Developers, listen up! Don’t you just hate it when you need to edit or manipulate multiple instances of the same word or phrase throughout your code? With dozens or even hundreds of such instances, this task can take many hours and can be immensely frustrating. But fear not, fellow developers – Visual Studio has got you covered! This powerful code editor offers a range of features that will make selecting similar words a breeze.

When it comes to selecting similar words or phrases, Find and Replace is your go-to method in Visual Studio. You can use this feature to easily locate and replace single words, multiple words, or an entire phrase all at once. Here’s how to do it:

1. Press Ctrl + F to open the Find and Replace dialog box.
2. Type in the word or phrase you’re looking for in the search box.
3. Click on the “Find All” button to select all the matching words or phrases.
4. Use the keyboard shortcuts Ctrl + Shift + L to select all the instances or Ctrl + Shift + Alt + L to deselect all the instances.

There’s no need to keep opening the Find and Replace dialog box, thanks to Visual Studio’s Quick Find feature. This option is a time-saver as it enables you to easily and quickly pinpoint all instances of a particular word or phrase. Here’s how it works:

1. Highlight the word or phrase you want to select.
2. Press Ctrl + F to open the Quick Find dialog box.
3. Click on the “Find All” button to select all the matching words or phrases.
4. Use the keyboard shortcuts Ctrl + Shift + L to select all the instances or Ctrl + Shift + Alt + L to deselect all the instances.

If you’re keen to make every instance of a particular word or phrase stand out in Visual Studio, look no further than Highlight All. This features highlights all instances with the same color, making selection a breeze. Here’s how:

1. Highlight the word or phrase you want to select.
2. Press Ctrl + Shift + H to enable the Highlight All feature.
3. Use the keyboard shortcuts Ctrl + Shift + L to select all the instances or Ctrl + Shift + Alt + L to deselect all the instances.

CodeLens is the “lens” that helps you see all changes made to code in real-time. Moreover, it’s got a Find References feature, which is a lifesaver when you need to swiftly and effortlessly locate instances of the same word or phrase. Here’s how to do it:

1. Place your cursor over the word or phrase you want to select.
2. Click on the CodeLens icon that appears above the word or phrase.
3. Click on the “Find All References” button to select all the matching words or phrases.
4. Use the keyboard shortcuts Ctrl + Shift + L to select all the instances or Ctrl + Shift + Alt + L to deselect all the instances.

Phew! On a developer’s plate, selecting similar words and phrases can be a repetitive and laborious task. But as you can see, Visual Studio has made it a lot simpler and more efficient with its powerful selection tools. Whether it’s Find and Replace, Quick Find, Highlight All, or CodeLens, you have a range of different tools at your fingertips to help you save time, optimize your workflow, and become a more productive developer.