What does ctrl + space do

Ctrl+Space is a keyboard shortcut used in Excel and other spreadsheet programs to select an entire column. When you press Ctrl+Space, it selects all cells of the column that contains the active cell.

This keyboard shortcut is particularly useful when you want to work with data in a specific column, such as formatting cells or applying a formula to the entire column.

How to use the ctrl + spacebar keyboard shortcut

To use the Ctrl+Spacebar keyboard shortcut to select an entire column in Excel or other spreadsheet programs, you can follow these steps:

1. Open the spreadsheet and navigate to the worksheet that contains the column you want to select.
2. Click on any cell within the column you want to select to make it the active cells.
3. Hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboards.
4. While continuing to hold down the Ctrl key, press the spacebar key on your keyboards. This will select the entire column that contains the active cell.
5. You can now perform any actions you want to perform on the selected column, such as formatting cells or applying a formula.

Note: Ctrl+Spacebar keyboard shortcut will only select the column that contains the active cells. If you want to select multiple columns, you can use the Shift key and the arrow keys to select additional columns after using Ctrl+Spacebar to select the first column.

Ctrl + spacebar in excel and other spreadsheet programs

In Microsoft Excel and many other spreadsheet programs, pressing Ctrl+Spacebar selects the entire column containing the active cell. This keyboard shortcut is a quick and convenient way to select an entire column, which can be helpful when working with large data sets. By selecting the entire column, you can apply formatting or formulas to all the cells in the column at once, rather than having to apply them individually to each cell. This can save a lot of time and effort, especially when working with complex spreadsheets.

Popular programs using this shortcut

General

• Windows 11: Turn the Chinese input method editor (IME) on or off  
• Opera:  Go to your home page  
• Mozilla Thunderbird:  Discontinue or remove text styles 
• Easy Worship:  Switch between live output and a control screen in the single monitor mode 
• Ardour:  Stop and destroy 

Text editing

• Sublime Text: Select the next auto-complete suggestion 
• GNU Emacs: Set mark here 
• Brackets: Show Code Hints 
• Nano:  go forward one word 
• Cherry Tree 0.38.8: Toggle To-Do List Item State 
• Texmaker 5.0.4: Toggle focus editor / Pdf viewer  
• PSPad: Show the Clips 
• Kompo Zer: Open the Context Menu 
• Notepad2: Select the word (or line)  
• Scrivener 1.9.9: To single space
• CudaText 1.88.3:  Auto-complete menu 
• QOwnNotes 19.10.10:  Autocomplete, solve the equation, or open the URL 
• Notepad3 (v5.21):  Select Word or Lines. 
• Google Docs (PC):  Clear the text formatting  
• Write Monkey:  Open the Command palette 
• WikidPad (Windows):  Complete Auto link (or attribute) 
• Metapad:  Select the word 

Imaging

• Clip Studio Paint Pro:  Zoom (scale up) 
• Blender:  Transform the Manipulator toggle 
• Adobe Premiere Pro (Windows):  Play from Play head to Out Point 
• Adobe Illustrator:  Switch to Zoom tool in the magnify mode 
• Pure Ref:  Focus on the Canvas 
• CorelDRAW 2020:  Toggle Pick State 
• Adobe Photoshop CC:  Switch to the Zoom In tool 
• Corel Painter:  Zoom tool (zoom-in) 
• Adobe Premiere Pro (Mac):  Play from Play head to Out Point 
• Navisworks Freedom 2020):  Pause the playing animation. 
• Inkscape:  insert no-break space 
• Autodesk Maya 2019:  Switch between the standard view and full-screen view of the current panels 
• QCad 3.22.0:  Focus on the Option toolbar 
• Open Toonz 1.4:  Rotate the tool 
• Shortcut:  Select the under playhead 
• CorelDRAW Graphics Suite 2018:  Toggle Pick State 
• Kdenlive:  Play the zone 
• Enterprise Architect 14:  Add a single element to the clipboard list. 
• Grasshopper (Rhino): Open the radial menu 
• Modo 12.1: GL viewport view type 
• Shotcut (Mac): Select the underplay head  

System tools

• Moba Xterm 20.6: Execute a macro 
• Ditto: Toggle Ditto window between normal and always showing on top (persistent) 
• ZOC 7.23:  Send ^@ (hex 00)  
• JAWS:  Select Multiple List Items  
• WireShark 3.4.3:  Reset colorized conversations

Developer tools

• Visual Studio Code (Windows):  Trigger suggestion 
• Unreal Engine 5.0 (early access):  Open content browser drawer 
• DBeaver 6.0.3:  SQL completion proposals popup 
• Notepad++:  Launch Call Tip ListBox 
• Visual Studio Code (Mac): Trigger suggestion 
• PyCharm 2018.2:  Code completion for any class, method, or variable. 
• Spyder 4.1.5:  Code completion 
• SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS):  Complete word 
• Python IDLE for Windows:  Show completions  
• Eclipse:  Open content assist (e.g., show available methods or field names)  

Web applications

• Trading View:  Autocomplete 
• Duolingo:  Replay audio 
• Chromebook and Chrome OS:  Switch to the previous keyboard language that you were using 
• Netflix:  Toggle by frame 

File Manager

• Midnight Commander (macOS):  Show directory sizes  
• Mp3tag:  Displays format string helper menu (e.g., at converters or actions) 

Media Player

• GOM Player:  Stop 
• VFC Capture (Verba) Media Player:  Strop/Pause the playback. 

Games - PC

• Assetto Corsa:  Recenter view 
• DayZ:  (Stable branch) Toggle Raise Weapon  
• Space Engineers (PC):  Move the character to the spectator 
• X-Plane 11:  Quicktime record 
• Pathfinder Wrath of the Righteous (PC):  Turn-based Mode 
• Jurassic World Evolution 2 (PC):  Random Rotation 
• Trainz: A New Era:  Toggle GUI 
• Unrailed (PC):  Emoji Wheel B 
• Hearthstone: End turn 
• ChessBase 13:  Insert the best variation of all engines into the notation 
• Jurassic World Evolution:  Random rotation  

Productivity

• FL Studio 20:  Start/Pause Playback 
• Epic:  Jump to Epic search function 
• Studio One 5.4:  Locate the Mouse Cursor 
• Aegisub:  Toggle focus between the video slider and the previous thing to have focus 
• Virtual DJ 2018:  Automix 
• Nuendo 10:  Toggle selection  
• Steinberg Cubase 10.5:  Toggle selection 
• Lucidchart:  Open the feature and find 
• Finale 26:  (and drag across music) “Scrub” onscreen music - all staves 
• Bitwig Studio 4.2:  Toggle selection Of item at the cursor 
• Guitar Pro:  Play from the beginning  
• Vegas Pro 18:  Play from any window 
• Quip:  Select the column 
• Cakewalk by Bandlab:  Stop with Now marker 

Scientific

• Archicad 24:  Suspends highlight of selected elements. 
• Eplan Platform 2.9:  Jump from cross-reference to centerpiece 
• Eagle 9.5.2:  Cycle the start layer forward when starting from a multi-layer object 
• LabView:  Displays the Quick Drop dialog box. On Chinese keyboards, press the Ctrl-Shift-Space keys. (Mac OS X) Press the Command-Shift-Space keys 
• JMP 15:  Display list of valid commands 
• Math Type 7:  Thin spaces (1/6 em) 
• Google Looker (Windows, 2023): Show the autosuggest tips 
• Microsoft Power BI Desktop: Multi-select 
• Onshape 1.98: Quick tab switching  

Hardware

• Nulaxy KM12 Bluetooth Keyboard: (only iOS) Switch language 
• Jelly Comb foldable B003 and B047: (for iOS) Switch physical keyboard input method 

Related Keyboard Shortcuts Keys

Here are brief explanations of each related keyboard shortcut and key:

1. Alt+spacebar: This is a keyboard shortcut used to open the window menu for the active window in Microsoft Windows. When you press Alt+spacebar, a drop-down menu appears with options such as Restore, Move, Size, Minimize, Maximize, and Close.
2. Ctrl: The Ctrl key is a modifier key that is used in combination with other keys to perform various functions. In addition to Ctrl+Spacebar, there are many other keyboard shortcuts that use the Ctrl key, such as Ctrl+C to copy, Ctrl+V to paste, Ctrl+Z to undo, and Ctrl+A to select all.
3. Spacebar: The spacebar is a key on the keyboard that is used to insert a space between words or to activate various functions in combination with other keys. In addition to Ctrl+Spacebar, there are many other keyboard shortcuts that use the spacebar, such as Shift+Spacebar to select an entire row in Excel and Spacebar to pause or play a video.