Vim / Neovim Visual Mode, Block Editing, Registers, and Marks

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Select text precisely, edit columns, control registers, and jump back to saved positions.

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Visual modes

Choose character, line, or block selections based on the task.

Characterwise visual mode

Select arbitrary text regions.

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vimANYvimvisual-modeselection

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Best for local selections, replacements, and ad hoc edits.

Linewise visual mode

Select whole lines.

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vimANYvimvisual-modelines

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Useful for moving, indenting, or commenting blocks.

Blockwise visual mode

Select a rectangular text block.

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vimANYvimvisual-blockcolumns

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<C-v>

Excellent for column edits and multi-line inserts.

Reselect last visual selection

Bring back the last selected region.

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vimANYvimvisual-modeselection

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gv

Very useful after indenting or replacing a prior selection.

Visual block editing

Do fast column-oriented edits with block selections.

Insert at start of block

Add text to the start of many lines at once.

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vimANYvimvisual-blockinsert

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<C-v> ... Itext<Esc>

After pressing Esc, Vim applies the insert to each selected line.

Append at end of block

Add text to the end of many lines.

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vimANYvimvisual-blockappend

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<C-v> ... Atext<Esc>

Useful for commas, semicolons, and aligned edits.

Replace a rectangular block

Overwrite a visual block with one character.

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vimANYvimvisual-blockreplace

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<C-v> ... rX

Good for columnar status flags and tables.

Registers and marks

Control where text goes and bookmark meaningful positions.

Paste after or before cursor

Put text from the default register.

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vimANYvimregisterspaste

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p  P

`p` pastes after; `P` pastes before.

Use a named register

Yank or paste from a named register.

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vimANYvimregistersclipboard

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"ayy  "ap

Named registers are helpful when juggling multiple clips.

List register contents

Inspect available registers.

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vimANYvimregistersinspect

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:registers

Useful while debugging macro, yank, and clipboard behavior.

Set and jump to a mark

Bookmark a file location and return later.

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vimANYvimmarksnavigation

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ma  `a  'a

The mark name follows `m`; use backtick for exact position.

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