Command Palette
The command palette is a searchable dialog that appears when you assign an action to a subkey slot. It lists every keyboard command you can assign, plus custom text, dynamic templates, intents and timestamps.
Quick Summary
| What | Description |
|---|---|
| Purpose | Browse and search all assignable key actions |
| Access | Per-Key Customization, or the Subkey Popover assign/edit screen |
| Features | Search, 21 categories, 240 commands, four quick actions |
Where It Appears
The command palette is not a standalone feature. It opens when you:
- Go to Settings > Activities > Customize Per-Key Actions, tap a key, then tap a direction; or
- Hold a key with the Subkey Popover on and let go on an empty slot (assign), or rest on an assigned slot for 3 seconds and choose Edit or Reassign.
The title row shows the key and direction you are assigning.
Editing an Existing Mapping
If the direction already has one of your actions, the palette opens straight into that action’s own editor, filled in: the text editor for custom text or a template, the intent editor, the timestamp pattern dialog, or the label step for a command. Your existing label is kept. Back out of the editor to reach the full list and pick something else.
Using the Command Palette
Search
- When the palette opens, a search bar appears at top
- Type to filter commands in real-time
- Matches title, description, and keywords
Quick Actions
The first row of the list holds four tiles that are not commands from the catalogue:
| Tile | What it creates |
|---|---|
| Dynamic template | Text with tokens for clipboard, selection, UUID or caret position (see Per-Key Actions) |
| Custom Text | Any text, up to 4096 characters |
| Send Intent | An Android intent (activity, service or broadcast) |
| Timestamp | The current date/time in a pattern you choose (see Timestamp Keys) |
The row scrolls away with the list. While you search, only tiles whose name matches stay.
Browse Categories
The 240 commands are grouped into these categories, in this order. Category headers stay at the top while their commands scroll.
| Category | Commands | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Clipboard | 13 | copy, copy_private, paste, cut, selectAll, pasteAsPlainText, shareText, clear_clipboard, paste_pinned_1–5 |
| Editing | 7 | undo, redo, clear, case_cycle, autofill, append_possessive, append_apostrophe |
| Cursor Movement | 10 | cursor_left, cursor_right, cursor_up, cursor_down, word_left, word_right |
| Navigation | 6 | home, end, doc_home, doc_end, page_up, page_down |
| Selection | 8 | selection_cursor_left, selection_cursor_right, selection_cancel, selection_mode, select_word_left, select_word_right, select_word, select_line |
| Delete | 5 | backspace, delete, delete_word, forward_delete_word, delete_last_word |
| Keyboard Events | 19 | config, switch_forward, switch_backward, switch_clipboard, switch_emoji, switch_numeric, voice_typing, minimize_bar, minimize_fab, hide_keyboard |
| Modifiers | 5 | shift, ctrl, alt, meta, fn |
| Function Keys | 12 | f1–f12 |
| Special Keys | 9 | esc, enter, tab, menu, insert, compose, removed |
| Media Controls | 12 | media_play_pause, media_next, volume_up, volume_mute |
| System & Apps | 10 | brightness_up, zoom_in, search, calculator, calendar, contacts |
| Spaces & Formatting | 10 | space, nbsp, zwj, zwnj, lrm, rlm |
| Diacritics | 48 | accent_aigu, accent_grave, accent_circonflexe, accent_tilde |
| Slavonic Diacritics | 10 | combining marks such as combining_pokrytie |
| Arabic Diacritics | 14 | combining marks such as combining_shaddah, combining_sukun |
| Hebrew Marks | 20 | qamats, patah, sheva, dagesh |
| Text Input | 8 | bracket pairs such as b(, b[, b{ |
| Language | 2 | primaryLangToggle, secondaryLangToggle |
| Text Actions | 4 | textAssist, replaceText, replaceTextMenu, showTextMenu |
| Timestamps | 8 | timestamp_date, timestamp_time, timestamp_iso |
Select an Action
- Tap any command to select it
- The command is assigned to the selected swipe direction
- Confirm the display label to save the assignment
Clipboard, Hide and Minimize Commands
Search for Clear system clipboard (clear_clipboard) to assign an action that
empties Android’s current clipboard. Saved CleverKeys history, pins, todos, and media
are preserved. Use the clipboard panel’s Select mode and confirmed Delete selected action
to remove saved clippings instead.
Three Keyboard Events commands shrink or close the keyboard:
| Command | Effect | To get the keyboard back |
|---|---|---|
Minimize to Bar (minimize_bar) | A thin full-width strip replaces the keyboard; the app resizes to sit above it | Tap the strip |
Minimize to Floating Button (minimize_fab) | A round button replaces the keyboard, at the bottom right (bottom left with a right-to-left language); the app gets the whole screen and touches outside the button reach the app | Tap the button |
Hide Keyboard (hide_keyboard) | Closes the keyboard | Tap a text field |
A minimized keyboard returns to full size the next time it is shown after being hidden. The minimize commands cannot bring back a keyboard the system has already hidden.
Text Assist and Replace Text
The text actions:
| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
Text Assist (textAssist), Replace Text (replaceText) | Opens a list of the apps that can process the selected text (translators, AI assistants, dictionaries). If the chosen app returns text (a translation, a rewrite), it replaces the selection. The two commands differ only in the list’s title. Shows “no text selected” when nothing is selected. |
Replacement Suggestions (Editor) (replaceTextMenu) | Opens the app’s own suggestion popup for the word at the cursor: spelling fixes for a word the spell checker flagged, and the other swipe candidates of a swiped word (see below). Works in stock Android text fields; other apps (Chrome, many Compose apps) show nothing. Collapses a selection to the cursor. |
The former Text Assist (Editor Menu) (textAssistMenu) command was removed: no app handles
that menu action, so it never did anything. A key or gesture still assigned to it shows “no
longer supported” in the suggestion bar; assign it another command.
The returned text is written only into the same text field, over the same selection, after CleverKeys reads the field back and finds it unchanged. If you edited the text, switched fields or opened a keyboard panel meanwhile, the result is copied to the clipboard instead and the suggestion bar says so. In terminals and remote-desktop fields both commands report that the action is unavailable.
Editing Commands
| Command | What it does | Where it does not work |
|---|---|---|
Cycle Case (case_cycle) | Changes the selection, or the word at or just before the cursor, from lower case to Title Case to UPPER CASE and back. The changed text stays selected, so pressing again continues the cycle. Uses the keyboard language’s rules (Turkish dotted İ). | Terminals, remote-desktop fields and keyboard panels: the bar shows “Action unavailable”. |
Share (shareText) | Shares the selected text through Android’s share sheet, in every app (it used to work only in standard Android text fields). Needs a selection. | Terminals and remote-desktop fields. |
Word Left / Word Right (word_left, word_right) | Moves the cursor to the start of the previous word or the end of the next word. “Left” means the previous word, as with the cursor keys. | In terminals they are sent as Ctrl+Left / Ctrl+Right, which most shells treat as word moves. |
Select Word Left / Right (select_word_left, select_word_right) | Extends the selection by one word, keeping where it started. | Terminals and remote-desktop fields. |
Select Word (select_word), Select Line (select_line) | Selects the word or the line (without its line break) at the cursor. | Terminals, remote-desktop fields, and apps that do not let the keyboard read the text. |
A word includes letters, digits and an apostrophe inside it (don't). In the clipboard
editor, the word and line commands move and select inside the editor; Cycle Case and Share
do nothing there.
Swiped words carry their other candidates. In stock Android text fields, select a swiped word and use the app’s Replace option (or Replacement Suggestions (Editor)) to pick another candidate. An autocorrected word offers the word you typed. Other apps may ignore this.
Suffix Commands and Dynamic Templates
The Editing category includes Append ‘s and Append apostrophe. They attach
an exact suffix to the last verified word; immediate Backspace removes the suffix
before deleting the word. A space you type right after finishing a word counts as that
word’s separator (James → James's ). Selected ranges, later edits and unrelated
caret moves invalidate attachment.
Choose Dynamic template to insert clipboard text, wrap selected text, generate a UUID or position the caret. Templates are explicit: ordinary Text Input keeps braces literal. Both per-key and popover assignment use the same editor and label confirmation. See Per-Key Actions for token syntax and editor requirements.
Available Commands
The table under Browse Categories lists every category with examples. To see the full list, open the palette and scroll, or search by name, description or keyword.
Tips for Customization
- Search keywords: Try “select”, “delete”, “cursor” to find related commands
- Preview: Command descriptions explain what each action does
- Popular choices:
copy,paste,home,endare commonly assigned - Power user:
selection_mode,doc_home/doc_endand the function keys help in editors and terminals
[!TIP] The palette lists 240 commands. Use search to find one quickly.
Common Questions
Q: Can I access the command palette directly?
A: No. It appears only when assigning or editing an action, from Per-Key Customization or the Subkey Popover. It is a selection tool, not a standalone command runner.
Q: Can I run commands without assigning them?
A: Most commands can be run via their assigned keys or default key combinations. For example, Ctrl+C for copy, Ctrl+V for paste.
Q: How do I know what commands are available?
A: Open Per-Key Customization, select any key and direction, and browse the full list in the command palette.
Related Features
- Per-Key Actions - Customize key swipe actions
- Subkey Popover - Assign and edit slots by holding a key
- Shortcuts - Keyboard shortcuts
- Extra Keys - Add function key row