How to Use Find and Replace in Sublime Text [2024]

Let’s say, you have prepared a large and lengthy document. Fortuitously, if you need to modify or change a particular word, will you choose the manual check of word by word over the use of shortcuts?

Obviously, your answer will be a big No. So, what to do to avoid the hassle of manually finding your specified terms? Here the features, find and replace come forward to help.

As a tech enthusiast, I will elaborately discuss the way of using find and replace regardless of any specific text editor. Probably, here I will choose Sublime Text as one of the vastly known IDEs.

So, keep reading till you can put a full stop to all your doubts.

How to Use Find & Replace

As far as different scenarios are concerned, finding an instance within a document and replacing it with the newer one is absolutely flexible. I have a great example for you.

If you are a programmer, then while coding, of course, you will initiate some variables. And, you will use those variables hundreds of times throughout the entire code. In case you need to change the variable, the softest option you have is to use the find and replace. With this, you can modify the older one with the new one using a single command.

Maybe you are not a programmer. But, finding and replacing can be of great importance if you need to work on a large document on MS Word, or any other word processing application.

Sublime Text

Sublime Text, a popular software for coding and editing, has multiple versions available- Sublime Text 4 is the latest of all. Whatever the version is, the command for find and replace is almost the same.

Here are the steps on how to use the find and replace in Sublime Text:

1. Open the application.
2. Navigate to the menu bar at the top.
3. Click on Find, then select Replace. Alternatively, you can use keyboard shortcuts of Ctrl+H. A Find and Replace toolbar will appear before you at the bottom of the window.
4. Type the word or text in the Find textbox that you want to find throughout the entire text.
5. Click on the Find button next to the Find textbox. It will spot you the next instance of the text you put in the box.
6. Click on the Find All button if you want to locate all instances in the whole text.
7. Press the Replace button to edit a specific instance. To modify all cases, tap to Replace All.

This way, in Sublime Text editor, you can edit any sort of text with great comfort and least time.

Microsoft Word and Other Editors

In MS Word and similar other editors, the process of initiating Find and Replace is more or less the same.

Here are the steps to use Find and Replace in different text processing software:

1. Open the MS Word application or the document where you want to perform Find and Replace.
2. Make sure you are on the Home tab. If not, go to Home from the menu bar located at the top.
3. Click on Replace on the right side of the Home tab. You may prefer to use the Ctrl+H shortcut. A window Find and Replace will appear.
4. Go to Find tab.
5. Type the text you want to find in the Find what textbox.
6. Click on Find Next to get the next instance.
7. Go to Replace tab. Fill in the Find what textbox and type the new text what you want to replace with.
8. Click Replace or Replace All as per your necessity.

In short, it was the detailed process of finding something and replacing it in the text. In almost all cases, you will find the steps similar to each other. So, please let me know if you can make it.

Google Docs

If you want to work or write online, then Google Docs is unquestionably the best platform for you. Google Docs has included and incorporated the Find and Replace feature which is, of course, a great catch for all.

Here are the steps on how to use Find and Replace on Google Docs:

1. Press and hold Ctrl+F. A box just below the menu bar on the top-right will appear.
2. Click on the icon containing three vertical dots. The Find and Replace dialog box will arrive.
3. Type the text you are finding the match for.
4. Click Next to go for the next instance.
5. Fill in the Replace box with the text you want to replace with.
6. Click Replace for a specific change or Replace All to alter each and every instance.

Mac OS

If you are a mac user, finding the Find and Replace is even easier for you. Sublime Text has their mac OS version and fortunately, they did not forget the inclusion of Find and Replace there.

Press the shortcut of standard Command+Alt+F or Control+H. A dialog box for finding and editing will appear.

How to Replace a New Line with a Comma in Sublime Text?

Sometimes, diverse tasks are assigned to the coders to solve various problems. For instance, if you are a developer, and you have a file or a document where you want to replace each new line with a comma,

Here are the steps are given below I recommend you follow: 

1. Open the file with Sublime Text.
2. Press Control+H. If you are a mac user, use Command+H.
3. Make sure you select .* button to enable RegEx.
4. Type \n (for Windows) or \r\n (for mac) in the Find textbox at the bottom of the Editor window.
5. Put a comma (,) in the Replace text field.
6. Click on Replace All and enjoy!.

FAQ

Question: What is the shortcut for multiline search?

Answer: Press Ctrl+Enter for the search panel. Type multiline patterns in the box Replace With and hit Enter.

Question: What is the shortcut for Replace Next?

Answer: Press and hold Ctrl+Shift+H to access the feature Replace Next. For Replace All, press Ctrl+Alt+Enter.

Conclusion

Whether you are in the preparation of your company’s profile or a project proposal, Find and Replace is always the best tool for this repeated task. It saves time and enhances efficacy. No matter which software you use, follow the steps I mentioned above. Believe me, your job will be easier.

So, what did you use- Sublime Text, MS Word, or any other application? Could you implement the steps successfully? Please, let me know by commenting in the box below.

Was the article helpful? If yes, share this with others to let them know about this hack on their corresponding platforms.