Insert special • characters ◆
A while back, we wrote about how to insert non-printable and other special characters with <ctrl-v>
in insert mode. But Vim has another way called digraphs. (See :help digraph
). While in insert mode, you can insert special characters in Vim by pressing <ctrl-k>
followed by a two-character lookup code. For example, <ctrl-k> ?2
will insert the approximately equal symbol: ≈
.
When would you use this? Note-taking for one. Write any kind of prose in Vim and you are sure to come across a use for a character that’s not on your keyboard: Currency symbols, dashes, bullets, and much more. Here are some you may find helpful. Notice how each two-letter combination (“di-graph”) is designed to be memorable. Certainly much easier than remembering numeric codes.
oo
• (bullet)Db
◆ (diamond bullet)'%
ϴ (Greek theta)Pd
£ (British pound symbols)Co
© (copyright symbol)Rg
® (registered trademark symbol)Eu
€ (euro symbol)-1
‐ (hyphen)-N
– (en dash)-M
— (em dash)
Vim provides a list of all digraphs available on your system (compilation options can affect the list) just by using the :dig
command. In the screencast below, I show this mapping list and then insert a few characters with <ctrl-k>
.
I’d love to know what other people use this for and which characters are the ones they reach for often. Email me or share a comment on the post.