Portable Grep Functionality

Oct 13, 2025 by wbrum.org 88 views

**Grep for a Word at the Point without Defining a Function** ===========================================================

Introduction

In this article, we will explore a simple yet powerful way to grep for a word at the current cursor position in Vim or Neovim without defining a custom function. This technique is particularly useful when you don't have a Language Server Protocol (LSP) configured, and you want to quickly search for a word in your code.

The Code

You can add the following code to your Vim or Neovim configuration file (e.g., ~/.vimrc or ~/.config/nvim/init.vim) to enable this feature:

function! GrepWord()
  let word = expand('<cword>')
  let pattern = '\b' . word . '\b'
  let command = 'grep -r -n -E "' . pattern . '" .'
  silent !$command
endfunction

nnoremap <leader>g :call GrepWord()<CR>

However, as per your request, we will not define a function. Instead, we will use a more portable and concise approach that works directly in Vimscript.

Portable Grep Functionality

Here's a revised version of the code that achieves the same result without defining a function:

nnoremap <leader>g :silent !grep -r -n -E '\b<cword>\b' .<CR>

This code uses the nnoremap command to bind the <leader>g key combination to a silent grep command. The grep command is executed with the following options:

-r: Recursively search through all files in the current directory and its subdirectories.
-n: Prefix each match with the line number where the match was found.
-E: Enable extended regular expressions.
'\b<cword>\b': Use the current word under the cursor (<cword>) as the search pattern, surrounded by word boundaries (\b).

How it Works

When you press <leader>g (assuming you've set <leader> to a custom key, such as \), Vim will execute the grep command with the current word as the search pattern. The silent keyword suppresses the output of the grep command, and the ! symbol redirects the output to the shell.

Q&A

Q: What is the `<leader>` key?

A: The <leader> key is a customizable key that can be set to any character. It's often used to prefix key combinations in Vim. For example, you can set <leader> to \ and then use \g to trigger the grep functionality.

Q: How do I set the `<leader>` key?

A: You can set the <leader> key in your Vim or Neovim configuration file by adding the following line:

let mapleader = '\'

Q: Can I customize the `grep` command?

A: Yes, you can modify the grep command to suit your needs. For example, you can add more options or change the search pattern.

Q: Why is the `grep` command executed silently?

A: The silent keyword is used to suppress the output of the grep command. This is because the output of the grep command can be quite verbose, and you may not want to see it in your Vim buffer.

Q: Can I use this technique with other search tools?

A: Yes, you can modify the code to use other search tools, such as ack or ag. Simply replace the grep command with the desired tool and adjust the options accordingly.

Conclusion

In this article, we've explored a simple yet powerful way to grep for a word at the current cursor position in Vim or Neovim without defining a custom function. By using a portable and concise approach, we've achieved the same result as the original code but with fewer lines of code. We've also answered some common questions about the technique and provided tips for customizing the grep command.