Vim split line command

Question

Possible Duplicate:
How do I insert a linebreak where the cursor is without entering into insert mode in Vim?

In vim, J joins the next line to the current line. Is there a similar one-key (or relatively short) command to split a line at a given cursor position? I know it be done with a simple macro, but it seems like if the J-command exists there should be a similar function. I've tried searching for it, but can't seem to find an answer.

Does this help? [How do I insert a linebreak where the cursor is without entering into insert mode in Vim?](http://stackoverflow.com/questions/237383/how-do-i-insert-a-linebreak-where-the-cursor-is-without-entering-into-insert-mode) — bedwyr, Mar 09 '09 at 02:38
No, I as really looking to see if maybe there was some base command I had overlooked or been unable to find that someone else here might know. — dburke, Mar 09 '09 at 02:47

score 187 · Answer 1 · edited May 31 '14 at 09:53

187

rEnter while on whitespace will do it. That's two keystrokes.

edited May 31 '14 at 09:53

Stefan van den Akker

6,661
7
48
63

answered Mar 09 '09 at 02:38

Michael Kristofik

34,290
15
75
125

12

Close, but no cigar. I'm often wanting to split between two adjacent html tags with no space between. – dburke Mar 09 '09 at 02:45
3

@dburke In that case, put the `s` mapping here (http://vim.wikia.com/wiki/Insert_a_single_character) in your `.vimrc` and use ``. – Kyle Strand Jun 02 '14 at 20:25
`i` `Enter` will split the line between two adjacent html tags with no space between. @dburke – dcx86 Apr 04 '19 at 10:26

score 40 · Accepted Answer · edited May 31 '14 at 09:53

40

I don't think that there is a single key command for this. The best you can do with stock vim is probably i Enter Esc.

edited May 31 '14 at 09:53

Stefan van den Akker

6,661
7
48
63

answered Mar 09 '09 at 02:37

Brian Pellin

2,859
3
23
14

1

"i" Would probably be better – jperelli May 31 '12 at 19:21
100

Better: `r`. – Andy Stewart Feb 27 '13 at 08:57
21

r loses a char, but good if it's a space. – trusktr Oct 02 '13 at 07:33
4

@AndyStewart `r` is bad as it can lose a character. I don't know why that answer has 50+ votes. The accepted answer is the only correct answer. You can also do `a` depending on if you want to break after or before something. – Clever Programmer Jan 14 '16 at 18:35
12

`r` is good as it does the opposite of `J`, which adds a space. – ischeriad Feb 24 '17 at 16:16

score 36 · Answer 3 · answered Jan 27 '12 at 15:55

36

My solution was to remap the K key since I never use the default action (look up the word under cursor with "man"), and my previous editor used Alt+j and Alt+k to join and split lines, respectively.

:nnoremap K i<CR><Esc>

This rolls those three annoying keystrokes into one.

There's probably a more sophisticated way to also eliminate any trailing whitespace, but I prefer to strip all trailing whitespace on write.

answered Jan 27 '12 at 15:55

Steve

6,618
3
44
42

4

This is great! Usually accidentally pressing `K` is disastrous for me because of the stupid `man` page functionality, but now I get to replace that with something that's actually useful. – Explosion Pills Mar 02 '13 at 17:50
3

This is a good redefine, but the default behavior of `K` shouldn't be thought as strictly `man` only. Many plugins redefine `K` as to lookup the docs in the context language. In PHP, for instance, `K` would take me to php.net documentations... – mike3996 Apr 24 '13 at 08:46

gbarry · Answer 4 · 2009-03-10T00:22:44.830

23

No. I've now read enough answers to conclude that there is no such command.

Easy answer: Pressing 'Enter' while in insert will do it; but you're right, there oughtta be a key for it in command mode. I've wondered, too.

Since everyone has a favorite workaround, I will share mine. The assumption is that I will do anything to avoid having to reach for the Esc key.

ylprX ... where 'X' is the inserted character, which can even be a newline.

So, 'yl' is yank on char to the right, 'p' = paste the char, 'r' is replace that char; then you just type the new char. That's how much I hate using Escape.

(That was 'l', as in "move right", BTW)

edited Mar 10 '09 at 00:22

answered Mar 09 '09 at 02:37

gbarry

10,352
6
33
43

14

I'm gonna go file a feature request. Who's with me?! – dburke Mar 09 '09 at 02:46
3

To "improve" vi again? (Big grin). My guess is if everyone wants it and it doesn't exist, there must be a reason. What I *really* want is an "insert n characters" cmd that stays out of "insert mode". – gbarry Mar 09 '09 at 02:55
5

Recommended: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/397229/reaching-up-to-hit-the-escape-key – dreeves Mar 10 '09 at 19:29
Thank you! Upvote coming your way! – gbarry Mar 11 '09 at 06:55
8

@gbarry Wow - have you considered remapping CapsLock to do the Esc function? – willoller Dec 16 '09 at 16:50
@willoller that was my immediate though too. – naught101 Apr 13 '12 at 01:56
Saw this and thought of this thread: http://blog.makezine.com/2012/06/25/vim-clutch/ – willoller Jul 24 '12 at 00:05
@gbarry http://stevelosh.com/blog/2012/10/a-modern-space-cadet/#controlescape – Andbdrew Oct 04 '12 at 19:02

score 11 · Answer 5 · answered Jun 08 '12 at 15:40

11

Old thread, but I dont use "K" for the man page lookup or whatever magic it does. So I have this mapping in my .vimrc:

map K i<Enter><Esc>

I figured since "J" is join, "K" can be krack or something. :)

answered Jun 08 '12 at 15:40

Johnny Sparks

360
2
7

I remapped as so for me this is the best answer :) – Christian Rondeau Aug 26 '16 at 21:04
1

or just: kut (as cut) ^_^ – JavaRunner Oct 13 '20 at 17:01

score 10 · Answer 6 · answered Aug 24 '09 at 20:05

You can split lines if you can create a regular expression for the location to add the split. For example if you want to split the lines at each semicolon, you can use the following substitution:

%s/;/^v^m/g

to great effect

score 0 · Answer 7 · answered Feb 09 '10 at 11:23

0

Jed's answer is most useful. I would like to add that I needed the "control-V-alternative", i.e. control-Q: %s/;/^q^m/g

answered Feb 09 '10 at 11:23

user269423

1

Vim split line command

7 Answers7