Here’s one of those “Aha!” moments that catches even experienced TextExpander users.
Did you know delimiter behavior can be configured in two different places?
Globally (Applies to all Snippet Expansion)
Go to:
Preferences → Expansion → Expansion Mode
Here you can choose whether snippets:
- Expand Immediately when typed
- Expand At Delimiter (Keep Delimiter)
- Expand At Delimiter (Abandon Delimiter)
On an Individual Snippet
A single snippet can also override the group’s behavior.
Select the snippet, then choose:
Cursor Macros → Delimiter
This means one snippet may expand immediately while another waits for a delimiter. Even if they’re in the same Snippet Group.
Why would you set a delimiter for just one snippet?
Maybe you have a short, convenient abbreviation that could also appear while you’re typing something else. For example, you might use addr to expand your full mailing address—but you don’t want it expanding every time you start typing address.
Setting a delimiter on just that snippet lets you keep the easy-to-remember abbreviation while preventing accidental expansions. Type addr followed by your delimiter when you want the snippet; otherwise, keep typing as usual.
If a snippet isn’t expanding the way you expect, check both the group’s Expansion Mode and the individual snippet’s delimiter settings.
Have you customized your delimiter settings, or do you stick with the defaults? We’d love to hear how you’ve configured your workflow!
Learn more: