 width and the text after the inserted block contains <Tab>s, that text may be
1008 Note that after a characterwise yank command, Vim leaves the cursor on the
1009 first yanked character that is closest to the start of the buffer. This means
1010 that "yl" doesn't move the cursor, but "yh" moves the cursor one character
1012 Rationale: In Vi the "y" command followed by a backwards motion would
1013 sometimes not move the cursor to the first yanked character,
1014 because redisplaying was skipped. In Vim it always moves to
1015 the first character, as specified by Posix.
1016 With a linewise yank command the cursor is put in the first line, but the
1017 column is unmodified, thus it may not be on the first yanked character.
1019 There are nine types of registers: *registers* *E354*
1020 1. The unnamed register ""
1021 2. 10 numbered registers "0 to "9
1022 3. The small delete register "-
1023 4. 26 named registers "a to "z or "A to "Z
1024 5. four read-only registers ":, "., "% and "#
1025 6. the expression register "=
1026 7. The selection and drop registers "*, "+ and "~
1027 8. The black hole register "_
1028 9. Last search pattern register "/
1030 1. Unnamed register "" *quote_quote* *quotequote*
1031 Vim fills this register with text deleted with the "d", "c", "s", "x" commands
1032 or copied with the yank "y" command, regardless of whether or not a specific
1033 register was used (e.g. "xdd). This is like the unnamed register is pointing
1034 to the last used register. An exception is the '_' register: "_dd does not
1035 store the deleted text in any register.
1036 Vim uses the contents of the unnamed register for any put command (p or P)
1037 which does not specify a register. Additionally you can access it with the
1038 name '"'. This means you have to type two double quotes. Writing to the ""
1039 register writes to register "0.
1040 {Vi: register contents are lost when changing files, no '"'}
1042 2. Numbered registers "0 to "9 *quote_number* *quote0* *quote1*
1043 *quote2* *quote3* *quote4* *quote9*
1044 Vim fills these registers with text from yank and delete commands.
1045 Numbered register 0 contains the text from the most recent yank command,
1046 unless the command specified another register with ["x].
1047 Numbered register 1 contains the text deleted by the most recent delete or
1048 change command, unless the command specified another register or the text is
1049 less than one line (the small delete register is used then). An exception is
1050 made for the delete operator with these movement commands: |%|, |(|, |)|, |`|,
1051 |/|, |?|, |n|, |N|, |{| and |}|. Register "1 is always used then (this is Vi
1052 compatible). The "- register is used as well if the delete is within a line.
1053 With each successive deletion or change, Vim shifts the previous contents
1054 of register 1 into register 2, 2 into 3, and so forth, losing the previous
1055 contents of register 9.
1056 {Vi: numbered register contents are lost when changing files; register 0 does
1059 3. Small delete register "- *quote_-* *quote-*
1060 This register contains text from commands that delete less than one line,
1061 except when the command specifies a register with ["x].
1064 4. Named registers "a to "z or "A to "Z *quote_alpha* *quotea*
1065 Vim fills these registers only when you say so. Specify them as lowercase
1066 letters to replace their previous contents or as uppercase letters to append
1067 to their previous contents. When the '>' flag is present in 'cpoptions' then
1068 a line break is inserted before the appended text.
1070 5. Read-only registers ":, "., "% and "#
1071 These are '%', '#', ':' and '.'. You can use them only with the "p", "P",
1072 and ":put" commands and with CTRL-R. {not in Vi}
1073 *quote_.* *quote.* *E29*
1074 ". Contains the last inserted text (the same as what is inserted
1075 with the insert mode commands CTRL-A and CTRL-@). Note: this
1076 doesn't work with CTRL-R on the command-line. It works a bit
1077 differently, like inserting the text instead of putting it
1078 ('textwidth' and other options affect what is inserted).
1080 "% Contains the name of the current file.
1082 "# Contains the name of the alternate file.
1083 *quote_:* *quote:* *E30*
1084 ": Contains the most recent executed command-line. Example: Use
1085 "@:" to repeat the previous command-line command.
1086 The command-line is only stored in this register when at least
1087 one character of it was typed. Thus it remains unchanged if
1088 the command was completely from a mapping.
1089 {not available when compiled without the |+cmdline_hist|
1092 6. Expression register "= *quote_=* *quote=* *@=*
1093 This is not really a register that stores text, but is a way to use an
1094 expression in commands which use a register. The expression register is
1095 read-only; you cannot put text into it. After the '=', the cursor moves to
1096 the command-line, where you can enter any expression (see |expression|). All
1097 normal command-line editing commands are available, including a special
1098 history for expressions. When you end the command-line by typing <CR>, Vim
1099 computes the result of the expression. If you end it with <Esc>, Vim abandons
1100 the expression. If you do not enter an expression, Vim uses the previous
1101 expression (like with the "/" command).
1103 The expression must evaluate to a String. A Number is always automatically
1104 converted to a String. For the "p" and ":put" command, if the result is a
1105 Float it's converted into a String. If the result is a List each element is
1106 turned into a String and used as a line. A Dictionary or FuncRef results in
1107 an error message (use string() to convert).
1109 If the "= register is used for the "p" command, the String is split up at <NL>
1110 characters. If the String ends in a <NL>, it is regarded as a linewise
1111 register. {not in Vi}
1113 7. Selection and drop registers "*, "+ and "~
1114 Use these register for storing and retrieving the selected text for the GUI.
1115 See |quotestar| and |quoteplus|. When the clipboard is not available or not
1116 working, the unnamed register is used instead. For Unix systems the clipboard
1117 is only available when the |+xterm_clipboard| feature is present. {not in Vi}
1119 Note that there is only a distinction between "* and "+ for X11 systems. For
1120 an explanation of the difference, see |x11-selection|. Under MS-Windows, use
1121 of "* and "+ is actually synonymous and refers to the |gui-clipboard|.
1123 *quote_~* *quote~* *<Drop>*
1124 The read-only "~ register stores the dropped text from the last drag'n'drop
1125 operation. When something has been dropped onto Vim, the "~ register is
1126 filled in and the <Drop> pseudo key is sent for notification. You can remap
1127 this key if you want; the default action (for all modes) is to insert the
1128 contents of the "~ register at the cursor position. {not in Vi}
1129 {only available when compiled with the |+dnd| feature, currently only with the
1132 Note: The "~ register is only used when dropping plain text onto Vim.
1133 Drag'n'drop of URI lists is handled internally.
1135 8. Black hole register "_ *quote_*
1136 When writing to this register, nothing happens. This can be used to delete
1137 text without affecting the normal registers. When reading from this register,
1138 nothing is returned. {not in Vi}
1140 9. Last search pattern register "/ *quote_/* *quote/*
1141 Contains the most recent search-pattern. This is used for "n" and 'hlsearch'.
1142 It is writable with ":let", you can change it to have 'hlsearch' highlight
1143 other matches without actually searching. You can't yank or delete into this
1144 register. The search direction is available in |v:searchforward|.
1145 Note that the valued is restored when returning from a function
1146 |function-search-undo|.
1150 You can write to a register with a ":let" command |:let-@|. Example: >
1153 If you use a put command without specifying a register, Vim uses the register
1154 that was last filled (this is also the contents of the unnamed register). If
1155 you are confused, use the ":dis" command to find out what Vim will put (this
1156 command displays all named and numbered registers; the unnamed register is
1159 The next three commands always work on whole lines.
1161 :[range]co[py] {address} *:co* *:copy*
1162 Copy the lines given by [range] to below the line
1166 :t Synonym for copy.
1168 :[range]m[ove] {address} *:m* *:mo* *:move* *E134*
1169 Move the lines given by [range] to below the line
1172 ==============================================================================
1173 6. Formatting text *formatting*
1175 :[range]ce[nter] [width] *:ce* *:center*
1176 Center lines in [range] between [width] columns
1177 (default 'textwidth' or 80 when 'textwidth' is 0).
1179 Not available when |+ex_extra| feature was disabled at
1182 :[range]ri[ght] [width] *:ri* *:right*
1183 Right-align lines in [range] at [width] columns
1184 (default 'textwidth' or 80 when 'textwidth' is 0).
1186 Not available when |+ex_extra| feature was disabled at
1190 :[range]le[ft] [indent]
1191 Left-align lines in [range]. Sets the indent in the
1192 lines to [indent] (default 0). {not in Vi}
1193 Not available when |+ex_extra| feature was disabled at
1197 gq{motion} Format the lines that {motion} moves over.
1198 Formatting is done with one of three methods:
1199 1. If 'formatexpr' is not empty the expression is
1200 evaluated. This can differ for each buffer.
1201 2. If 'formatprg' is not empty an external program
1203 3. Otherwise formatting is done internally.
1205 In the third case the 'textwidth' option controls the
1206 length of each formatted line (see below).
1207 If the 'textwidth' option is 0, the formatted line
1208 length is the screen width (with a maximum width of
1210 The 'formatoptions' option controls the type of
1211 formatting |fo-table|.
1212 The cursor is left on the first non-blank of the last
1214 NOTE: The "Q" command formerly performed this
1215 function. If you still want to use "Q" for
1216 formatting, use this mapping: >
1220 gqq Format the current line. {not in Vi}
1223 {Visual}gq Format the highlighted text. (for {Visual} see
1224 |Visual-mode|). {not in Vi}
1227 gw{motion} Format the lines that {motion} moves over. Similar to
1228 |gq| but puts the cursor back at the same position in
1229 the text. However, 'formatprg' and 'formatexpr' are
1230 not used. {not in Vi}
1233 gww Format the current line as with "gw". {not in Vi}
1236 {Visual}gw Format the highlighted text as with "gw". (for
1237 {Visual} see |Visual-mode|). {not in Vi}
1239 Example: To format the current paragraph use: *gqap* >
1242 The "gq" command leaves the cursor in the line where the motion command takes
1243 the cursor. This allows you to repeat formatting repeated with ".". This
1244 works well with "gqj" (format current and next line) and "gq}" (format until
1245 end of paragraph). Note: When 'formatprg' is set, "gq" leaves the cursor on
1246 the first formatted line (as with using a filter command).
1248 If you want to format the current paragraph and continue where you were, use: >
1250 If you always want to keep paragraphs formatted you may want to add the 'a'
1251 flag to 'formatoptions'. See |auto-format|.
1253 If the 'autoindent' option is on, Vim uses the indent of the first line for
1254 the following lines.
1256 Formatting does not change empty lines (but it does change lines with only
1259 The 'joinspaces' option is used when lines are joined together.
1261 You can set the 'formatexpr' option to an expression or the 'formatprg' option
1262 to the name of an external program for Vim to use for text formatting. The
1263 'textwidth' and other options have no effect on formatting by an external
1267 There is no command in Vim to right justify text. You can do it with
1268 an external command, like "par" (e.g.: "!}par" to format until the end of the
1269 paragraph) or set 'formatprg' to "par".
1272 An overview of comment formatting is in section |30.6| of the user manual.
1274 Vim can automatically insert and format comments in a special way. Vim
1275 recognizes a comment by a specific string at the start of the line (ignoring
1276 white space). Three types of comments can be used:
1278 - A comment string that repeats at the start of each line. An example is the
1279 type of comment used in shell scripts, starting with "#".
1280 - A comment string that occurs only in the first line, not in the following
1281 lines. An example is this list with dashes.
1282 - Three-piece comments that have a start string, an end string, and optional
1283 lines in between. The strings for the start, middle and end are different.
1284 An example is the C style comment:
1286 * this is a C comment
1289 The 'comments' option is a comma-separated list of parts. Each part defines a
1290 type of comment string. A part consists of:
1293 {string} is the literal text that must appear.
1296 n Nested comment. Nesting with mixed parts is allowed. If 'comments'
1297 is "n:),n:>" a line starting with "> ) >" is a comment.
1299 b Blank (<Space>, <Tab> or <EOL>) required after {string}.
1301 f Only the first line has the comment string. Do not repeat comment on
1302 the next line, but preserve indentation (e.g., a bullet-list).
1304 s Start of three-piece comment
1306 m Middle of a three-piece comment
1308 e End of a three-piece comment
1310 l Left align. Used together with 's' or 'e', the leftmost character of
1311 start or end will line up with the leftmost character from the middle.
1312 This is the default and can be omitted. See below for more details.
1314 r Right align. Same as above but rightmost instead of leftmost. See
1315 below for more details.
1317 O Don't consider this comment for the "O" command.
1319 x Allows three-piece comments to be ended by just typing the last
1320 character of the end-comment string as the first action on a new
1321 line when the middle-comment string has been inserted automatically.
1322 See below for more details.
1325 When together with 's' or 'e': add {digit} amount of offset to an
1326 automatically inserted middle or end comment leader. The offset begins
1327 from a left alignment. See below for more details.
1330 Like {digits} but reduce the indent. This only works when there is
1331 some indent for the start or end part that can be removed.
1333 When a string has none of the 'f', 's', 'm' or 'e' flags, Vim assumes the
1334 comment string repeats at the start of each line. The flags field may be
1337 Any blank space in the text before and after the {string} is part of the
1338 {string}, so do not include leading or trailing blanks unless the blanks are a
1339 required part of the comment string.
1341 When one comment leader is part of another, specify the part after the whole.
1342 For example, to include both "-" and "->", use >
1343 :set comments=f:->,f:-
1345 A three-piece comment must always be given as start,middle,end, with no other
1346 parts in between. An example of a three-piece comment is >
1348 for C-comments. To avoid recognizing "*ptr" as a comment, the middle string
1349 includes the 'b' flag. For three-piece comments, Vim checks the text after
1350 the start and middle strings for the end string. If Vim finds the end string,
1351 the comment does not continue on the next line. Three-piece comments must
1352 have a middle string because otherwise Vim can't recognize the middle lines.
1354 Notice the use of the "x" flag in the above three-piece comment definition.
1355 When you hit Return in a C-comment, Vim will insert the middle comment leader
1356 for the new line: " * ". To close this comment you just have to type "/"
1357 before typing anything else on the new line. This will replace the
1358 middle-comment leader with the end-comment leader and apply any specified
1359 alignment, leaving just " */". There is no need to hit BackSpace first.
1362 Here is an example of alignment flags at work to make a comment stand out
1363 (kind of looks like a 1 too). Consider comment string >
1364 sr:/***,m:**,ex2:******/
1367 **<--right aligned from "r" flag
1369 offset 2 spaces from the "2" flag--->**
1371 In this case, the first comment was typed, then return was pressed 4 times,
1372 then "/" was pressed to end the comment.
1374 Here are some finer points of three part comments. There are three times when
1375 alignment and offset flags are taken into consideration: opening a new line
1376 after a start-comment, opening a new line before an end-comment, and
1377 automatically ending a three-piece comment. The end alignment flag has a
1378 backwards perspective; the result is that the same alignment flag used with
1379 "s" and "e" will result in the same indent for the starting and ending pieces.
1380 Only one alignment per comment part is meant to be used, but an offset number
1381 will override the "r" and "l" flag.
1383 Enabling 'cindent' will override the alignment flags in many cases.
1384 Reindenting using a different method like |gq| or |=| will not consult
1385 alignment flags either. The same behaviour can be defined in those other
1386 formatting options. One consideration is that 'cindent' has additional options
1387 for context based indenting of comments but cannot replicate many three piece
1388 indent alignments. However, 'indentexpr' is has the ability to work better
1389 with three piece comments.
1392 "b:*" Includes lines starting with "*", but not if the "*" is
1393 followed by a non-blank. This avoids a pointer dereference
1394 like "*str" to be recognized as a comment.
1395 "n:>" Includes a line starting with ">", ">>", ">>>", etc.
1396 "fb:-" Format a list that starts with "- ".
1398 By default, "b:#" is included. This means that a line that starts with
1399 "#include" is not recognized as a comment line. But a line that starts with
1400 "# define" is recognized. This is a compromise.
1402 {not available when compiled without the |+comments| feature}
1405 You can use the 'formatoptions' option to influence how Vim formats text.
1406 'formatoptions' is a string that can contain any of the letters below. The
1407 default setting is "tcq". You can separate the option letters with commas for
1410 letter meaning when present in 'formatoptions' ~
1412 t Auto-wrap text using textwidth
1413 c Auto-wrap comments using textwidth, inserting the current comment
1414 leader automatically.
1415 r Automatically insert the current comment leader after hitting
1416 <Enter> in Insert mode.
1417 o Automatically insert the current comment leader after hitting 'o' or
1419 q Allow formatting of comments with "gq".
1420 Note that formatting will not change blank lines or lines containing
1421 only the comment leader. A new paragraph starts after such a line,
1422 or when the comment leader changes.
1423 w Trailing white space indicates a paragraph continues in the next line.
1424 A line that ends in a non-white character ends a paragraph.
1425 a Automatic formatting of paragraphs. Every time text is inserted or
1426 deleted the paragraph will be reformatted. See |auto-format|.
1427 When the 'c' flag is present this only happens for recognized
1429 n When formatting text, recognize numbered lists. This actually uses
1430 the 'formatlistpat' option, thus any kind of list can be used. The
1431 indent of the text after the number is used for the next line. The
1432 default is to find a number, optionally followed by '.', ':', ')',
1433 ']' or '}'. Note that 'autoindent' must be set too. Doesn't work
1434 well together with "2".
1439 2 When formatting text, use the indent of the second line of a paragraph
1440 for the rest of the paragraph, instead of the indent of the first
1441 line. This supports paragraphs in which the first line has a
1442 different indent than the rest. Note that 'autoindent' must be set
1444 first line of a paragraph
1445 second line of the same paragraph
1447 v Vi-compatible auto-wrapping in insert mode: Only break a line at a
1448 blank that you have entered during the current insert command. (Note:
1449 this is not 100% Vi compatible. Vi has some "unexpected features" or
1450 bugs in this area. It uses the screen column instead of the line
1452 b Like 'v', but only auto-wrap if you enter a blank at or before
1453 the wrap margin. If the line was longer than 'textwidth' when you
1454 started the insert, or you do not enter a blank in the insert before
1455 reaching 'textwidth', Vim does not perform auto-wrapping.
1456 l Long lines are not broken in insert mode: When a line was longer than
1457 'textwidth' when the insert command started, Vim does not
1458 automatically format it.
1459 m Also break at a multi-byte character above 255. This is useful for
1460 Asian text where every character is a word on its own.
1461 M When joining lines, don't insert a space before or after a multi-byte
1462 character. Overrules the 'B' flag.
1463 B When joining lines, don't insert a space between two multi-byte
1464 characters. Overruled by the 'M' flag.
1465 1 Don't break a line after a one-letter word. It's broken before it
1466 instead (if possible).
1469 With 't' and 'c' you can specify when Vim performs auto-wrapping:
1471 "" no automatic formatting (you can use "gq" for manual formatting)
1472 "t" automatic formatting of text, but not comments
1473 "c" automatic formatting for comments, but not text (good for C code)
1474 "tc" automatic formatting for text and comments
1476 Note that when 'textwidth' is 0, Vim does no automatic formatting anyway (but
1477 does insert comment leaders according to the 'comments' option). An exception
1478 is when the 'a' flag is present. |auto-format|
1480 Note that when 'paste' is on, Vim does no formatting at all.
1482 Note that 'textwidth' can be non-zero even if Vim never performs auto-wrapping;
1483 'textwidth' is still useful for formatting with "gq".
1485 If the 'comments' option includes "/*", "*" and/or "*/", then Vim has some
1486 built in stuff to treat these types of comments a bit more cleverly.
1487 Opening a new line before or after "/*" or "*/" (with 'r' or 'o' present in
1488 'formatoptions') gives the correct start of the line automatically. The same
1489 happens with formatting and auto-wrapping. Opening a line after a line
1490 starting with "/*" or "*" and containing "*/", will cause no comment leader to
1491 be inserted, and the indent of the new line is taken from the line containing
1492 the start of the comment.
1495 * Your typical comment. ~
1497 The indent on this line is the same as the start of the above
1500 All of this should be really cool, especially in conjunction with the new
1501 :autocmd command to prepare different settings for different types of file.
1504 for C code (only format comments): >
1506 < for Mail/news (format all, don't start comment with "o" command): >
1510 Automatic formatting *auto-format*
1512 When the 'a' flag is present in 'formatoptions' text is formatted
1513 automatically when inserting text or deleting text. This works nice for
1514 editing text paragraphs. A few hints on how to use this:
1516 - You need to properly define paragraphs. The simplest is paragraphs that are
1517 separated by a blank line. When there is no separating blank line, consider
1518 using the 'w' flag and adding a space at the end of each line in the
1519 paragraphs except the last one.
1521 - You can set the 'formatoptions' based on the type of file |filetype| or
1522 specifically for one file with a |modeline|.
1524 - Set 'formatoptions' to "aw2tq" to make text with indents like this:
1527 bla foobar bla foobar bla
1529 bla foobar bla bla foobar
1531 - Add the 'c' flag to only auto-format comments. Useful in source code.
1533 - Set 'textwidth' to the desired width. If it is zero then 79 is used, or the
1534 width of the screen if this is smaller.
1538 - When part of the text is not properly separated in paragraphs, making
1539 changes in this text will cause it to be formatted anyway. Consider doing >
1543 - When using the 'w' flag (trailing space means paragraph continues) and
1544 deleting the last line of a paragraph with |dd|, the paragraph will be
1545 joined with the next one.
1547 - Changed text is saved for undo. Formatting is also a change. Thus each
1548 format action saves text for undo. This may consume quite a lot of memory.
1550 - Formatting a long paragraph and/or with complicated indenting may be slow.
1552 ==============================================================================
1553 7. Sorting text *sorting*
1555 Vim has a sorting function and a sorting command. The sorting function can be
1556 found here: |sort()|.
1559 :[range]sor[t][!] [i][u][r][n][x][o] [/{pattern}/]
1560 Sort lines in [range]. When no range is given all
1563 With [!] the order is reversed.
1565 With [i] case is ignored.
1567 With [n] sorting is done on the first decimal number
1568 in the line (after or inside a {pattern} match).
1569 One leading '-' is included in the number.
1571 With [x] sorting is done on the first hexadecimal
1572 number in the line (after or inside a {pattern}
1573 match). A leading "0x" or "0X" is ignored.
1574 One leading '-' is included in the number.
1576 With [o] sorting is done on the first octal number in
1577 the line (after or inside a {pattern} match).
1579 With [u] only keep the first of a sequence of
1580 identical lines (ignoring case when [i] is used).
1581 Without this flag, a sequence of identical lines
1582 will be kept in their original order.
1583 Note that leading and trailing white space may cause
1584 lines to be different.
1586 When /{pattern}/ is specified and there is no [r] flag
1587 the text matched with {pattern} is skipped, so that
1588 you sort on what comes after the match.
1589 Instead of the slash any non-letter can be used.
1590 For example, to sort on the second comma-separated
1593 < To sort on the text at virtual column 10 (thus
1594 ignoring the difference between tabs and spaces): >
1596 < To sort on the first number in the line, no matter
1597 what is in front of it: >
1599 < (Explanation: ".\{-}" matches any text, "\ze" sets the
1600 end of the match and \d matches a digit.)
1601 With [r] sorting is done on the matching {pattern}
1602 instead of skipping past it as described above.
1603 For example, to sort on only the first three letters
1607 < If a {pattern} is used, any lines which don't have a
1608 match for {pattern} are kept in their current order,
1609 but separate from the lines which do match {pattern}.
1610 If you sorted in reverse, they will be in reverse
1611 order after the sorted lines, otherwise they will be
1612 in their original order, right before the sorted
1615 If {pattern} is empty (e.g. // is specified), the
1616 last search pattern is used. This allows trying out
1619 Note that using ":sort" with ":global" doesn't sort the matching lines, it's
1622 The details about sorting depend on the library function used. There is no
1623 guarantee that sorting is "stable" or obeys the current locale. You will have
1626 The sorting can be interrupted, but if you interrupt it too late in the
1627 process you may end up with duplicated lines. This also depends on the system
1628 library function used.
1630 vim:tw=78:ts=8:ft=help:norl: