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Bram Moolenaard13166e2022-11-18 21:49:57 +00001*map.txt* For Vim version 9.0. Last change: 2022 Nov 14
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00002
3
4 VIM REFERENCE MANUAL by Bram Moolenaar
5
6
7Key mapping, abbreviations and user-defined commands.
8
Bram Moolenaar2f0936c2022-01-08 21:51:59 +00009This subject is introduced in sections |05.4|, |24.7| and |40.1| of the user
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000010manual.
11
121. Key mapping |key-mapping|
Bram Moolenaar63a2e362022-11-23 20:20:18 +000013 1.1 MAP COMMANDS |:map-commands|
14 1.2 Special arguments |:map-arguments|
15 1.3 Mapping and modes |:map-modes|
16 1.4 Listing mappings |map-listing|
17 1.5 Mapping special keys |:map-special-keys|
18 1.6 Special characters |:map-special-chars|
19 1.7 What keys to map |map-which-keys|
20 1.8 Examples |map-examples|
21 1.9 Using mappings |map-typing|
22 1.10 Mapping alt-keys |:map-alt-keys|
23 1.11 Mapping in modifyOtherKeys mode |modifyOtherKeys|
24 1.12 Mapping with Kitty keyboard protocol |kitty-keyboard-protocol|
25 1.13 Mapping an operator |:map-operator|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000262. Abbreviations |abbreviations|
273. Local mappings and functions |script-local|
284. User-defined commands |user-commands|
29
30==============================================================================
311. Key mapping *key-mapping* *mapping* *macro*
32
33Key mapping is used to change the meaning of typed keys. The most common use
Bram Moolenaar24a98a02017-09-27 22:23:55 +020034is to define a sequence of commands for a function key. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000035
36 :map <F2> a<C-R>=strftime("%c")<CR><Esc>
37
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +000038This appends the current date and time after the cursor (in <> notation |<>|).
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000039
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +000040
411.1 MAP COMMANDS *:map-commands*
42
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000043There are commands to enter new mappings, remove mappings and list mappings.
44See |map-overview| for the various forms of "map" and their relationships with
45modes.
46
47{lhs} means left-hand-side *{lhs}*
48{rhs} means right-hand-side *{rhs}*
49
Bram Moolenaar06b5db92006-02-10 23:11:56 +000050:map {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-nvo| *:map*
51:nm[ap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-n| *:nm* *:nmap*
52:vm[ap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-v| *:vm* *:vmap*
Bram Moolenaar371d5402006-03-20 21:47:49 +000053:xm[ap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-x| *:xm* *:xmap*
Bram Moolenaar531da592013-05-06 05:58:55 +020054:smap {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-s| *:smap*
Bram Moolenaar06b5db92006-02-10 23:11:56 +000055:om[ap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-o| *:om* *:omap*
56:map! {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-ic| *:map!*
57:im[ap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-i| *:im* *:imap*
Bram Moolenaar61da1bf2019-06-06 12:14:49 +020058:lm[ap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-l| *:lm* *:lma* *:lmap*
Bram Moolenaar06b5db92006-02-10 23:11:56 +000059:cm[ap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-c| *:cm* *:cmap*
Bram Moolenaar37c64c72017-09-19 22:06:03 +020060:tma[p] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-t| *:tma* *:tmap*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000061 Map the key sequence {lhs} to {rhs} for the modes
62 where the map command applies. The result, including
63 {rhs}, is then further scanned for mappings. This
64 allows for nested and recursive use of mappings.
Bram Moolenaar519cc552021-11-16 19:18:26 +000065 Note: Trailing spaces are included in the {rhs},
66 because space is a valid Normal mode command.
Bram Moolenaarcfa8f9a2022-06-03 21:59:47 +010067 See |map-trailing-white|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000068
Bram Moolenaar822ff862014-06-12 21:46:14 +020069 *:nore* *:norem*
70:no[remap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-nvo| *:no* *:noremap* *:nor*
71:nn[oremap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-n| *:nn* *:nnoremap*
72:vn[oremap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-v| *:vn* *:vnoremap*
73:xn[oremap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-x| *:xn* *:xnoremap*
Bram Moolenaar61da1bf2019-06-06 12:14:49 +020074:snor[emap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-s| *:snor* *:snore* *:snoremap*
Bram Moolenaar822ff862014-06-12 21:46:14 +020075:ono[remap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-o| *:ono* *:onoremap*
76:no[remap]! {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-ic| *:no!* *:noremap!*
Bram Moolenaar61da1bf2019-06-06 12:14:49 +020077:ino[remap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-i| *:ino* *:inor* *:inoremap*
Bram Moolenaar822ff862014-06-12 21:46:14 +020078:ln[oremap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-l| *:ln* *:lnoremap*
Bram Moolenaar61da1bf2019-06-06 12:14:49 +020079:cno[remap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-c| *:cno* *:cnor* *:cnoremap*
Bram Moolenaar69fbc9e2017-09-14 20:37:57 +020080:tno[remap] {lhs} {rhs} |mapmode-t| *:tno* *:tnoremap*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000081 Map the key sequence {lhs} to {rhs} for the modes
82 where the map command applies. Disallow mapping of
83 {rhs}, to avoid nested and recursive mappings. Often
Bram Moolenaar25c9c682019-05-05 18:13:34 +020084 used to redefine a command.
Bram Moolenaar1fc34222022-03-03 13:56:24 +000085 Note: When <Plug> appears in the {rhs} this part is
86 always applied even if remapping is disallowed.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +000087
88
Bram Moolenaar06b5db92006-02-10 23:11:56 +000089:unm[ap] {lhs} |mapmode-nvo| *:unm* *:unmap*
90:nun[map] {lhs} |mapmode-n| *:nun* *:nunmap*
91:vu[nmap] {lhs} |mapmode-v| *:vu* *:vunmap*
Bram Moolenaar371d5402006-03-20 21:47:49 +000092:xu[nmap] {lhs} |mapmode-x| *:xu* *:xunmap*
93:sunm[ap] {lhs} |mapmode-s| *:sunm* *:sunmap*
Bram Moolenaar06b5db92006-02-10 23:11:56 +000094:ou[nmap] {lhs} |mapmode-o| *:ou* *:ounmap*
95:unm[ap]! {lhs} |mapmode-ic| *:unm!* *:unmap!*
96:iu[nmap] {lhs} |mapmode-i| *:iu* *:iunmap*
97:lu[nmap] {lhs} |mapmode-l| *:lu* *:lunmap*
Bram Moolenaar61da1bf2019-06-06 12:14:49 +020098:cu[nmap] {lhs} |mapmode-c| *:cu* *:cun* *:cunmap*
Bram Moolenaar37c64c72017-09-19 22:06:03 +020099:tunma[p] {lhs} |mapmode-t| *:tunma* *:tunmap*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000100 Remove the mapping of {lhs} for the modes where the
101 map command applies. The mapping may remain defined
102 for other modes where it applies.
Bram Moolenaar88a42052021-11-21 21:13:36 +0000103 It also works when {lhs} matches the {rhs} of a
Bram Moolenaar2f0936c2022-01-08 21:51:59 +0000104 mapping. This is for when an abbreviation applied.
Bram Moolenaarcfa8f9a2022-06-03 21:59:47 +0100105 Note: Trailing spaces are included in the {lhs}.
106 See |map-trailing-white|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000107
Bram Moolenaar06b5db92006-02-10 23:11:56 +0000108:mapc[lear] |mapmode-nvo| *:mapc* *:mapclear*
109:nmapc[lear] |mapmode-n| *:nmapc* *:nmapclear*
110:vmapc[lear] |mapmode-v| *:vmapc* *:vmapclear*
Bram Moolenaar371d5402006-03-20 21:47:49 +0000111:xmapc[lear] |mapmode-x| *:xmapc* *:xmapclear*
112:smapc[lear] |mapmode-s| *:smapc* *:smapclear*
Bram Moolenaar06b5db92006-02-10 23:11:56 +0000113:omapc[lear] |mapmode-o| *:omapc* *:omapclear*
114:mapc[lear]! |mapmode-ic| *:mapc!* *:mapclear!*
115:imapc[lear] |mapmode-i| *:imapc* *:imapclear*
116:lmapc[lear] |mapmode-l| *:lmapc* *:lmapclear*
117:cmapc[lear] |mapmode-c| *:cmapc* *:cmapclear*
Bram Moolenaar69fbc9e2017-09-14 20:37:57 +0200118:tmapc[lear] |mapmode-t| *:tmapc* *:tmapclear*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000119 Remove ALL mappings for the modes where the map
Bram Moolenaar25c9c682019-05-05 18:13:34 +0200120 command applies.
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +0200121 Use the <buffer> argument to remove buffer-local
122 mappings |:map-<buffer>|
Bram Moolenaar921bde82022-05-09 19:50:35 +0100123 Warning: This also removes the |mac-standard-mappings|
124 and the |dos-standard-mappings|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000125
Bram Moolenaar06b5db92006-02-10 23:11:56 +0000126:map |mapmode-nvo|
127:nm[ap] |mapmode-n|
128:vm[ap] |mapmode-v|
Bram Moolenaar371d5402006-03-20 21:47:49 +0000129:xm[ap] |mapmode-x|
130:sm[ap] |mapmode-s|
Bram Moolenaar06b5db92006-02-10 23:11:56 +0000131:om[ap] |mapmode-o|
132:map! |mapmode-ic|
133:im[ap] |mapmode-i|
134:lm[ap] |mapmode-l|
135:cm[ap] |mapmode-c|
Bram Moolenaar37c64c72017-09-19 22:06:03 +0200136:tma[p] |mapmode-t|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000137 List all key mappings for the modes where the map
138 command applies. Note that ":map" and ":map!" are
139 used most often, because they include the other modes.
140
Bram Moolenaar06b5db92006-02-10 23:11:56 +0000141:map {lhs} |mapmode-nvo| *:map_l*
142:nm[ap] {lhs} |mapmode-n| *:nmap_l*
143:vm[ap] {lhs} |mapmode-v| *:vmap_l*
Bram Moolenaar371d5402006-03-20 21:47:49 +0000144:xm[ap] {lhs} |mapmode-x| *:xmap_l*
145:sm[ap] {lhs} |mapmode-s| *:smap_l*
Bram Moolenaar06b5db92006-02-10 23:11:56 +0000146:om[ap] {lhs} |mapmode-o| *:omap_l*
147:map! {lhs} |mapmode-ic| *:map_l!*
148:im[ap] {lhs} |mapmode-i| *:imap_l*
149:lm[ap] {lhs} |mapmode-l| *:lmap_l*
150:cm[ap] {lhs} |mapmode-c| *:cmap_l*
Bram Moolenaar37c64c72017-09-19 22:06:03 +0200151:tma[p] {lhs} |mapmode-t| *:tmap_l*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000152 List the key mappings for the key sequences starting
153 with {lhs} in the modes where the map command applies.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000154
155These commands are used to map a key or key sequence to a string of
156characters. You can use this to put command sequences under function keys,
157translate one key into another, etc. See |:mkexrc| for how to save and
158restore the current mappings.
159
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +0000160 *map-ambiguous*
161When two mappings start with the same sequence of characters, they are
162ambiguous. Example: >
163 :imap aa foo
164 :imap aaa bar
165When Vim has read "aa", it will need to get another character to be able to
166decide if "aa" or "aaa" should be mapped. This means that after typing "aa"
167that mapping won't get expanded yet, Vim is waiting for another character.
168If you type a space, then "foo" will get inserted, plus the space. If you
169type "a", then "bar" will get inserted.
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +0000170
Bram Moolenaarcfa8f9a2022-06-03 21:59:47 +0100171Trailing white space ~
172 *map-trailing-white*
173This unmap command does NOT work: >
174 :map @@ foo
175 :unmap @@ | print
176
177Because it tries to unmap "@@ ", including the white space before the command
178separator "|". Other examples with trailing white space: >
179 unmap @@
180 unmap @@ # Vim9 script comment
Bram Moolenaar8a3b8052022-06-26 12:21:15 +0100181 unmap @@ " legacy script comment
Bram Moolenaarcfa8f9a2022-06-03 21:59:47 +0100182
183An error will be issued, which is very hard to identify, because the ending
184whitespace character in `unmap @@ ` is not visible.
185
186A generic solution is to put the command separator "|" right after the mapped
187keys. After that white space and a comment may follow: >
188
Bram Moolenaar8a3b8052022-06-26 12:21:15 +0100189 unmap @@| # Vim9 script comment
190 unmap @@| " legacy script comment
Bram Moolenaarcfa8f9a2022-06-03 21:59:47 +0100191
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +0000192
1931.2 SPECIAL ARGUMENTS *:map-arguments*
194
Bram Moolenaar72179e12013-06-29 13:58:31 +0200195"<buffer>", "<nowait>", "<silent>", "<special>", "<script>", "<expr>" and
196"<unique>" can be used in any order. They must appear right after the
197command, before any other arguments.
Bram Moolenaar4e427192006-03-10 21:34:27 +0000198
Bram Moolenaar8a3b8052022-06-26 12:21:15 +0100199 *:map-local* *:map-<buffer>* *:map-buffer*
200 *E224* *E225*
Bram Moolenaarc236c162008-07-13 17:41:49 +0000201If the first argument to one of these commands is "<buffer>" the mapping will
202be effective in the current buffer only. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000203 :map <buffer> ,w /[.,;]<CR>
204Then you can map ",w" to something else in another buffer: >
205 :map <buffer> ,w /[#&!]<CR>
Bram Moolenaar72179e12013-06-29 13:58:31 +0200206The local buffer mappings are used before the global ones. See <nowait> below
207to make a short local mapping not taking effect when a longer global one
208exists.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000209The "<buffer>" argument can also be used to clear mappings: >
210 :unmap <buffer> ,w
211 :mapclear <buffer>
212Local mappings are also cleared when a buffer is deleted, but not when it is
213unloaded. Just like local option values.
Bram Moolenaarec7944a2013-06-12 21:29:15 +0200214Also see |map-precedence|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000215
Bram Moolenaar72179e12013-06-29 13:58:31 +0200216 *:map-<nowait>* *:map-nowait*
217When defining a buffer-local mapping for "," there may be a global mapping
218that starts with ",". Then you need to type another character for Vim to know
219whether to use the "," mapping or the longer one. To avoid this add the
220<nowait> argument. Then the mapping will be used when it matches, Vim does
221not wait for more characters to be typed. However, if the characters were
Bram Moolenaar6aa8cea2017-06-05 14:44:35 +0200222already typed they are used.
Bram Moolenaar207f0092020-08-30 17:20:20 +0200223Note that this works when the <nowait> mapping fully matches and is found
224before any partial matches. This works when:
225- There is only one matching buffer-local mapping, since these are always
226 found before global mappings.
Bram Moolenaar1c6737b2020-09-07 22:18:52 +0200227- There is another buffer-local mapping that partly matches, but it is
Bram Moolenaar207f0092020-08-30 17:20:20 +0200228 defined earlier (last defined mapping is found first).
Bram Moolenaar72179e12013-06-29 13:58:31 +0200229
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000230 *:map-<silent>* *:map-silent*
231To define a mapping which will not be echoed on the command line, add
232"<silent>" as the first argument. Example: >
233 :map <silent> ,h /Header<CR>
234The search string will not be echoed when using this mapping. Messages from
235the executed command are still given though. To shut them up too, add a
236":silent" in the executed command: >
237 :map <silent> ,h :exe ":silent normal /Header\r"<CR>
Bram Moolenaar698a00f2022-11-14 22:07:45 +0000238Note that the effect of a command might also be silenced, e.g., when the
239mapping selects another entry for command line completion it won't be
240displayed.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000241Prompts will still be given, e.g., for inputdialog().
242Using "<silent>" for an abbreviation is possible, but will cause redrawing of
243the command line to fail.
244
Bram Moolenaar9c102382006-05-03 21:26:49 +0000245 *:map-<special>* *:map-special*
246Define a mapping with <> notation for special keys, even though the "<" flag
247may appear in 'cpoptions'. This is useful if the side effect of setting
248'cpoptions' is not desired. Example: >
249 :map <special> <F12> /Header<CR>
250<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000251 *:map-<script>* *:map-script*
252If the first argument to one of these commands is "<script>" and it is used to
253define a new mapping or abbreviation, the mapping will only remap characters
254in the {rhs} using mappings that were defined local to a script, starting with
255"<SID>". This can be used to avoid that mappings from outside a script
256interfere (e.g., when CTRL-V is remapped in mswin.vim), but do use other
257mappings defined in the script.
258Note: ":map <script>" and ":noremap <script>" do the same thing. The
259"<script>" overrules the command name. Using ":noremap <script>" is
260preferred, because it's clearer that remapping is (mostly) disabled.
261
Bram Moolenaar0e6adf82021-12-16 14:41:10 +0000262 *:map-<unique>* *:map-unique* *E226* *E227*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000263If the first argument to one of these commands is "<unique>" and it is used to
264define a new mapping or abbreviation, the command will fail if the mapping or
265abbreviation already exists. Example: >
266 :map <unique> ,w /[#&!]<CR>
267When defining a local mapping, there will also be a check if a global map
268already exists which is equal.
269Example of what will fail: >
270 :map ,w /[#&!]<CR>
271 :map <buffer> <unique> ,w /[.,;]<CR>
Bram Moolenaara40ceaf2006-01-13 22:35:40 +0000272If you want to map a key and then have it do what it was originally mapped to,
273have a look at |maparg()|.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000274
Bram Moolenaar4e427192006-03-10 21:34:27 +0000275 *:map-<expr>* *:map-expression*
276If the first argument to one of these commands is "<expr>" and it is used to
277define a new mapping or abbreviation, the argument is an expression. The
278expression is evaluated to obtain the {rhs} that is used. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar4c295022021-05-02 17:19:11 +0200279 :inoremap <expr> . <SID>InsertDot()
280The result of the s:InsertDot() function will be inserted. It could check the
Bram Moolenaar4e427192006-03-10 21:34:27 +0000281text before the cursor and start omni completion when some condition is met.
Bram Moolenaar4c295022021-05-02 17:19:11 +0200282Using a script-local function is preferred, to avoid polluting the global
283namespace. Use <SID> in the RHS so that the script that the mapping was
284defined in can be found.
Bram Moolenaar4e427192006-03-10 21:34:27 +0000285
Bram Moolenaarda9591e2009-09-30 13:17:02 +0000286For abbreviations |v:char| is set to the character that was typed to trigger
287the abbreviation. You can use this to decide how to expand the {lhs}. You
Bram Moolenaar5302d9e2011-09-14 17:55:08 +0200288should not either insert or change the v:char.
Bram Moolenaarda9591e2009-09-30 13:17:02 +0000289
Bram Moolenaar4f4d51a2020-10-11 13:57:40 +0200290In case you want the mapping to not do anything, you can have the expression
291evaluate to an empty string. If something changed that requires Vim to
292go through the main loop (e.g. to update the display), return "\<Ignore>".
293This is similar to "nothing" but makes Vim return from the loop that waits for
294input. Example: >
295 func s:OpenPopup()
296 call popup_create(... arguments ...)
297 return "\<Ignore>"
298 endfunc
Bram Moolenaar4c295022021-05-02 17:19:11 +0200299 nnoremap <expr> <F3> <SID>OpenPopup()
Bram Moolenaar4f4d51a2020-10-11 13:57:40 +0200300
Bram Moolenaarfd31be22022-01-16 14:46:06 +0000301Keep in mind that the expression may be evaluated when looking for
Bram Moolenaar18b7d862021-03-17 13:28:05 +0100302typeahead, before the previous command has been executed. For example: >
303 func StoreColumn()
304 let g:column = col('.')
305 return 'x'
306 endfunc
307 nnoremap <expr> x StoreColumn()
308 nmap ! f!x
Bram Moolenaardad44732021-03-31 20:07:33 +0200309You will notice that g:column has the value from before executing "f!",
310because "x" is evaluated before "f!" is executed.
Bram Moolenaar18b7d862021-03-17 13:28:05 +0100311This can be solved by inserting <Ignore> before the character that is
312expression-mapped: >
313 nmap ! f!<Ignore>x
314
Bram Moolenaare32c3c42022-01-15 18:26:04 +0000315When defining a mapping in a |Vim9| script, the expression will be evaluated
316in the context of that script. This means that script-local items can be
317accessed in the expression.
318
Bram Moolenaar4e427192006-03-10 21:34:27 +0000319Be very careful about side effects! The expression is evaluated while
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +0000320obtaining characters, you may very well make the command dysfunctional.
321For this reason the following is blocked:
Bram Moolenaar5c5b0942007-05-06 12:07:59 +0000322- Changing the buffer text |textlock|.
323- Editing another buffer.
324- The |:normal| command.
325- Moving the cursor is allowed, but it is restored afterwards.
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +0000326If you want the mapping to do any of these let the returned characters do
Bram Moolenaar957cf672020-11-12 14:21:06 +0100327that, or use a |<Cmd>| mapping instead.
Bram Moolenaar4e427192006-03-10 21:34:27 +0000328
Bram Moolenaar15146672011-10-20 22:22:38 +0200329You can use getchar(), it consumes typeahead if there is any. E.g., if you
330have these mappings: >
331 inoremap <expr> <C-L> nr2char(getchar())
332 inoremap <expr> <C-L>x "foo"
333If you now type CTRL-L nothing happens yet, Vim needs the next character to
334decide what mapping to use. If you type 'x' the second mapping is used and
Bram Moolenaarf1568ec2011-12-14 21:17:39 +0100335"foo" is inserted. If you type any other key the first mapping is used,
336getchar() gets the typed key and returns it.
Bram Moolenaar15146672011-10-20 22:22:38 +0200337
Bram Moolenaar4e427192006-03-10 21:34:27 +0000338Here is an example that inserts a list number that increases: >
339 let counter = 0
340 inoremap <expr> <C-L> ListItem()
341 inoremap <expr> <C-R> ListReset()
342
343 func ListItem()
344 let g:counter += 1
Bram Moolenaarc51cf032022-02-26 12:25:45 +0000345 return g:counter .. '. '
Bram Moolenaar4e427192006-03-10 21:34:27 +0000346 endfunc
347
348 func ListReset()
349 let g:counter = 0
350 return ''
351 endfunc
352
Bram Moolenaard9967712006-03-11 21:18:15 +0000353CTRL-L inserts the next number, CTRL-R resets the count. CTRL-R returns an
Bram Moolenaar4e427192006-03-10 21:34:27 +0000354empty string, so that nothing is inserted.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000355
Bram Moolenaar1c6737b2020-09-07 22:18:52 +0200356Note that using 0x80 as a single byte before other text does not work, it will
357be seen as a special key.
Bram Moolenaar8424a622006-04-19 21:23:36 +0000358
Bram Moolenaar957cf672020-11-12 14:21:06 +0100359 *<Cmd>* *:map-cmd*
360The special text <Cmd> begins a "command mapping", it executes the command
361directly without changing modes. Where you might use ":...<CR>" in the
362{rhs} of a mapping, you can instead use "<Cmd>...<CR>".
363Example: >
364 noremap x <Cmd>echo mode(1)<CR>
365<
366This is more flexible than `:<C-U>` in Visual and Operator-pending mode, or
367`<C-O>:` in Insert mode, because the commands are executed directly in the
368current mode, instead of always going to Normal mode. Visual mode is
369preserved, so tricks with |gv| are not needed. Commands can be invoked
370directly in Command-line mode (which would otherwise require timer hacks).
371Example of using <Cmd> halfway Insert mode: >
372 nnoremap <F3> aText <Cmd>echo mode(1)<CR> Added<Esc>
373
374Unlike <expr> mappings, there are no special restrictions on the <Cmd>
Bram Moolenaar4466ad62020-11-21 13:16:30 +0100375command: it is executed as if an (unrestricted) |autocommand| was invoked.
Bram Moolenaar957cf672020-11-12 14:21:06 +0100376
Bram Moolenaare32c3c42022-01-15 18:26:04 +0000377 *<ScriptCmd>*
378<ScriptCmd> is like <Cmd> but sets the context to the script the mapping was
379defined in, for the duration of the command execution. This is especially
380useful for |Vim9| script. It also works to access an import, which is useful
Bram Moolenaar5ed11532022-07-06 13:18:11 +0100381in a plugin using a, possibly autoloaded, script: >
Bram Moolenaare32c3c42022-01-15 18:26:04 +0000382 vim9script
383 import autoload 'implementation.vim' as impl
Bram Moolenaarfd31be22022-01-16 14:46:06 +0000384 nnoremap <F4> <ScriptCmd>impl.DoTheWork()<CR>
Bram Moolenaar5ed11532022-07-06 13:18:11 +0100385<
Bram Moolenaare32c3c42022-01-15 18:26:04 +0000386No matter where <F4> is typed, the "impl" import will be found in the script
Bram Moolenaar5ed11532022-07-06 13:18:11 +0100387context of where the mapping was defined. When it's an autoload import, as in
388the example, the "implementation.vim" script will only be loaded once <F4> is
389typed, not when the mapping is defined.
390
391Without <ScriptCmd> using "s:impl" would result in "E121: Undefined variable".
Bram Moolenaare32c3c42022-01-15 18:26:04 +0000392
Bram Moolenaar957cf672020-11-12 14:21:06 +0100393Note:
Bram Moolenaare32c3c42022-01-15 18:26:04 +0000394- Because <Cmd> and <ScriptCmd> avoid mode-changes it does not trigger
395 |CmdlineEnter| and |CmdlineLeave| events, because no user interaction is
396 expected.
Bram Moolenaar957cf672020-11-12 14:21:06 +0100397- For the same reason, |keycodes| like <C-R><C-W> are interpreted as plain,
398 unmapped keys.
Bram Moolenaar4466ad62020-11-21 13:16:30 +0100399- The command is not echo'ed, no need for <silent>.
Bram Moolenaar88a42052021-11-21 21:13:36 +0000400- The {rhs} is not subject to abbreviations nor to other mappings, even if the
401 mapping is recursive.
Bram Moolenaar4466ad62020-11-21 13:16:30 +0100402- In Visual mode you can use `line('v')` and `col('v')` to get one end of the
403 Visual area, the cursor is at the other end.
Bram Moolenaard799daa2022-06-20 11:17:32 +0100404
Bram Moolenaara4d131d2021-12-27 21:33:07 +0000405 *E1255* *E1136*
Bram Moolenaare32c3c42022-01-15 18:26:04 +0000406<Cmd> and <ScriptCmd> commands must terminate, that is, they must be followed
407by <CR> in the {rhs} of the mapping definition. |Command-line| mode is never
408entered.
Bram Moolenaar957cf672020-11-12 14:21:06 +0100409
410 *E1137*
Bram Moolenaare32c3c42022-01-15 18:26:04 +0000411<Cmd> and <ScriptCmd> commands can have only normal characters and cannot
412contain special characters like function keys.
Bram Moolenaar957cf672020-11-12 14:21:06 +0100413
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000414
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +00004151.3 MAPPING AND MODES *:map-modes*
Bram Moolenaara7241f52008-06-24 20:39:31 +0000416 *mapmode-nvo* *mapmode-n* *mapmode-v* *mapmode-o*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000417
Bram Moolenaar1588bc82022-03-08 21:35:07 +0000418There are seven sets of mappings
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000419- For Normal mode: When typing commands.
420- For Visual mode: When typing commands while the Visual area is highlighted.
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +0100421- For Select mode: like Visual mode but typing text replaces the selection.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000422- For Operator-pending mode: When an operator is pending (after "d", "y", "c",
Bram Moolenaara7241f52008-06-24 20:39:31 +0000423 etc.). See below: |omap-info|.
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +0000424- For Insert mode. These are also used in Replace mode.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000425- For Command-line mode: When entering a ":" or "/" command.
Bram Moolenaar1588bc82022-03-08 21:35:07 +0000426- For Terminal mode: When typing in a |:terminal| buffer.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000427
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000428Special case: While typing a count for a command in Normal mode, mapping zero
429is disabled. This makes it possible to map zero without making it impossible
430to type a count with a zero.
431
432 *map-overview* *map-modes*
Bram Moolenaare968e362014-05-13 20:23:24 +0200433Overview of which map command works in which mode. More details below.
434 COMMANDS MODES ~
435:map :noremap :unmap Normal, Visual, Select, Operator-pending
436:nmap :nnoremap :nunmap Normal
437:vmap :vnoremap :vunmap Visual and Select
438:smap :snoremap :sunmap Select
439:xmap :xnoremap :xunmap Visual
440:omap :onoremap :ounmap Operator-pending
441:map! :noremap! :unmap! Insert and Command-line
442:imap :inoremap :iunmap Insert
443:lmap :lnoremap :lunmap Insert, Command-line, Lang-Arg
444:cmap :cnoremap :cunmap Command-line
Bram Moolenaar69fbc9e2017-09-14 20:37:57 +0200445:tmap :tnoremap :tunmap Terminal-Job
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000446
Bram Moolenaar3ec32172021-05-16 12:39:47 +0200447Same information in a table:
448 *map-table*
449 Mode | Norm | Ins | Cmd | Vis | Sel | Opr | Term | Lang | ~
450Command +------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+------+------+ ~
451[nore]map | yes | - | - | yes | yes | yes | - | - |
452n[nore]map | yes | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
453[nore]map! | - | yes | yes | - | - | - | - | - |
454i[nore]map | - | yes | - | - | - | - | - | - |
455c[nore]map | - | - | yes | - | - | - | - | - |
456v[nore]map | - | - | - | yes | yes | - | - | - |
457x[nore]map | - | - | - | yes | - | - | - | - |
458s[nore]map | - | - | - | - | yes | - | - | - |
459o[nore]map | - | - | - | - | - | yes | - | - |
460t[nore]map | - | - | - | - | - | - | yes | - |
461l[nore]map | - | yes | yes | - | - | - | - | yes |
462
Bram Moolenaare968e362014-05-13 20:23:24 +0200463
464 COMMANDS MODES ~
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +0000465 Normal Visual+Select Operator-pending ~
466:map :noremap :unmap :mapclear yes yes yes
467:nmap :nnoremap :nunmap :nmapclear yes - -
468:vmap :vnoremap :vunmap :vmapclear - yes -
469:omap :onoremap :ounmap :omapclear - - yes
Bram Moolenaar371d5402006-03-20 21:47:49 +0000470
Bram Moolenaar4c3f5362006-04-11 21:38:50 +0000471:nunmap can also be used outside of a monastery.
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +0000472 *mapmode-x* *mapmode-s*
Bram Moolenaar371d5402006-03-20 21:47:49 +0000473Some commands work both in Visual and Select mode, some in only one. Note
474that quite often "Visual" is mentioned where both Visual and Select mode
475apply. |Select-mode-mapping|
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +0100476NOTE: Mapping a printable character in Select mode may confuse the user. It's
477better to explicitly use :xmap and :smap for printable characters. Or use
478:sunmap after defining the mapping.
Bram Moolenaar371d5402006-03-20 21:47:49 +0000479
Bram Moolenaare968e362014-05-13 20:23:24 +0200480 COMMANDS MODES ~
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +0000481 Visual Select ~
482:vmap :vnoremap :vunmap :vmapclear yes yes
483:xmap :xnoremap :xunmap :xmapclear yes -
484:smap :snoremap :sunmap :smapclear - yes
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000485
Bram Moolenaar06b5db92006-02-10 23:11:56 +0000486 *mapmode-ic* *mapmode-i* *mapmode-c* *mapmode-l*
Bram Moolenaar371d5402006-03-20 21:47:49 +0000487Some commands work both in Insert mode and Command-line mode, some not:
488
Bram Moolenaare968e362014-05-13 20:23:24 +0200489 COMMANDS MODES ~
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000490 Insert Command-line Lang-Arg ~
491:map! :noremap! :unmap! :mapclear! yes yes -
492:imap :inoremap :iunmap :imapclear yes - -
493:cmap :cnoremap :cunmap :cmapclear - yes -
494:lmap :lnoremap :lunmap :lmapclear yes* yes* yes*
495
Bram Moolenaar5ef1c6a2019-11-10 22:09:11 +0100496* If 'iminsert' is 1, see |language-mapping| below.
497
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000498The original Vi did not have separate mappings for
499Normal/Visual/Operator-pending mode and for Insert/Command-line mode.
500Therefore the ":map" and ":map!" commands enter and display mappings for
501several modes. In Vim you can use the ":nmap", ":vmap", ":omap", ":cmap" and
502":imap" commands to enter mappings for each mode separately.
503
Bram Moolenaar69fbc9e2017-09-14 20:37:57 +0200504 *mapmode-t*
505The terminal mappings are used in a terminal window, when typing keys for the
506job running in the terminal. See |terminal-typing|.
507
Bram Moolenaara7241f52008-06-24 20:39:31 +0000508 *omap-info*
509Operator-pending mappings can be used to define a movement command that can be
Bram Moolenaar95bafa22018-10-02 13:26:25 +0200510used with any operator. Simple example: >
511 :omap { w
512makes "y{" work like "yw" and "d{" like "dw".
Bram Moolenaara7241f52008-06-24 20:39:31 +0000513
514To ignore the starting cursor position and select different text, you can have
515the omap start Visual mode to select the text to be operated upon. Example
516that operates on a function name in the current line: >
517 onoremap <silent> F :<C-U>normal! 0f(hviw<CR>
518The CTRL-U (<C-U>) is used to remove the range that Vim may insert. The
519Normal mode commands find the first '(' character and select the first word
520before it. That usually is the function name.
521
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000522To enter a mapping for Normal and Visual mode, but not Operator-pending mode,
Bram Moolenaar95bafa22018-10-02 13:26:25 +0200523first define it for all three modes, then unmap it for
524Operator-pending mode: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000525 :map xx something-difficult
526 :ounmap xx
Bram Moolenaar95bafa22018-10-02 13:26:25 +0200527
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000528Likewise for a mapping for Visual and Operator-pending mode or Normal and
529Operator-pending mode.
530
531 *language-mapping*
532":lmap" defines a mapping that applies to:
533- Insert mode
534- Command-line mode
535- when entering a search pattern
536- the argument of the commands that accept a text character, such as "r" and
537 "f"
538- for the input() line
539Generally: Whenever a character is to be typed that is part of the text in the
540buffer, not a Vim command character. "Lang-Arg" isn't really another mode,
541it's just used here for this situation.
542 The simplest way to load a set of related language mappings is by using the
543'keymap' option. See |45.5|.
544 In Insert mode and in Command-line mode the mappings can be disabled with
Bram Moolenaar7cba6c02013-09-05 22:13:31 +0200545the CTRL-^ command |i_CTRL-^| |c_CTRL-^|. These commands change the value of
Bram Moolenaar3b1db362013-08-10 15:00:24 +0200546the 'iminsert' option. When starting to enter a normal command line (not a
547search pattern) the mappings are disabled until a CTRL-^ is typed. The state
548last used is remembered for Insert mode and Search patterns separately. The
549state for Insert mode is also used when typing a character as an argument to
550command like "f" or "t".
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000551 Language mappings will never be applied to already mapped characters. They
552are only used for typed characters. This assumes that the language mapping
553was already done when typing the mapping.
554
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000555
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +00005561.4 LISTING MAPPINGS *map-listing*
557
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000558When listing mappings the characters in the first two columns are:
559
560 CHAR MODE ~
Bram Moolenaar5c5b0942007-05-06 12:07:59 +0000561 <Space> Normal, Visual, Select and Operator-pending
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000562 n Normal
Bram Moolenaar5c5b0942007-05-06 12:07:59 +0000563 v Visual and Select
564 s Select
565 x Visual
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000566 o Operator-pending
567 ! Insert and Command-line
568 i Insert
569 l ":lmap" mappings for Insert, Command-line and Lang-Arg
570 c Command-line
Bram Moolenaar63c4e8a2017-09-17 20:32:20 +0200571 t Terminal-Job
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000572
573Just before the {rhs} a special character can appear:
574 * indicates that it is not remappable
575 & indicates that only script-local mappings are remappable
576 @ indicates a buffer-local mapping
577
578Everything from the first non-blank after {lhs} up to the end of the line
579(or '|') is considered to be part of {rhs}. This allows the {rhs} to end
580with a space.
581
582Note: When using mappings for Visual mode, you can use the "'<" mark, which
583is the start of the last selected Visual area in the current buffer |'<|.
584
Bram Moolenaar818078d2016-08-27 21:58:42 +0200585The |:filter| command can be used to select what mappings to list. The
586pattern is matched against the {lhs} and {rhs} in the raw form.
587
Bram Moolenaard13166e2022-11-18 21:49:57 +0000588While mappings are being listed, it is not possible to add or clear mappings,
589e.g. from a timer callback. *E1309*
590
Bram Moolenaarae5bce12005-08-15 21:41:48 +0000591 *:map-verbose*
592When 'verbose' is non-zero, listing a key map will also display where it was
593last defined. Example: >
594
595 :verbose map <C-W>*
596 n <C-W>* * <C-W><C-S>*
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +0000597 Last set from /home/abcd/.vimrc
Bram Moolenaarae5bce12005-08-15 21:41:48 +0000598
Bram Moolenaar5195e452005-08-19 20:32:47 +0000599See |:verbose-cmd| for more information.
Bram Moolenaarae5bce12005-08-15 21:41:48 +0000600
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +0000601
6021.5 MAPPING SPECIAL KEYS *:map-special-keys*
603
604There are three ways to map a special key:
6051. The Vi-compatible method: Map the key code. Often this is a sequence that
606 starts with <Esc>. To enter a mapping like this you type ":map " and then
607 you have to type CTRL-V before hitting the function key. Note that when
608 the key code for the key is in the termcap (the t_ options), it will
609 automatically be translated into the internal code and become the second
610 way of mapping (unless the 'k' flag is included in 'cpoptions').
6112. The second method is to use the internal code for the function key. To
612 enter such a mapping type CTRL-K and then hit the function key, or use
613 the form "#1", "#2", .. "#9", "#0", "<Up>", "<S-Down>", "<S-F7>", etc.
614 (see table of keys |key-notation|, all keys from <Up> can be used). The
615 first ten function keys can be defined in two ways: Just the number, like
616 "#2", and with "<F>", like "<F2>". Both stand for function key 2. "#0"
617 refers to function key 10, defined with option 't_f10', which may be
618 function key zero on some keyboards. The <> form cannot be used when
619 'cpoptions' includes the '<' flag.
6203. Use the termcap entry, with the form <t_xx>, where "xx" is the name of the
621 termcap entry. Any string entry can be used. For example: >
622 :map <t_F3> G
623< Maps function key 13 to "G". This does not work if 'cpoptions' includes
624 the '<' flag.
625
626The advantage of the second and third method is that the mapping will work on
627different terminals without modification (the function key will be
628translated into the same internal code or the actual key code, no matter what
629terminal you are using. The termcap must be correct for this to work, and you
630must use the same mappings).
631
632DETAIL: Vim first checks if a sequence from the keyboard is mapped. If it
633isn't the terminal key codes are tried (see |terminal-options|). If a
634terminal code is found it is replaced with the internal code. Then the check
635for a mapping is done again (so you can map an internal code to something
636else). What is written into the script file depends on what is recognized.
637If the terminal key code was recognized as a mapping the key code itself is
638written to the script file. If it was recognized as a terminal code the
639internal code is written to the script file.
640
641
6421.6 SPECIAL CHARACTERS *:map-special-chars*
Bram Moolenaar345efa02016-01-15 20:57:49 +0100643 *map_backslash* *map-backslash*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000644Note that only CTRL-V is mentioned here as a special character for mappings
645and abbreviations. When 'cpoptions' does not contain 'B', a backslash can
646also be used like CTRL-V. The <> notation can be fully used then |<>|. But
647you cannot use "<C-V>" like CTRL-V to escape the special meaning of what
648follows.
649
650To map a backslash, or use a backslash literally in the {rhs}, the special
651sequence "<Bslash>" can be used. This avoids the need to double backslashes
652when using nested mappings.
653
Bram Moolenaar345efa02016-01-15 20:57:49 +0100654 *map_CTRL-C* *map-CTRL-C*
Bram Moolenaar1e015462005-09-25 22:16:38 +0000655Using CTRL-C in the {lhs} is possible, but it will only work when Vim is
656waiting for a key, not when Vim is busy with something. When Vim is busy
657CTRL-C interrupts/breaks the command.
658When using the GUI version on MS-Windows CTRL-C can be mapped to allow a Copy
659command to the clipboard. Use CTRL-Break to interrupt Vim.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000660
Bram Moolenaar345efa02016-01-15 20:57:49 +0100661 *map_space_in_lhs* *map-space_in_lhs*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000662To include a space in {lhs} precede it with a CTRL-V (type two CTRL-Vs for
663each space).
Bram Moolenaar345efa02016-01-15 20:57:49 +0100664 *map_space_in_rhs* *map-space_in_rhs*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000665If you want a {rhs} that starts with a space, use "<Space>". To be fully Vi
666compatible (but unreadable) don't use the |<>| notation, precede {rhs} with a
667single CTRL-V (you have to type CTRL-V two times).
Bram Moolenaar345efa02016-01-15 20:57:49 +0100668 *map_empty_rhs* *map-empty-rhs*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000669You can create an empty {rhs} by typing nothing after a single CTRL-V (you
670have to type CTRL-V two times). Unfortunately, you cannot do this in a vimrc
671file.
672 *<Nop>*
Bram Moolenaar446beb42011-05-10 17:18:44 +0200673An easier way to get a mapping that doesn't produce anything, is to use
674"<Nop>" for the {rhs}. This only works when the |<>| notation is enabled.
675For example, to make sure that function key 8 does nothing at all: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000676 :map <F8> <Nop>
677 :map! <F8> <Nop>
678<
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +0000679 *map-multibyte*
680It is possible to map multibyte characters, but only the whole character. You
681cannot map the first byte only. This was done to prevent problems in this
682scenario: >
683 :set encoding=latin1
684 :imap <M-C> foo
685 :set encoding=utf-8
686The mapping for <M-C> is defined with the latin1 encoding, resulting in a 0xc3
Bram Moolenaar85eee132018-05-06 17:57:30 +0200687byte. If you type the character á (0xe1 <M-a>) in UTF-8 encoding this is the
Bram Moolenaar446beb42011-05-10 17:18:44 +0200688two bytes 0xc3 0xa1. You don't want the 0xc3 byte to be mapped then or
Bram Moolenaar85eee132018-05-06 17:57:30 +0200689otherwise it would be impossible to type the á character.
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +0000690
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000691 *<Leader>* *mapleader*
Bram Moolenaarb529cfb2022-07-25 15:42:07 +0100692To define a mapping which uses the "g:mapleader" variable, the special string
693"<Leader>" can be used. It is replaced with the string value of
694"g:mapleader". If "g:mapleader" is not set or empty, a backslash is used
695instead. Example: >
696 map <Leader>A oanother line<Esc>
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000697Works like: >
Bram Moolenaarb529cfb2022-07-25 15:42:07 +0100698 map \A oanother line<Esc>
699But after (legacy script): >
700 let mapleader = ","
701Or (Vim9 script): >
702 g:mapleader = ","
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000703It works like: >
Bram Moolenaarb529cfb2022-07-25 15:42:07 +0100704 map ,A oanother line<Esc>
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000705
Bram Moolenaarb529cfb2022-07-25 15:42:07 +0100706Note that the value of "g:mapleader" is used at the moment the mapping is
707defined. Changing "g:mapleader" after that has no effect for already defined
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000708mappings.
709
710 *<LocalLeader>* *maplocalleader*
Bram Moolenaara7241f52008-06-24 20:39:31 +0000711<LocalLeader> is just like <Leader>, except that it uses "maplocalleader"
712instead of "mapleader". <LocalLeader> is to be used for mappings which are
713local to a buffer. Example: >
Bram Moolenaarb8ff1fb2012-02-04 21:59:01 +0100714 :map <buffer> <LocalLeader>A oanother line<Esc>
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000715<
716In a global plugin <Leader> should be used and in a filetype plugin
717<LocalLeader>. "mapleader" and "maplocalleader" can be equal. Although, if
718you make them different, there is a smaller chance of mappings from global
719plugins to clash with mappings for filetype plugins. For example, you could
720keep "mapleader" at the default backslash, and set "maplocalleader" to an
721underscore.
722
723 *map-<SID>*
724In a script the special key name "<SID>" can be used to define a mapping
725that's local to the script. See |<SID>| for details.
726
727 *<Plug>*
728The special key name "<Plug>" can be used for an internal mapping, which is
729not to be matched with any key sequence. This is useful in plugins
730|using-<Plug>|.
731
Bram Moolenaarcbaff5e2022-04-08 17:45:08 +0100732 *<MouseMove>*
733The special key name "<MouseMove>" can be used to handle mouse movement. It
734needs to be enabled with 'mousemoveevent'. Currently only works in the GUI.
Bram Moolenaar2d8ed022022-05-21 13:08:16 +0100735The |getmousepos()| function can be used to obtain the mouse position.
Bram Moolenaarcbaff5e2022-04-08 17:45:08 +0100736
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000737 *<Char>* *<Char->*
738To map a character by its decimal, octal or hexadecimal number the <Char>
739construct can be used:
740 <Char-123> character 123
741 <Char-033> character 27
742 <Char-0x7f> character 127
Bram Moolenaar5302d9e2011-09-14 17:55:08 +0200743 <S-Char-114> character 114 ('r') shifted ('R')
Bram Moolenaar207f0092020-08-30 17:20:20 +0200744This is useful to specify a (multibyte) character in a 'keymap' file.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000745Upper and lowercase differences are ignored.
746
747 *map-comments*
748It is not possible to put a comment after these commands, because the '"'
Bram Moolenaar036986f2017-03-16 17:41:02 +0100749character is considered to be part of the {lhs} or {rhs}. However, one can
750use |", since this starts a new, empty command with a comment.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000751
Bram Moolenaar345efa02016-01-15 20:57:49 +0100752 *map_bar* *map-bar*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000753Since the '|' character is used to separate a map command from the next
754command, you will have to do something special to include a '|' in {rhs}.
755There are three methods:
756 use works when example ~
757 <Bar> '<' is not in 'cpoptions' :map _l :!ls <Bar> more^M
758 \| 'b' is not in 'cpoptions' :map _l :!ls \| more^M
759 ^V| always, in Vim and Vi :map _l :!ls ^V| more^M
760
761(here ^V stands for CTRL-V; to get one CTRL-V you have to type it twice; you
762cannot use the <> notation "<C-V>" here).
763
764All three work when you use the default setting for 'cpoptions'.
765
766When 'b' is present in 'cpoptions', "\|" will be recognized as a mapping
767ending in a '\' and then another command. This is Vi compatible, but
768illogical when compared to other commands.
769
Bram Moolenaar345efa02016-01-15 20:57:49 +0100770 *map_return* *map-return*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000771When you have a mapping that contains an Ex command, you need to put a line
772terminator after it to have it executed. The use of <CR> is recommended for
773this (see |<>|). Example: >
Bram Moolenaar251835e2014-02-24 02:51:51 +0100774 :map _ls :!ls -l %:S<CR>:echo "the end"<CR>
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000775
776To avoid mapping of the characters you type in insert or Command-line mode,
777type a CTRL-V first. The mapping in Insert mode is disabled if the 'paste'
778option is on.
Bram Moolenaare2db6952013-07-24 19:53:36 +0200779 *map-error*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000780Note that when an error is encountered (that causes an error message or beep)
781the rest of the mapping is not executed. This is Vi-compatible.
782
783Note that the second character (argument) of the commands @zZtTfF[]rm'`"v
784and CTRL-X is not mapped. This was done to be able to use all the named
785registers and marks, even when the command with the same name has been
786mapped.
787
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +0000788
7891.7 WHAT KEYS TO MAP *map-which-keys*
790
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000791If you are going to map something, you will need to choose which key(s) to use
792for the {lhs}. You will have to avoid keys that are used for Vim commands,
793otherwise you would not be able to use those commands anymore. Here are a few
794suggestions:
795- Function keys <F2>, <F3>, etc.. Also the shifted function keys <S-F1>,
796 <S-F2>, etc. Note that <F1> is already used for the help command.
Bram Moolenaarf91787c2010-07-17 12:47:16 +0200797- Meta-keys (with the ALT key pressed). Depending on your keyboard accented
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +0100798 characters may be used as well. |:map-alt-keys|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000799- Use the '_' or ',' character and then any other character. The "_" and ","
800 commands do exist in Vim (see |_| and |,|), but you probably never use them.
801- Use a key that is a synonym for another command. For example: CTRL-P and
802 CTRL-N. Use an extra character to allow more mappings.
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +0100803- The key defined by <Leader> and one or more other keys. This is especially
804 useful in scripts. |mapleader|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000805
806See the file "index" for keys that are not used and thus can be mapped without
807losing any builtin function. You can also use ":help {key}^D" to find out if
808a key is used for some command. ({key} is the specific key you want to find
809out about, ^D is CTRL-D).
810
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +0000811
8121.8 EXAMPLES *map-examples*
813
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000814A few examples (given as you type them, for "<CR>" you type four characters;
815the '<' flag must not be present in 'cpoptions' for this to work). >
816
817 :map <F3> o#include
818 :map <M-g> /foo<CR>cwbar<Esc>
819 :map _x d/END/e<CR>
820 :map! qq quadrillion questions
Bram Moolenaar5c5b0942007-05-06 12:07:59 +0000821
822
823Multiplying a count
824
825When you type a count before triggering a mapping, it's like the count was
826typed before the {lhs}. For example, with this mapping: >
827 :map <F4> 3w
828Typing 2<F4> will result in "23w". Thus not moving 2 * 3 words but 23 words.
829If you want to multiply counts use the expression register: >
830 :map <F4> @='3w'<CR>
831The part between quotes is the expression being executed. |@=|
832
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +0000833
8341.9 USING MAPPINGS *map-typing*
835
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000836Vim will compare what you type with the start of a mapped sequence. If there
837is an incomplete match, it will get more characters until there either is a
838complete match or until there is no match at all. Example: If you map! "qq",
839the first 'q' will not appear on the screen until you type another
840character. This is because Vim cannot know if the next character will be a
841'q' or not. If the 'timeout' option is on (which is the default) Vim will
842only wait for one second (or as long as specified with the 'timeoutlen'
843option). After that it assumes that the 'q' is to be interpreted as such. If
844you type slowly, or your system is slow, reset the 'timeout' option. Then you
845might want to set the 'ttimeout' option.
846
Bram Moolenaar37c64c72017-09-19 22:06:03 +0200847 *map-precedence*
Bram Moolenaarec7944a2013-06-12 21:29:15 +0200848Buffer-local mappings (defined using |:map-<buffer>|) take precedence over
849global mappings. When a buffer-local mapping is the same as a global mapping,
850Vim will use the buffer-local mapping. In addition, Vim will use a complete
Bram Moolenaar14b69452013-06-29 23:05:20 +0200851mapping immediately if it was defined with <nowait>, even if a longer mapping
852has the same prefix. For example, given the following two mappings: >
853 :map <buffer> <nowait> \a :echo "Local \a"<CR>
854 :map \abc :echo "Global \abc"<CR>
855When typing \a the buffer-local mapping will be used immediately. Vim will
856not wait for more characters to see if the user might be typing \abc.
Bram Moolenaarec7944a2013-06-12 21:29:15 +0200857
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000858 *map-keys-fails*
Bram Moolenaarcdbac1e2005-12-11 21:27:22 +0000859There are situations where key codes might not be recognized:
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000860- Vim can only read part of the key code. Mostly this is only the first
861 character. This happens on some Unix versions in an xterm.
862- The key code is after character(s) that are mapped. E.g., "<F1><F1>" or
863 "g<F1>".
Bram Moolenaarcdbac1e2005-12-11 21:27:22 +0000864
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000865The result is that the key code is not recognized in this situation, and the
Bram Moolenaarcdbac1e2005-12-11 21:27:22 +0000866mapping fails. There are two actions needed to avoid this problem:
867
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000868- Remove the 'K' flag from 'cpoptions'. This will make Vim wait for the rest
869 of the characters of the function key.
870- When using <F1> to <F4> the actual key code generated may correspond to
871 <xF1> to <xF4>. There are mappings from <xF1> to <F1>, <xF2> to <F2>, etc.,
872 but these are not recognized after another half a mapping. Make sure the
873 key codes for <F1> to <F4> are correct: >
874 :set <F1>=<type CTRL-V><type F1>
875< Type the <F1> as four characters. The part after the "=" must be done with
876 the actual keys, not the literal text.
877Another solution is to use the actual key code in the mapping for the second
878special key: >
879 :map <F1><Esc>OP :echo "yes"<CR>
880Don't type a real <Esc>, Vim will recognize the key code and replace it with
881<F1> anyway.
882
Bram Moolenaarcdbac1e2005-12-11 21:27:22 +0000883Another problem may be that when keeping ALT or Meta pressed the terminal
884prepends ESC instead of setting the 8th bit. See |:map-alt-keys|.
885
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000886 *recursive_mapping*
887If you include the {lhs} in the {rhs} you have a recursive mapping. When
888{lhs} is typed, it will be replaced with {rhs}. When the {lhs} which is
889included in {rhs} is encountered it will be replaced with {rhs}, and so on.
890This makes it possible to repeat a command an infinite number of times. The
891only problem is that the only way to stop this is by causing an error. The
892macros to solve a maze uses this, look there for an example. There is one
893exception: If the {rhs} starts with {lhs}, the first character is not mapped
894again (this is Vi compatible).
895For example: >
896 :map ab abcd
897will execute the "a" command and insert "bcd" in the text. The "ab" in the
898{rhs} will not be mapped again.
899
900If you want to exchange the meaning of two keys you should use the :noremap
901command. For example: >
902 :noremap k j
903 :noremap j k
904This will exchange the cursor up and down commands.
905
906With the normal :map command, when the 'remap' option is on, mapping takes
907place until the text is found not to be a part of a {lhs}. For example, if
908you use: >
909 :map x y
910 :map y x
911Vim will replace x with y, and then y with x, etc. When this has happened
912'maxmapdepth' times (default 1000), Vim will give the error message
913"recursive mapping".
914
915 *:map-undo*
916If you include an undo command inside a mapped sequence, this will bring the
917text back in the state before executing the macro. This is compatible with
918the original Vi, as long as there is only one undo command in the mapped
919sequence (having two undo commands in a mapped sequence did not make sense
920in the original Vi, you would get back the text before the first undo).
921
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +0000922
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +00009231.10 MAPPING ALT-KEYS *:map-alt-keys*
Bram Moolenaarcdbac1e2005-12-11 21:27:22 +0000924
925In the GUI Vim handles the Alt key itself, thus mapping keys with ALT should
926always work. But in a terminal Vim gets a sequence of bytes and has to figure
927out whether ALT was pressed or not.
928
Bram Moolenaar4b570182019-10-20 19:53:22 +0200929If the terminal supports the modifyOtherKeys mode and it has been enabled,
930then Vim can recognize more key combinations, see |modifyOtherKeys| below.
931
Bram Moolenaarcdbac1e2005-12-11 21:27:22 +0000932By default Vim assumes that pressing the ALT key sets the 8th bit of a typed
Bram Moolenaar97d29a12005-12-17 22:02:57 +0000933character. Most decent terminals can work that way, such as xterm, aterm and
Bram Moolenaarcdbac1e2005-12-11 21:27:22 +0000934rxvt. If your <A-k> mappings don't work it might be that the terminal is
935prefixing the character with an ESC character. But you can just as well type
936ESC before a character, thus Vim doesn't know what happened (except for
937checking the delay between characters, which is not reliable).
938
939As of this writing, some mainstream terminals like gnome-terminal and konsole
940use the ESC prefix. There doesn't appear a way to have them use the 8th bit
Bram Moolenaar97d29a12005-12-17 22:02:57 +0000941instead. Xterm should work well by default. Aterm and rxvt should work well
942when started with the "--meta8" argument. You can also tweak resources like
943"metaSendsEscape", "eightBitInput" and "eightBitOutput".
Bram Moolenaarcdbac1e2005-12-11 21:27:22 +0000944
945On the Linux console, this behavior can be toggled with the "setmetamode"
946command. Bear in mind that not using an ESC prefix could get you in trouble
947with other programs. You should make sure that bash has the "convert-meta"
948option set to "on" in order for your Meta keybindings to still work on it
949(it's the default readline behavior, unless changed by specific system
950configuration). For that, you can add the line: >
951
952 set convert-meta on
953
954to your ~/.inputrc file. If you're creating the file, you might want to use: >
955
956 $include /etc/inputrc
957
958as the first line, if that file exists on your system, to keep global options.
959This may cause a problem for entering special characters, such as the umlaut.
960Then you should use CTRL-V before that character.
961
962Bear in mind that convert-meta has been reported to have troubles when used in
963UTF-8 locales. On terminals like xterm, the "metaSendsEscape" resource can be
964toggled on the fly through the "Main Options" menu, by pressing Ctrl-LeftClick
965on the terminal; that's a good last resource in case you want to send ESC when
Bram Moolenaar6aa8cea2017-06-05 14:44:35 +0200966using other applications but not when inside Vim.
Bram Moolenaarcdbac1e2005-12-11 21:27:22 +0000967
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +0000968
Bram Moolenaar4b570182019-10-20 19:53:22 +02009691.11 MAPPING IN modifyOtherKeys mode *modifyOtherKeys*
970
971Xterm and a few other terminals can be put in a mode where keys with modifiers
972are sent with a special escape code. Vim recognizes these codes and can then
973make a difference between CTRL-H and Backspace, even when Backspace sends the
974character 8. And many more special keys.
975
976For xterm modifyOtherKeys is enabled in the builtin termcap entry. If this is
977not used you can enable modifyOtherKeys with these lines in your vimrc: >
978 let &t_TI = "\<Esc>[>4;2m"
979 let &t_TE = "\<Esc>[>4;m"
980
981In case the modifyOtherKeys mode causes problems you can disable it: >
982 let &t_TI = ""
983 let &t_TE = ""
984It does not take effect immediately. To have this work without restarting Vim
Bram Moolenaar5ef1c6a2019-11-10 22:09:11 +0100985execute a shell command, e.g.: `!ls` Or put the lines in your |vimrc|.
986
987When modifyOtherKeys is enabled you can map <C-[> and <C-S-{>: >
988 imap <C-[> [[[
Bram Moolenaar9a033d72020-10-07 17:29:48 +0200989 imap <C-{> {{{
990Without modifyOtherKeys <C-[> and <C-{> are indistinguishable from Esc.
991Note that <C-{> is used and not <C-S-[> or <C-S-{>. This works on most
992keyboards. Similarly, <C-}> is used instead of <C-S-]> or <C-S-}> and
993<C-|> instead of <C-S-\> or <C-S-|>. Note that '|' has a special meaning in a
994mapping, see |map-bar|.
995
996WARNING: if you map <C-[> you may very well break any key codes that start
997with Esc. Make sure it comes AFTER other mappings.
Bram Moolenaar4b570182019-10-20 19:53:22 +0200998
Bram Moolenaar9f62ea02022-10-19 13:07:03 +0100999Vim automatically detects if the modifyOtherKeys mode was enabled when it
1000spots an escape sequence that must have been created by it. To see if Vim
1001detected such an escape sequence use `:verbose map`, the first line will then
1002show "Seen modifyOtherKeys: true" (possibly translated).
1003
Bram Moolenaar2547aa92020-07-26 17:00:44 +02001004A known side effect is that in Insert mode the raw escape sequence is inserted
1005after the CTRL-V key. This can be used to check whether modifyOtherKeys is
1006enabled: In Insert mode type CTRL-SHIFT-V CTRL-V, if you get one byte then
1007modifyOtherKeys is off, if you get <1b>27;5;118~ then it is on.
Bram Moolenaar4b570182019-10-20 19:53:22 +02001008
Bram Moolenaar5ef1c6a2019-11-10 22:09:11 +01001009When the 'esckeys' option is off, then modifyOtherKeys will be disabled in
1010Insert mode to avoid every key with a modifier causing Insert mode to end.
1011
Bram Moolenaar4b570182019-10-20 19:53:22 +02001012
Bram Moolenaar63a2e362022-11-23 20:20:18 +000010131.12 MAPPING WITH KITTY KEYBOARD PROTOCOL *kitty-keyboard-protocol*
1014
1015If the value of 'term' contains "kitty" then Vim will send out an escape
1016sequence to enable the Kitty keyboard protocol. This can be changed with the
1017'keyprotocol' option.
1018
1019Like modifyOtherKeys, this will make it possible to distinguish between more
1020keys with modifiers. Also, this protocol sends an escape sequence for the Esc
1021key, so that Vim does not need to use a timeout to know whether receiving an
1022Esc character means the Esc key was pressed or it's the start of an escape
1023sequence.
1024
1025Vim automatically detects if the Kitty keyboard protocol was enabled when it
1026spots the response to the status request (this should be part of the |t_TI|
1027termcap entry). To see if Vim detected such an escape sequence use: >
1028 :verbose map
1029The first line will then show "Kitty keyboard protocol: {value}" (possibly
1030translated). The meaning of {value}:
1031 Unknown no status received yet
1032 Off protocol is not used
1033 On protocol is used
1034 Disabled protocol was used but expected to have been disabled
1035 by 't_TE'
1036 Cleared protocol expected to have beeen disabled by 't_TE',
1037 previous state is unknown
1038
1039
10401.13 MAPPING AN OPERATOR *:map-operator*
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +00001041
1042An operator is used before a {motion} command. To define your own operator
Bram Moolenaar1b884a02020-12-10 21:11:27 +01001043you must create a mapping that first sets the 'operatorfunc' option and then
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +00001044invoke the |g@| operator. After the user types the {motion} command the
1045specified function will be called.
1046
Bram Moolenaara40ceaf2006-01-13 22:35:40 +00001047 *g@* *E774* *E775*
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +00001048g@{motion} Call the function set by the 'operatorfunc' option.
1049 The '[ mark is positioned at the start of the text
1050 moved over by {motion}, the '] mark on the last
1051 character of the text.
1052 The function is called with one String argument:
1053 "line" {motion} was |linewise|
1054 "char" {motion} was |characterwise|
Bram Moolenaarf91787c2010-07-17 12:47:16 +02001055 "block" {motion} was |blockwise-visual|
Bram Moolenaarfa3b7232021-12-24 13:18:38 +00001056 The type can be forced, see |forced-motion|.
Bram Moolenaardb84e452010-08-15 13:50:43 +02001057 {not available when compiled without the |+eval|
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +00001058 feature}
1059
1060Here is an example that counts the number of spaces with <F4>: >
1061
Bram Moolenaar1c6737b2020-09-07 22:18:52 +02001062 nnoremap <expr> <F4> CountSpaces()
1063 xnoremap <expr> <F4> CountSpaces()
1064 " doubling <F4> works on a line
1065 nnoremap <expr> <F4><F4> CountSpaces() .. '_'
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +00001066
Bram Moolenaarfa3b7232021-12-24 13:18:38 +00001067 function CountSpaces(context = {}, type = '') abort
Bram Moolenaar1c6737b2020-09-07 22:18:52 +02001068 if a:type == ''
Bram Moolenaarfa3b7232021-12-24 13:18:38 +00001069 let context = #{
1070 \ dot_command: v:false,
1071 \ extend_block: '',
1072 \ virtualedit: [&l:virtualedit, &g:virtualedit],
1073 \ }
1074 let &operatorfunc = function('CountSpaces', [context])
Bram Moolenaar0e6adf82021-12-16 14:41:10 +00001075 set virtualedit=block
Bram Moolenaar1c6737b2020-09-07 22:18:52 +02001076 return 'g@'
Bram Moolenaar0e6adf82021-12-16 14:41:10 +00001077 endif
Bram Moolenaar1c6737b2020-09-07 22:18:52 +02001078
Bram Moolenaarfa3b7232021-12-24 13:18:38 +00001079 let save = #{
1080 \ clipboard: &clipboard,
1081 \ selection: &selection,
1082 \ virtualedit: [&l:virtualedit, &g:virtualedit],
1083 \ register: getreginfo('"'),
1084 \ visual_marks: [getpos("'<"), getpos("'>")],
1085 \ }
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +00001086
Bram Moolenaar1c6737b2020-09-07 22:18:52 +02001087 try
Bram Moolenaar0e6adf82021-12-16 14:41:10 +00001088 set clipboard= selection=inclusive virtualedit=
Bram Moolenaarfa3b7232021-12-24 13:18:38 +00001089 let commands = #{
1090 \ line: "'[V']",
1091 \ char: "`[v`]",
1092 \ block: "`[\<C-V>`]",
1093 \ }[a:type]
1094 let [_, _, col, off] = getpos("']")
1095 if off != 0
1096 let vcol = getline("'[")->strpart(0, col + off)->strdisplaywidth()
1097 if vcol >= [line("'["), '$']->virtcol() - 1
1098 let a:context.extend_block = '$'
1099 else
1100 let a:context.extend_block = vcol .. '|'
1101 endif
1102 endif
1103 if a:context.extend_block != ''
1104 let commands ..= 'oO' .. a:context.extend_block
Bram Moolenaar0e6adf82021-12-16 14:41:10 +00001105 endif
1106 let commands ..= 'y'
1107 execute 'silent noautocmd keepjumps normal! ' .. commands
1108 echomsg getreg('"')->count(' ')
Bram Moolenaar1c6737b2020-09-07 22:18:52 +02001109 finally
Bram Moolenaarfa3b7232021-12-24 13:18:38 +00001110 call setreg('"', save.register)
1111 call setpos("'<", save.visual_marks[0])
1112 call setpos("'>", save.visual_marks[1])
1113 let &clipboard = save.clipboard
1114 let &selection = save.selection
1115 let [&l:virtualedit, &g:virtualedit] = get(a:context.dot_command ? save : a:context, 'virtualedit')
1116 let a:context.dot_command = v:true
Bram Moolenaar1c6737b2020-09-07 22:18:52 +02001117 endtry
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +00001118 endfunction
1119
Bram Moolenaar1c6737b2020-09-07 22:18:52 +02001120An <expr> mapping is used to be able to fetch any prefixed count and register.
1121This also avoids using a command line, which would trigger CmdlineEnter and
1122CmdlineLeave autocommands.
1123
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +00001124Note that the 'selection' option is temporarily set to "inclusive" to be able
1125to yank exactly the right text by using Visual mode from the '[ to the ']
1126mark.
1127
Bram Moolenaar1c6737b2020-09-07 22:18:52 +02001128Also note that the 'clipboard' option is temporarily emptied to avoid
1129clobbering the `"*` or `"+` registers, if its value contains the item `unnamed`
1130or `unnamedplus`.
Bram Moolenaar5b962cf2005-12-12 21:58:40 +00001131
Bram Moolenaar079ba762021-10-23 12:08:41 +01001132The `mode()` function will return the state as it will be after applying the
1133operator.
1134
Yegappan Lakshmanan777175b2021-11-18 22:08:57 +00001135Here is an example for using a lambda function to create a normal-mode
1136operator to add quotes around text in the current line: >
1137
1138 nnoremap <F4> <Cmd>let &opfunc='{t ->
1139 \ getline(".")
1140 \ ->split("\\zs")
1141 \ ->insert("\"", col("'']"))
1142 \ ->insert("\"", col("''[") - 1)
1143 \ ->join("")
1144 \ ->setline(".")}'<CR>g@
1145
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001146==============================================================================
11472. Abbreviations *abbreviations* *Abbreviations*
1148
1149Abbreviations are used in Insert mode, Replace mode and Command-line mode.
1150If you enter a word that is an abbreviation, it is replaced with the word it
1151stands for. This can be used to save typing for often used long words. And
1152you can use it to automatically correct obvious spelling errors.
1153Examples:
1154
Bram Moolenaarc1762cc2007-05-10 16:56:30 +00001155 :iab ms Microsoft
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001156 :iab tihs this
1157
1158There are three types of abbreviations:
1159
1160full-id The "full-id" type consists entirely of keyword characters (letters
1161 and characters from 'iskeyword' option). This is the most common
1162 abbreviation.
1163
1164 Examples: "foo", "g3", "-1"
1165
1166end-id The "end-id" type ends in a keyword character, but all the other
1167 characters are not keyword characters.
1168
1169 Examples: "#i", "..f", "$/7"
1170
1171non-id The "non-id" type ends in a non-keyword character, the other
Bram Moolenaar34162142007-05-12 13:12:19 +00001172 characters may be of any type, excluding space and tab. {this type
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001173 is not supported by Vi}
1174
1175 Examples: "def#", "4/7$"
1176
1177Examples of strings that cannot be abbreviations: "a.b", "#def", "a b", "_$r"
1178
1179An abbreviation is only recognized when you type a non-keyword character.
1180This can also be the <Esc> that ends insert mode or the <CR> that ends a
1181command. The non-keyword character which ends the abbreviation is inserted
1182after the expanded abbreviation. An exception to this is the character <C-]>,
1183which is used to expand an abbreviation without inserting any extra
1184characters.
1185
1186Example: >
1187 :ab hh hello
1188< "hh<Space>" is expanded to "hello<Space>"
1189 "hh<C-]>" is expanded to "hello"
1190
1191The characters before the cursor must match the abbreviation. Each type has
1192an additional rule:
1193
1194full-id In front of the match is a non-keyword character, or this is where
1195 the line or insertion starts. Exception: When the abbreviation is
1196 only one character, it is not recognized if there is a non-keyword
Bram Moolenaareb3dc872018-05-13 22:34:24 +02001197 character in front of it, other than a space or a tab. However, for
1198 the command line "'<,'>" (or any other marks) is ignored, as if the
1199 command line starts after it.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001200
Bram Moolenaar34162142007-05-12 13:12:19 +00001201end-id In front of the match is a keyword character, or a space or a tab,
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001202 or this is where the line or insertion starts.
1203
Bram Moolenaar34162142007-05-12 13:12:19 +00001204non-id In front of the match is a space, tab or the start of the line or
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001205 the insertion.
1206
1207Examples: ({CURSOR} is where you type a non-keyword character) >
1208 :ab foo four old otters
1209< " foo{CURSOR}" is expanded to " four old otters"
1210 " foobar{CURSOR}" is not expanded
1211 "barfoo{CURSOR}" is not expanded
1212>
1213 :ab #i #include
1214< "#i{CURSOR}" is expanded to "#include"
1215 ">#i{CURSOR}" is not expanded
1216>
Bram Moolenaar81695252004-12-29 20:58:21 +00001217 :ab ;; <endofline>
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001218< "test;;" is not expanded
1219 "test ;;" is expanded to "test <endofline>"
1220
Bram Moolenaar7d76c802014-10-15 22:51:52 +02001221To avoid the abbreviation in Insert mode: Type CTRL-V before the character
1222that would trigger the abbreviation. E.g. CTRL-V <Space>. Or type part of
1223the abbreviation, exit insert mode with <Esc>, re-enter insert mode with "a"
1224and type the rest.
1225
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001226To avoid the abbreviation in Command-line mode: Type CTRL-V twice somewhere in
1227the abbreviation to avoid it to be replaced. A CTRL-V in front of a normal
1228character is mostly ignored otherwise.
1229
1230It is possible to move the cursor after an abbreviation: >
1231 :iab if if ()<Left>
1232This does not work if 'cpoptions' includes the '<' flag. |<>|
1233
1234You can even do more complicated things. For example, to consume the space
1235typed after an abbreviation: >
1236 func Eatchar(pat)
Bram Moolenaar32466aa2006-02-24 23:53:04 +00001237 let c = nr2char(getchar(0))
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001238 return (c =~ a:pat) ? '' : c
1239 endfunc
1240 iabbr <silent> if if ()<Left><C-R>=Eatchar('\s')<CR>
1241
1242There are no default abbreviations.
1243
1244Abbreviations are never recursive. You can use ":ab f f-o-o" without any
1245problem. But abbreviations can be mapped. {some versions of Vi support
1246recursive abbreviations, for no apparent reason}
1247
1248Abbreviations are disabled if the 'paste' option is on.
1249
1250 *:abbreviate-local* *:abbreviate-<buffer>*
1251Just like mappings, abbreviations can be local to a buffer. This is mostly
1252used in a |filetype-plugin| file. Example for a C plugin file: >
1253 :abb <buffer> FF for (i = 0; i < ; ++i)
1254<
1255 *:ab* *:abbreviate*
1256:ab[breviate] list all abbreviations. The character in the first
1257 column indicates the mode where the abbreviation is
1258 used: 'i' for insert mode, 'c' for Command-line
1259 mode, '!' for both. These are the same as for
1260 mappings, see |map-listing|.
1261
Bram Moolenaare344bea2005-09-01 20:46:49 +00001262 *:abbreviate-verbose*
1263When 'verbose' is non-zero, listing an abbreviation will also display where it
1264was last defined. Example: >
1265
1266 :verbose abbreviate
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00001267 ! teh the
Bram Moolenaare344bea2005-09-01 20:46:49 +00001268 Last set from /home/abcd/vim/abbr.vim
1269
1270See |:verbose-cmd| for more information.
1271
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001272:ab[breviate] {lhs} list the abbreviations that start with {lhs}
1273 You may need to insert a CTRL-V (type it twice) to
1274 avoid that a typed {lhs} is expanded, since
1275 command-line abbreviations apply here.
1276
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +02001277:ab[breviate] [<expr>] [<buffer>] {lhs} {rhs}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001278 add abbreviation for {lhs} to {rhs}. If {lhs} already
1279 existed it is replaced with the new {rhs}. {rhs} may
1280 contain spaces.
Bram Moolenaarfc1421e2006-04-20 22:17:20 +00001281 See |:map-<expr>| for the optional <expr> argument.
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +02001282 See |:map-<buffer>| for the optional <buffer> argument.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001283
1284 *:una* *:unabbreviate*
Bram Moolenaar95a9dd12019-12-19 22:12:03 +01001285:una[bbreviate] [<buffer>] {lhs}
1286 Remove abbreviation for {lhs} from the list. If none
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001287 is found, remove abbreviations in which {lhs} matches
1288 with the {rhs}. This is done so that you can even
1289 remove abbreviations after expansion. To avoid
1290 expansion insert a CTRL-V (type it twice).
1291
1292 *:norea* *:noreabbrev*
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +02001293:norea[bbrev] [<expr>] [<buffer>] [lhs] [rhs]
Bram Moolenaar25c9c682019-05-05 18:13:34 +02001294 Same as ":ab", but no remapping for this {rhs}.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001295
Bram Moolenaar61da1bf2019-06-06 12:14:49 +02001296 *:ca* *:cab* *:cabbrev*
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +02001297:ca[bbrev] [<expr>] [<buffer>] [lhs] [rhs]
Bram Moolenaar25c9c682019-05-05 18:13:34 +02001298 Same as ":ab", but for Command-line mode only.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001299
1300 *:cuna* *:cunabbrev*
Bram Moolenaar95a9dd12019-12-19 22:12:03 +01001301:cuna[bbrev] [<buffer>] {lhs}
1302 Same as ":una", but for Command-line mode only.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001303
1304 *:cnorea* *:cnoreabbrev*
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +02001305:cnorea[bbrev] [<expr>] [<buffer>] [lhs] [rhs]
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001306 same as ":ab", but for Command-line mode only and no
Bram Moolenaar25c9c682019-05-05 18:13:34 +02001307 remapping for this {rhs}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001308
1309 *:ia* *:iabbrev*
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +02001310:ia[bbrev] [<expr>] [<buffer>] [lhs] [rhs]
Bram Moolenaar25c9c682019-05-05 18:13:34 +02001311 Same as ":ab", but for Insert mode only.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001312
1313 *:iuna* *:iunabbrev*
Bram Moolenaar95a9dd12019-12-19 22:12:03 +01001314:iuna[bbrev] [<buffer>] {lhs}
1315 Same as ":una", but for insert mode only.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001316
1317 *:inorea* *:inoreabbrev*
Bram Moolenaar251e1912011-06-19 05:09:16 +02001318:inorea[bbrev] [<expr>] [<buffer>] [lhs] [rhs]
Bram Moolenaar25c9c682019-05-05 18:13:34 +02001319 Same as ":ab", but for Insert mode only and no
1320 remapping for this {rhs}.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001321
1322 *:abc* *:abclear*
Bram Moolenaar25c9c682019-05-05 18:13:34 +02001323:abc[lear] [<buffer>] Remove all abbreviations.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001324
1325 *:iabc* *:iabclear*
Bram Moolenaar25c9c682019-05-05 18:13:34 +02001326:iabc[lear] [<buffer>] Remove all abbreviations for Insert mode.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001327
1328 *:cabc* *:cabclear*
Bram Moolenaar25c9c682019-05-05 18:13:34 +02001329:cabc[lear] [<buffer>] Remove all abbreviations for Command-line mode.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001330
1331 *using_CTRL-V*
1332It is possible to use special characters in the rhs of an abbreviation.
1333CTRL-V has to be used to avoid the special meaning of most non printable
1334characters. How many CTRL-Vs need to be typed depends on how you enter the
1335abbreviation. This also applies to mappings. Let's use an example here.
1336
1337Suppose you want to abbreviate "esc" to enter an <Esc> character. When you
1338type the ":ab" command in Vim, you have to enter this: (here ^V is a CTRL-V
1339and ^[ is <Esc>)
1340
1341You type: ab esc ^V^V^V^V^V^[
1342
1343 All keyboard input is subjected to ^V quote interpretation, so
1344 the first, third, and fifth ^V characters simply allow the second,
1345 and fourth ^Vs, and the ^[, to be entered into the command-line.
1346
1347You see: ab esc ^V^V^[
1348
1349 The command-line contains two actual ^Vs before the ^[. This is
1350 how it should appear in your .exrc file, if you choose to go that
1351 route. The first ^V is there to quote the second ^V; the :ab
1352 command uses ^V as its own quote character, so you can include quoted
Bram Moolenaar81695252004-12-29 20:58:21 +00001353 whitespace or the | character in the abbreviation. The :ab command
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001354 doesn't do anything special with the ^[ character, so it doesn't need
1355 to be quoted. (Although quoting isn't harmful; that's why typing 7
1356 [but not 8!] ^Vs works.)
1357
1358Stored as: esc ^V^[
1359
1360 After parsing, the abbreviation's short form ("esc") and long form
1361 (the two characters "^V^[") are stored in the abbreviation table.
1362 If you give the :ab command with no arguments, this is how the
1363 abbreviation will be displayed.
1364
1365 Later, when the abbreviation is expanded because the user typed in
1366 the word "esc", the long form is subjected to the same type of
1367 ^V interpretation as keyboard input. So the ^V protects the ^[
Bram Moolenaar81695252004-12-29 20:58:21 +00001368 character from being interpreted as the "exit Insert mode" character.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001369 Instead, the ^[ is inserted into the text.
1370
1371Expands to: ^[
1372
1373[example given by Steve Kirkendall]
1374
1375==============================================================================
13763. Local mappings and functions *script-local*
1377
1378When using several Vim script files, there is the danger that mappings and
1379functions used in one script use the same name as in other scripts. To avoid
1380this, they can be made local to the script.
1381
1382 *<SID>* *<SNR>* *E81*
1383The string "<SID>" can be used in a mapping or menu. This requires that the
1384'<' flag is not present in 'cpoptions'.
1385 When executing the map command, Vim will replace "<SID>" with the special
1386key code <SNR>, followed by a number that's unique for the script, and an
1387underscore. Example: >
1388 :map <SID>Add
1389could define a mapping "<SNR>23_Add".
1390
1391When defining a function in a script, "s:" can be prepended to the name to
Bram Moolenaar75ab5902022-04-18 15:36:40 +01001392make it local to the script (in |Vim9| script functions without a prefix are
1393local to the script). But when a mapping is executed from outside of
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001394the script, it doesn't know in which script the function was defined. To
1395avoid this problem, use "<SID>" instead of "s:". The same translation is done
1396as for mappings. This makes it possible to define a call to the function in
Bram Moolenaar81695252004-12-29 20:58:21 +00001397a mapping.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001398
1399When a local function is executed, it runs in the context of the script it was
1400defined in. This means that new functions and mappings it defines can also
1401use "s:" or "<SID>" and it will use the same unique number as when the
1402function itself was defined. Also, the "s:var" local script variables can be
1403used.
1404
1405When executing an autocommand or a user command, it will run in the context of
1406the script it was defined in. This makes it possible that the command calls a
1407local function or uses a local mapping.
1408
Bram Moolenaar90944302020-08-01 20:45:11 +02001409In case the value is used in a context where <SID> cannot be correctly
1410expanded, use the expand() function: >
1411 let &includexpr = expand('<SID>') .. 'My_includeexpr()'
1412
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001413Otherwise, using "<SID>" outside of a script context is an error.
1414
1415If you need to get the script number to use in a complicated script, you can
Bram Moolenaar4770d092006-01-12 23:22:24 +00001416use this function: >
Bram Moolenaar4466ad62020-11-21 13:16:30 +01001417 func s:ScriptNumber()
1418 return matchstr(expand('<SID>'), '<SNR>\zs\d\+\ze_')
1419 endfunc
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001420
1421The "<SNR>" will be shown when listing functions and mappings. This is useful
1422to find out what they are defined to.
1423
1424The |:scriptnames| command can be used to see which scripts have been sourced
1425and what their <SNR> number is.
1426
Bram Moolenaar25c9c682019-05-05 18:13:34 +02001427This is all {not available when compiled without the |+eval| feature}.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001428
1429==============================================================================
14304. User-defined commands *user-commands*
1431
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00001432It is possible to define your own Ex commands. A user-defined command can act
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001433just like a built-in command (it can have a range or arguments, arguments can
1434be completed as filenames or buffer names, etc), except that when the command
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01001435is executed, it is transformed into a normal Ex command and then executed.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001436
1437For starters: See section |40.2| in the user manual.
1438
Bram Moolenaar166af9b2010-11-16 20:34:40 +01001439 *E183* *E841* *user-cmd-ambiguous*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001440All user defined commands must start with an uppercase letter, to avoid
Bram Moolenaar166af9b2010-11-16 20:34:40 +01001441confusion with builtin commands. Exceptions are these builtin commands:
1442 :Next
1443 :X
1444They cannot be used for a user defined command. ":Print" is also an existing
1445command, but it is deprecated and can be overruled.
1446
1447The other characters of the user command can be uppercase letters, lowercase
1448letters or digits. When using digits, note that other commands that take a
1449numeric argument may become ambiguous. For example, the command ":Cc2" could
1450be the user command ":Cc2" without an argument, or the command ":Cc" with
1451argument "2". It is advised to put a space between the command name and the
1452argument to avoid these problems.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001453
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00001454When using a user-defined command, the command can be abbreviated. However, if
1455an abbreviation is not unique, an error will be issued. Furthermore, a
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001456built-in command will always take precedence.
1457
1458Example: >
1459 :command Rename ...
1460 :command Renumber ...
1461 :Rena " Means "Rename"
1462 :Renu " Means "Renumber"
1463 :Ren " Error - ambiguous
1464 :command Paste ...
1465 :P " The built-in :Print
1466
1467It is recommended that full names for user-defined commands are used in
1468scripts.
1469
1470:com[mand] *:com* *:command*
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00001471 List all user-defined commands. When listing commands,
Bram Moolenaara561a412019-04-25 21:27:58 +02001472 the characters in the first columns are:
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001473 ! Command has the -bang attribute
1474 " Command has the -register attribute
Bram Moolenaara561a412019-04-25 21:27:58 +02001475 | Command has the -bar attribute
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001476 b Command is local to current buffer
1477 (see below for details on attributes)
Bram Moolenaar818078d2016-08-27 21:58:42 +02001478 The list can be filtered on command name with
1479 |:filter|, e.g., to list all commands with "Pyth" in
1480 the name: >
1481 filter Pyth command
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001482
1483:com[mand] {cmd} List the user-defined commands that start with {cmd}
1484
Bram Moolenaar5b8d8fd2005-08-16 23:01:50 +00001485 *:command-verbose*
1486When 'verbose' is non-zero, listing a command will also display where it was
Bram Moolenaar6f4754b2022-01-23 12:07:04 +00001487last defined and any completion argument. Example: >
Bram Moolenaar5b8d8fd2005-08-16 23:01:50 +00001488
1489 :verbose command TOhtml
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00001490< Name Args Range Complete Definition ~
1491 TOhtml 0 % :call Convert2HTML(<line1>, <line2>) ~
1492 Last set from /usr/share/vim/vim-7.0/plugin/tohtml.vim ~
1493
Bram Moolenaar5195e452005-08-19 20:32:47 +00001494See |:verbose-cmd| for more information.
Bram Moolenaar5b8d8fd2005-08-16 23:01:50 +00001495
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001496 *E174* *E182*
Bram Moolenaar1b884a02020-12-10 21:11:27 +01001497:com[mand][!] [{attr}...] {cmd} {repl}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001498 Define a user command. The name of the command is
Bram Moolenaar1b884a02020-12-10 21:11:27 +01001499 {cmd} and its replacement text is {repl}. The
1500 command's attributes (see below) are {attr}. If the
1501 command already exists, an error is reported, unless a
1502 ! is specified, in which case the command is
1503 redefined. There is one exception: When sourcing a
1504 script again, a command that was previously defined in
1505 that script will be silently replaced.
Bram Moolenaar55d46912018-12-08 16:03:28 +01001506
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001507
1508:delc[ommand] {cmd} *:delc* *:delcommand* *E184*
1509 Delete the user-defined command {cmd}.
Bram Moolenaard13166e2022-11-18 21:49:57 +00001510 This is not allowed while listing commands, e.g. from
1511 a timer. *E1311*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001512
Bram Moolenaarbdcba242021-09-12 20:58:02 +02001513:delc[ommand] -buffer {cmd} *E1237*
1514 Delete the user-defined command {cmd} that was defined
1515 for the current buffer.
1516
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001517:comc[lear] *:comc* *:comclear*
1518 Delete all user-defined commands.
1519
Bram Moolenaar55d46912018-12-08 16:03:28 +01001520
1521Command attributes ~
Bram Moolenaar6ebe4f92022-10-28 20:47:54 +01001522 *command-attributes*
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01001523User-defined commands are treated by Vim just like any other Ex commands. They
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00001524can have arguments, or have a range specified. Arguments are subject to
1525completion as filenames, buffers, etc. Exactly how this works depends upon the
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001526command's attributes, which are specified when the command is defined.
1527
1528There are a number of attributes, split into four categories: argument
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00001529handling, completion behavior, range handling, and special cases. The
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001530attributes are described below, by category.
1531
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001532
Bram Moolenaar55d46912018-12-08 16:03:28 +01001533Argument handling ~
1534 *E175* *E176* *:command-nargs*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001535By default, a user defined command will take no arguments (and an error is
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00001536reported if any are supplied). However, it is possible to specify that the
1537command can take arguments, using the -nargs attribute. Valid cases are:
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001538
1539 -nargs=0 No arguments are allowed (the default)
Bram Moolenaar9d87a372018-12-18 21:41:50 +01001540 -nargs=1 Exactly one argument is required, it includes spaces
Bram Moolenaar446beb42011-05-10 17:18:44 +02001541 -nargs=* Any number of arguments are allowed (0, 1, or many),
1542 separated by white space
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001543 -nargs=? 0 or 1 arguments are allowed
1544 -nargs=+ Arguments must be supplied, but any number are allowed
1545
Bram Moolenaar34162142007-05-12 13:12:19 +00001546Arguments are considered to be separated by (unescaped) spaces or tabs in this
Bram Moolenaar446beb42011-05-10 17:18:44 +02001547context, except when there is one argument, then the white space is part of
1548the argument.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001549
1550Note that arguments are used as text, not as expressions. Specifically,
1551"s:var" will use the script-local variable in the script where the command was
1552defined, not where it is invoked! Example:
1553 script1.vim: >
1554 :let s:error = "None"
1555 :command -nargs=1 Error echoerr <args>
1556< script2.vim: >
1557 :source script1.vim
1558 :let s:error = "Wrong!"
1559 :Error s:error
Bram Moolenaara7241f52008-06-24 20:39:31 +00001560Executing script2.vim will result in "None" being echoed. Not what you
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001561intended! Calling a function may be an alternative.
1562
Bram Moolenaar55d46912018-12-08 16:03:28 +01001563
1564Completion behavior ~
Bram Moolenaar9d87a372018-12-18 21:41:50 +01001565 *:command-completion* *E179* *E180* *E181*
Bram Moolenaar55d46912018-12-08 16:03:28 +01001566 *:command-complete*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001567By default, the arguments of user defined commands do not undergo completion.
1568However, by specifying one or the other of the following attributes, argument
1569completion can be enabled:
1570
Bram Moolenaarcd43eff2018-03-29 15:55:38 +02001571 -complete=arglist file names in argument list
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001572 -complete=augroup autocmd groups
1573 -complete=buffer buffer names
Bram Moolenaar5ae636b2012-04-30 18:48:53 +02001574 -complete=behave :behave suboptions
Bram Moolenaare9edd7f2011-07-20 16:37:24 +02001575 -complete=color color schemes
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001576 -complete=command Ex command (and arguments)
Bram Moolenaare9edd7f2011-07-20 16:37:24 +02001577 -complete=compiler compilers
Bram Moolenaar4a748032010-09-30 21:47:56 +02001578 -complete=cscope |:cscope| suboptions
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001579 -complete=dir directory names
1580 -complete=environment environment variable names
1581 -complete=event autocommand events
1582 -complete=expression Vim expression
1583 -complete=file file and directory names
Bram Moolenaare9edd7f2011-07-20 16:37:24 +02001584 -complete=file_in_path file and directory names in |'path'|
Bram Moolenaara26559b2010-07-31 14:59:19 +02001585 -complete=filetype filetype names |'filetype'|
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001586 -complete=function function name
1587 -complete=help help subjects
1588 -complete=highlight highlight groups
Bram Moolenaar5ae636b2012-04-30 18:48:53 +02001589 -complete=history :history suboptions
Bram Moolenaare9edd7f2011-07-20 16:37:24 +02001590 -complete=locale locale names (as output of locale -a)
Bram Moolenaarcae92dc2017-08-06 15:22:15 +02001591 -complete=mapclear buffer argument
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001592 -complete=mapping mapping name
1593 -complete=menu menus
Bram Moolenaar9e507ca2016-10-15 15:39:39 +02001594 -complete=messages |:messages| suboptions
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001595 -complete=option options
Bram Moolenaar063b9d12016-07-09 20:21:48 +02001596 -complete=packadd optional package |pack-add| names
Bram Moolenaara26559b2010-07-31 14:59:19 +02001597 -complete=shellcmd Shell command
Bram Moolenaar4a748032010-09-30 21:47:56 +02001598 -complete=sign |:sign| suboptions
Bram Moolenaara26559b2010-07-31 14:59:19 +02001599 -complete=syntax syntax file names |'syntax'|
Bram Moolenaarcd9c4622013-06-08 15:24:48 +02001600 -complete=syntime |:syntime| suboptions
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001601 -complete=tag tags
1602 -complete=tag_listfiles tags, file names are shown when CTRL-D is hit
Bram Moolenaar24305862012-08-15 14:05:05 +02001603 -complete=user user names
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001604 -complete=var user variables
1605 -complete=custom,{func} custom completion, defined via {func}
Bram Moolenaara466c992005-07-09 21:03:22 +00001606 -complete=customlist,{func} custom completion, defined via {func}
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001607
Bram Moolenaar6f4754b2022-01-23 12:07:04 +00001608If you specify completion while there is nothing to complete (-nargs=0, the
1609default) then you get error *E1208* .
Bram Moolenaar3a991dd2014-10-02 01:41:41 +02001610Note: That some completion methods might expand environment variables.
1611
Bram Moolenaara5792f52005-11-23 21:25:05 +00001612
Bram Moolenaar55d46912018-12-08 16:03:28 +01001613Custom completion ~
1614 *:command-completion-custom*
1615 *:command-completion-customlist* *E467* *E468*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001616It is possible to define customized completion schemes via the "custom,{func}"
Bram Moolenaara466c992005-07-09 21:03:22 +00001617or the "customlist,{func}" completion argument. The {func} part should be a
Bram Moolenaara7241f52008-06-24 20:39:31 +00001618function with the following signature: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001619
1620 :function {func}(ArgLead, CmdLine, CursorPos)
1621
Bram Moolenaara466c992005-07-09 21:03:22 +00001622The function need not use all these arguments. The function should provide the
1623completion candidates as the return value.
1624
1625For the "custom" argument, the function should return the completion
1626candidates one per line in a newline separated string.
Bram Moolenaar9712ff12022-09-18 13:04:22 +01001627 *E1303*
Bram Moolenaara466c992005-07-09 21:03:22 +00001628For the "customlist" argument, the function should return the completion
Bram Moolenaara5792f52005-11-23 21:25:05 +00001629candidates as a Vim List. Non-string items in the list are ignored.
Bram Moolenaara466c992005-07-09 21:03:22 +00001630
1631The function arguments are:
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001632 ArgLead the leading portion of the argument currently being
1633 completed on
1634 CmdLine the entire command line
Bram Moolenaara5792f52005-11-23 21:25:05 +00001635 CursorPos the cursor position in it (byte index)
Bram Moolenaara466c992005-07-09 21:03:22 +00001636The function may use these for determining context. For the "custom"
1637argument, it is not necessary to filter candidates against the (implicit
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01001638pattern in) ArgLead. Vim will filter the candidates with its regexp engine
Bram Moolenaar1588bc82022-03-08 21:35:07 +00001639after function return, and this is probably more efficient in most cases. If
1640'wildoptions' contains "fuzzy", then the candidates will be filtered using
1641|fuzzy-matching|. For the "customlist" argument, Vim will not
1642filter the returned completion candidates and the user supplied function
1643should filter the candidates.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001644
1645The following example lists user names to a Finger command >
1646 :com -complete=custom,ListUsers -nargs=1 Finger !finger <args>
1647 :fun ListUsers(A,L,P)
1648 : return system("cut -d: -f1 /etc/passwd")
1649 :endfun
1650
Bram Moolenaara466c992005-07-09 21:03:22 +00001651The following example completes filenames from the directories specified in
1652the 'path' option: >
1653 :com -nargs=1 -bang -complete=customlist,EditFileComplete
1654 \ EditFile edit<bang> <args>
1655 :fun EditFileComplete(A,L,P)
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01001656 : return split(globpath(&path, a:A), "\n")
Bram Moolenaara466c992005-07-09 21:03:22 +00001657 :endfun
1658<
Bram Moolenaar5ac3b1a2010-07-27 22:50:36 +02001659This example does not work for file names with spaces!
1660
Bram Moolenaara5792f52005-11-23 21:25:05 +00001661
Bram Moolenaar55d46912018-12-08 16:03:28 +01001662Range handling ~
1663 *E177* *E178* *:command-range* *:command-count*
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00001664By default, user-defined commands do not accept a line number range. However,
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001665it is possible to specify that the command does take a range (the -range
1666attribute), or that it takes an arbitrary count value, either in the line
1667number position (-range=N, like the |:split| command) or as a "count"
Bram Moolenaar5c5b0942007-05-06 12:07:59 +00001668argument (-count=N, like the |:Next| command). The count will then be
1669available in the argument with |<count>|.
1670
1671Possible attributes are:
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001672
1673 -range Range allowed, default is current line
1674 -range=% Range allowed, default is whole file (1,$)
1675 -range=N A count (default N) which is specified in the line
Bram Moolenaar8e5af3e2011-04-28 19:02:44 +02001676 number position (like |:split|); allows for zero line
1677 number.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001678 -count=N A count (default N) which is specified either in the line
Bram Moolenaar32e7b2d2005-02-27 22:36:47 +00001679 number position, or as an initial argument (like |:Next|).
Bram Moolenaar25c9c682019-05-05 18:13:34 +02001680 -count acts like -count=0
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001681
1682Note that -range=N and -count=N are mutually exclusive - only one should be
1683specified.
1684
Bram Moolenaaraa3b15d2016-04-21 08:53:19 +02001685 *:command-addr*
Bram Moolenaarf1d6ccf2014-12-08 04:16:44 +01001686It is possible that the special characters in the range like ., $ or % which
1687by default correspond to the current line, last line and the whole buffer,
1688relate to arguments, (loaded) buffers, windows or tab pages.
1689
Bram Moolenaara561a412019-04-25 21:27:58 +02001690Possible values are (second column is the short name used in listing):
Bram Moolenaar25c9c682019-05-05 18:13:34 +02001691 -addr=lines Range of lines (this is the default for -range)
Bram Moolenaara561a412019-04-25 21:27:58 +02001692 -addr=arguments arg Range for arguments
1693 -addr=buffers buf Range for buffers (also not loaded buffers)
1694 -addr=loaded_buffers load Range for loaded buffers
1695 -addr=windows win Range for windows
1696 -addr=tabs tab Range for tab pages
1697 -addr=quickfix qf Range for quickfix entries
Bram Moolenaar25c9c682019-05-05 18:13:34 +02001698 -addr=other ? other kind of range; can use ".", "$" and "%"
1699 as with "lines" (this is the default for
1700 -count)
Bram Moolenaarf1d6ccf2014-12-08 04:16:44 +01001701
Bram Moolenaar55d46912018-12-08 16:03:28 +01001702
1703Special cases ~
1704 *:command-bang* *:command-bar*
Bram Moolenaar5c5b0942007-05-06 12:07:59 +00001705 *:command-register* *:command-buffer*
Bram Moolenaar519cc552021-11-16 19:18:26 +00001706 *:command-keepscript*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001707There are some special cases as well:
1708
1709 -bang The command can take a ! modifier (like :q or :w)
1710 -bar The command can be followed by a "|" and another command.
1711 A "|" inside the command argument is not allowed then.
1712 Also checks for a " to start a comment.
1713 -register The first argument to the command can be an optional
1714 register name (like :del, :put, :yank).
1715 -buffer The command will only be available in the current buffer.
Bram Moolenaar58ef8a32021-11-12 11:25:11 +00001716 -keepscript Do not use the location of where the user command was
1717 defined for verbose messages, use the location of where
1718 the user command was invoked.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001719
1720In the cases of the -count and -register attributes, if the optional argument
1721is supplied, it is removed from the argument list and is available to the
1722replacement text separately.
Bram Moolenaar7cba6c02013-09-05 22:13:31 +02001723Note that these arguments can be abbreviated, but that is a deprecated
1724feature. Use the full name for new scripts.
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001725
Bram Moolenaar55d46912018-12-08 16:03:28 +01001726
1727Replacement text ~
Bram Moolenaar73b8b0a2021-08-01 14:52:32 +02001728 *:command-repl*
Bram Moolenaar5d7c2df2021-07-27 21:17:32 +02001729The {repl} argument is normally one long string, possibly with "|" separated
1730commands. A special case is when the argument is "{", then the following
1731lines, up to a line starting with "}" are used and |Vim9| syntax applies.
1732Example: >
1733 :command MyCommand {
1734 echo 'hello'
1735 g:calledMyCommand = true
1736 }
Bram Moolenaar63b91732021-08-05 20:40:03 +02001737< *E1231*
1738There must be white space before the "{". No nesting is supported, inline
1739functions cannot be used. Commands where a "|" may appear in the argument,
1740such as commands with an expression argument, cannot be followed by a "|" and
1741another command.
Bram Moolenaar5d7c2df2021-07-27 21:17:32 +02001742
Bram Moolenaar1b884a02020-12-10 21:11:27 +01001743The replacement text {repl} for a user defined command is scanned for special
1744escape sequences, using <...> notation. Escape sequences are replaced with
1745values from the entered command line, and all other text is copied unchanged.
1746The resulting string is executed as an Ex command. To avoid the replacement
1747use <lt> in place of the initial <. Thus to include "<bang>" literally use
Bram Moolenaar371d5402006-03-20 21:47:49 +00001748"<lt>bang>".
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001749
1750The valid escape sequences are
1751
1752 *<line1>*
1753 <line1> The starting line of the command range.
1754 *<line2>*
1755 <line2> The final line of the command range.
Bram Moolenaarc168bd42017-09-10 17:34:35 +02001756 *<range>*
1757 <range> The number of items in the command range: 0, 1 or 2
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001758 *<count>*
1759 <count> Any count supplied (as described for the '-range'
1760 and '-count' attributes).
1761 *<bang>*
1762 <bang> (See the '-bang' attribute) Expands to a ! if the
1763 command was executed with a ! modifier, otherwise
1764 expands to nothing.
Bram Moolenaar1d59aa12020-09-19 18:50:13 +02001765 *<mods>* *<q-mods>* *:command-modifiers*
Bram Moolenaar63a60de2016-06-04 22:08:55 +02001766 <mods> The command modifiers, if specified. Otherwise, expands to
Bram Moolenaarc95a3022016-06-12 23:01:46 +02001767 nothing. Supported modifiers are |:aboveleft|, |:belowright|,
zeertzjqd3de1782022-09-01 12:58:52 +01001768 |:botright|, |:browse|, |:confirm|, |:hide|, |:horizontal|,
1769 |:keepalt|, |:keepjumps|, |:keepmarks|, |:keeppatterns|,
1770 |:leftabove|, |:lockmarks|, |:noautocmd|, |:noswapfile|
1771 |:rightbelow|, |:sandbox|, |:silent|, |:tab|, |:topleft|,
1772 |:unsilent|, |:verbose|, and |:vertical|.
zeertzjq9359e8a2022-07-03 13:16:09 +01001773 Note that |:filter| is not supported.
Bram Moolenaar63a60de2016-06-04 22:08:55 +02001774 Examples: >
1775 command! -nargs=+ -complete=file MyEdit
1776 \ for f in expand(<q-args>, 0, 1) |
Bram Moolenaarc51cf032022-02-26 12:25:45 +00001777 \ exe '<mods> split ' .. f |
Bram Moolenaar63a60de2016-06-04 22:08:55 +02001778 \ endfor
1779
1780 function! SpecialEdit(files, mods)
1781 for f in expand(a:files, 0, 1)
Bram Moolenaarc51cf032022-02-26 12:25:45 +00001782 exe a:mods .. ' split ' .. f
Bram Moolenaar63a60de2016-06-04 22:08:55 +02001783 endfor
1784 endfunction
1785 command! -nargs=+ -complete=file Sedit
1786 \ call SpecialEdit(<q-args>, <q-mods>)
1787<
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001788 *<reg>* *<register>*
1789 <reg> (See the '-register' attribute) The optional register,
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00001790 if specified. Otherwise, expands to nothing. <register>
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001791 is a synonym for this.
1792 *<args>*
1793 <args> The command arguments, exactly as supplied (but as
1794 noted above, any count or register can consume some
1795 of the arguments, which are then not part of <args>).
1796 <lt> A single '<' (Less-Than) character. This is needed if you
1797 want to get a literal copy of one of these escape sequences
1798 into the expansion - for example, to get <bang>, use
1799 <lt>bang>.
1800
1801 *<q-args>*
1802If the first two characters of an escape sequence are "q-" (for example,
1803<q-args>) then the value is quoted in such a way as to make it a valid value
1804for use in an expression. This uses the argument as one single value.
Bram Moolenaar9fbdbb82022-09-27 17:30:34 +01001805When there is no argument <q-args> is an empty string. See the
1806|q-args-example| below.
Bram Moolenaar552f8a12007-03-08 17:12:08 +00001807 *<f-args>*
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001808To allow commands to pass their arguments on to a user-defined function, there
Bram Moolenaar402d2fe2005-04-15 21:00:38 +00001809is a special form <f-args> ("function args"). This splits the command
Bram Moolenaar34162142007-05-12 13:12:19 +00001810arguments at spaces and tabs, quotes each argument individually, and the
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001811<f-args> sequence is replaced by the comma-separated list of quoted arguments.
Bram Moolenaarc9b4b052006-04-30 18:54:39 +00001812See the Mycmd example below. If no arguments are given <f-args> is removed.
Bram Moolenaar552f8a12007-03-08 17:12:08 +00001813 To embed whitespace into an argument of <f-args>, prepend a backslash.
1814<f-args> replaces every pair of backslashes (\\) with one backslash. A
1815backslash followed by a character other than white space or a backslash
Bram Moolenaar9fbdbb82022-09-27 17:30:34 +01001816remains unmodified. Also see |f-args-example| below. Overview:
Bram Moolenaar552f8a12007-03-08 17:12:08 +00001817
1818 command <f-args> ~
1819 XX ab 'ab'
1820 XX a\b 'a\b'
1821 XX a\ b 'a b'
1822 XX a\ b 'a ', 'b'
1823 XX a\\b 'a\b'
1824 XX a\\ b 'a\', 'b'
1825 XX a\\\b 'a\\b'
1826 XX a\\\ b 'a\ b'
1827 XX a\\\\b 'a\\b'
1828 XX a\\\\ b 'a\\', 'b'
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001829
Bram Moolenaar9fbdbb82022-09-27 17:30:34 +01001830
1831Examples for user commands: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001832
1833 " Delete everything after here to the end
1834 :com Ddel +,$d
1835
1836 " Rename the current buffer
1837 :com -nargs=1 -bang -complete=file Ren f <args>|w<bang>
1838
1839 " Replace a range with the contents of a file
1840 " (Enter this all as one line)
1841 :com -range -nargs=1 -complete=file
1842 Replace <line1>-pu_|<line1>,<line2>d|r <args>|<line1>d
1843
1844 " Count the number of lines in the range
Bram Moolenaar81695252004-12-29 20:58:21 +00001845 :com! -range -nargs=0 Lines echo <line2> - <line1> + 1 "lines"
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001846
Bram Moolenaar9fbdbb82022-09-27 17:30:34 +01001847< *f-args-example*
1848Call a user function (example of <f-args>) >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001849 :com -nargs=* Mycmd call Myfunc(<f-args>)
1850
1851When executed as: >
1852 :Mycmd arg1 arg2
1853This will invoke: >
1854 :call Myfunc("arg1","arg2")
1855
Bram Moolenaar9fbdbb82022-09-27 17:30:34 +01001856< *q-args-example*
1857A more substantial example: >
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001858 :function Allargs(command)
Bram Moolenaara7241f52008-06-24 20:39:31 +00001859 : let i = 0
1860 : while i < argc()
1861 : if filereadable(argv(i))
Bram Moolenaarc51cf032022-02-26 12:25:45 +00001862 : execute "e " .. argv(i)
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001863 : execute a:command
1864 : endif
1865 : let i = i + 1
1866 : endwhile
1867 :endfunction
1868 :command -nargs=+ -complete=command Allargs call Allargs(<q-args>)
1869
1870The command Allargs takes any Vim command(s) as argument and executes it on all
1871files in the argument list. Usage example (note use of the "e" flag to ignore
1872errors and the "update" command to write modified buffers): >
1873 :Allargs %s/foo/bar/ge|update
1874This will invoke: >
1875 :call Allargs("%s/foo/bar/ge|update")
1876<
Bram Moolenaar1b884a02020-12-10 21:11:27 +01001877If the command is defined in Vim9 script (a script that starts with
1878`:vim9script` and in a `:def` function) then {repl} will be executed as in Vim9
1879script. Thus this depends on where the command is defined, not where it is
1880used.
1881
Bram Moolenaar8f3f58f2010-01-06 20:52:26 +01001882When defining a user command in a script, it will be able to call functions
Bram Moolenaar071d4272004-06-13 20:20:40 +00001883local to the script and use mappings local to the script. When the user
1884invokes the user command, it will run in the context of the script it was
1885defined in. This matters if |<SID>| is used in a command.
1886
Bram Moolenaar91f84f62018-07-29 15:07:52 +02001887 vim:tw=78:ts=8:noet:ft=help:norl: