Vim: Text Objects Explained - 'aw', 'cis', and Visual Mode Integration

"dw". There is a simpler way to do this: "daw". this is some example text. ~ daw this is some text. ~ The "d" of "daw" is the delete operator. "aw" is a text object. Hint: "aw" stands for "A Word". Thus "daw" is "Delete A Word". To be precise, the white space after the word is also deleted (or the white space before the word if at the end of the line). Using text objects is the third way to make changes in Vim. We already had operator-motion and Visual mode. Now we add operator-text object. It is very similar to operator-motion, but instead of operating on the text between the cursor position before and after a movement command, the text object is used as a whole. It doesn't matter where in the object the cursor was. To change a whole sentence use "cis". Take this text: Hello there. This ~ is an example. Just ~ some text. ~ Move to the start of the second line, on "is an". Now use "cis": Hello there. Just ~ some text. ~ The cursor is in between the blanks in the first line. Now you type the new sentence "Another line.": Hello there. Another line. Just ~ some text. ~ "cis" consists of the "c" (change) operator and the "is" text object. This stands for "Inner Sentence". There is also the "as" ("A Sentence") object. The difference is that "as" includes the white space after the sentence and "is" doesn't. If you would delete a sentence, you want to delete the white space at the same time, thus use "das". If you want to type new text the white space can remain, thus you use "cis". You can also use text objects in Visual mode. It will include the text object in the Visual selection. Visual mode continues, thus you can do this several times. For example, start Visual mode with "v" and select a sentence with "as". Now you can repeat "as" to include more sentences. Finally you use an operator to do something with the selected sentences. You can find a long list of text objects here: |text-objects|. ============================================================================== *04.9* Replace mode The "R" command causes Vim to enter replace mode. In this mode, each character you type replaces the one under the cursor. This continues until you type <Esc>. In this example you start Replace mode

This section explains Vim's text objects, focusing on 'aw' (a word) for deletion and 'cis' (inner sentence) for changing. It details how 'daw' deletes a word along with trailing whitespace, while 'cis' replaces a sentence without removing the space. 'as' (a sentence) includes the trailing space. It also illustrates using text objects in Visual mode, allowing for sequential selection and manipulation of text units. Finally, it points to the documentation for a complete list of text objects.