24 Apr 2026
Some nice to know keybindings when using the mouse in Emacs
These keybindings are good to know when working with a mouse in Emacs.
F10 (menu-bar-open) :: Start key navigation of the menu bar in FRAME.
S-F10 (context-menu-open) :: Start key navigation of the context menu. This needs context-menu-mode enabled.
C-M-mouse-1 :: Activate a rectangular region around the text selected by dragging. Useful for rectangle operations.
M-Drag-mouse-1 :: Set the secondary selection, with one end at the place where you press down the button, and the other end at the place where you release it. See Secondary Selection for more info.
C-mouse-3:: Raise menu populated with the menu mode map of the current mode and if Imenu is enabled, an index menu for that buffer.
C-u n (optional) :: A prefix argument can be passed to a menu item.
Keyboard Macro :: Commands issued via menu can be used when recording a keyboard macro. (🤯 Who knew?)
C-x z (repeat) :: Repeat most recently executed command. Yes, repeat works also for commands issued via mouse too!
Knowing that repeat works with menu commands (both main and context) is particularly useful with the additions to the main menu made by the latest Anju v1.2.0 update. Shown below is a demo of using “Duplicate” (duplicate-dwim) from the Edit menu, then using C-x z and then z successively to repeat the duplication.
Amended 2026-04-25: Added C-M-mouse-1, M-Drag-mouse-1, C-mouse-3, C-u n, Keyboard Macro items.
Past Articles
| 23 APR 2026 |
Call for Testing: Scrim v1.1.3 TestFlight on pre-release Emacs 31Looking for folks who want to test a new pre-release build of Scrim v1.1.3 which fixes it for Emacs 31. read more |
| 8 APR 2026 |
Computing Days Until with EmacsCountdown clocks are always useful. Here’s one for computing days until in Emacs. read more |
| 7 APR 2026 |
Calming Mouse Interaction in DiredSingle click to open a file in Dired is too twitchy. This post shows how to change it. read more |
| 30 MAR 2026 |
Announcing AnjuAnnouncing Anju, a project to align mouse interactions in Emacs with contemporary (circa 2026) expectations. Now available on MELPA. read more |
| 3 MAR 2026 |
Casual now available on NonGNU ELPACasual is now available on NonGNU ELPA. read more |
| 19 FEB 2026 |
Announcing Casual OrgAt long last, announcing Casual support for Org Mode. read more |
| 10 FEB 2026 |
Deburring Emacs Imenu GUI ConfigurationA bit of tuning to get Imenu GUI configuration working with any derived mode from |
| 7 FEB 2026 |
Using Casual to work with Emacs Registers, Rectangles, and WindowsUse Casual to effectively use Emacs registers, rectangles, and windows on the regular. read more |
| 26 JAN 2026 |
Getting Eshell nth History to WorkOut of the box, Eshell nth history recall is disabled. Here’s how to turn it on. read more |
Page 1 / 18 >