vim/Q/In (neo-)vim with set nowrap, how can I scroll horizontally with the keyboard without moving the cursor to the screen edge first - is there something like zz for left and right?

• In (neo-)vim with set nowrap, how can I scroll horizontally with the keyboard without moving the cursor to the screen edge first - is there something like zz for left and right?

  • Applies to vim and nvim with nowrap (same Normal-mode commands).

  • Answer

    • AI/Response
      • Scroll the window directly (no need to hit the edge first): With wrap off, use zL to shift the view half a window-width “right” (text moves left on screen) and zH for the opposite. For smaller steps, zl / zh (or z + Left / Right) move the view by count columns (default 1). These are documented under :help scroll-horizontal.
      • Cursor vs. view: For zl / zh / zL / zH, the help says the cursor follows the view; if the cursor would leave the visible area, Vim moves it to the nearest on-screen character. For zs / ze, the cursor stays on the same buffer column while the text scrolls: zs puts the cursor at the left edge of the window, ze at the right edge—useful for alignment, not really “nudge the view from the middle.”
      • No built-in zz for columns: Vertical zz / zt / zb reposition the line the cursor is on; there is no first-class Normal-mode command that centers the cursor’s column in the window the way zz centers the line. People who want that usually map something that combines normal! / exec with wincol(), winwidth(0), and a horizontal scroll command (or use plugins).
      • Make edge-triggered scrolling less painful: If the annoyance is h / l / w scrolling only when the cursor hits the margin, raise sidescrolloff so Vim keeps the cursor N columns away from the left/right edge (similar spirit to scrolloff vertically). Tune sidescroll for how many columns jump when the window does scroll. See :help 'sidescrolloff' and :help 'sidescroll'.
      • Mouse / GUI: Horizontal scroll wheel events map to column scrolling when nowrap is on (see the same scroll-horizontal / mouse-wheel sections in :help scroll.txt).
      • Repeating zl / zh: . repeats the last change (text/operator), not arbitrary Normal-mode actions—see :help .—so zl then . will not replay the scroll. Use a count instead: 10zl applies ten column steps in one go (same for zh). @: repeats the last Ex line, not zl. If you want a single key for “bigger nudge,” add nnoremap bindings (e.g. <leader>l → 5zl).

  • My Notes