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luaneovim

How to write Lua commands in Neovim with mod keys (Ctrl, Alt, Shift etc)

If I want to move cursor down with Lua in Neovim I can use the command

:lua vim.cmd('normal j')

'Ctrl-E' combination in Vim/Neovim scrolls the window one line down. How do I use it with Lua? For example this approach does not work:

:lua vim.cmd('normal <C-e>')

How to provide modifier key sequences (Alt-, Ctrl-, Shift-) for Lua commands in Neovim?

Solution

  • You have to escape the keycode using vim.api.nvim_replace_termcodes(). See the section on that function in nanotee's Nvim Lua Guide and in the Neovim API docs.

    :lua vim.cmd(vim.api.nvim_replace_termcodes('normal <C-e>'))

    In my config I go with nanotee's advice and define a helper function to avoid spelling out that insanely long function name.

    local function t(str)
    return vim.api.nvim_replace_termcodes(str, true, true, true)
end

    That shortens your example to

    vim.cmd(t('normal <C-e>'))

    if used in a scope where t() is defined.