Command reference¶

Everything : takes. Abbreviations are in the right-hand column; any of them work.

Files¶

Command
`:w`	write	`:write`
`:w PATH`	write there, and edit that from now on
`:q`	quit, refusing if there is unsaved work	`:quit`
`:q!`	quit anyway	`:quit!`
`:wq`	write and quit	`:x` `:xit`
`:e PATH`	open a file	`:edit`
`:e`	read this one off the disk again
`:e!`	…discarding what you changed	`:edit!`
`:recover`	put the recovery copy into the buffer
`:recover!`	discard it

ZZ is :wq without the colon.

Buffers¶

Command
`:ls`	list the open buffers	`:buffers` `:files`
`:bn`	the next one	`:bnext`
`:bp`	the one before	`:bprev` `:bprevious` `:bN`
`:b NAME`	the one whose name matches	`:bu` `:buffer`

Windows¶

Command
`:sp [PATH]`	split horizontally	`:split` `:new`
`:vsp [PATH]`	split vertically	`:vs` `:vsplit` `:vnew`
`:clo`	close this window	`:close`
`:on`	close every other one	`:only`

Searching and substituting¶

Command
`:s/from/to/[flags]`	substitute (see searching)
`:noh`	stop highlighting matches	`:nohl` `:nohlsearch`
`:marks`	list the marks

Ranges: % the whole file, . this line, $ the last, 1,5 a span, .+1 relative. Flags: g every match on the line, i ignore case, n count and change nothing.

Find in project¶

Command
`:grep [PATTERN]`	open the find dialog, optionally pre-filled	`:gr`
`:copen`	show the quickfix list in a window	`:cope` `:cw`
`:cclose`	close that window; the list stays	`:ccl`
`:cn`	the next entry	`:cnext`
`:cp`	the one before	`:cprev` `:cprevious` `:cN`
`:cc`	the current one again
`:cfirst`	the first entry	`:cfir`
`:clast`	the last	`:cla`
`:cdo s/from/to/g`	substitute on the line of every entry, and write
`:find`	the fuzzy file picker	`:fin`

Ctrl+G is :grep and Ctrl+P is :find.

Settings¶

Command
`:set nu` / `:set nonu`	line numbers	`number` `nonumber`
`:set rnu` / `:set nornu`	relative numbers	`relativenumber`
`:set hls` / `:set nohls`	highlight search matches
`:set syntax`	say what this is coloured as	`:set syn`
`:set syntax=NAME`	colour it as that	`:set syn=NAME`
`:set nosyntax`	plain	`:set nosyn` `:set syntax=off`
`:set ff`	say which line endings	`:set fileformat`
`:set ff=unix` / `:set ff=dos`	write LF, write CRLF
`:set eol` / `:set noeol`	end the file with a newline, or not
`:set encoding=NAME`	write in that encoding

Other¶

Command
`:42`	go to line 42
`:help`	the one-line summary of the keys (`:h`)

An unknown command says not an editor command: NAME.