Code Navigation

Go to Definition

• Index-based cross-TU go-to-definition

• Go to definition on #include directives (navigate to the included file), including preamble includes compiled into the PCH

• AST-based fallback for local/unsaved symbols

• Navigate through macro wrappers to the underlying declaration

  #define DECLARE_HANDLER(name) void name()
  DECLARE_HANDLER(onReady);  // go-to-def on onReady → should reach the underlying function

• Error recovery: navigate to variable definition even when its type is unresolved

• Dependent type navigation in uninstantiated templates

  template<typename T>
  void process(std::vector<T>& v) {
      v.push_back(val);  // go-to-def on push_back → vector::push_back
  }

• Template specialization → primary template (clangd#212)

  template<typename T>
  struct Formatter { ... };           // primary template
  
  template<>
  struct Formatter<std::string> { };  // go-to-def on Formatter → primary template

• auto keyword → deduced type (clangd#2055)

  auto widget = getWidget();
  // go-to-def on auto → Widget (the deduced type)

Implicit Code Navigation

Navigate to definitions of implicitly invoked code. In C++ many constructs generate hidden calls to constructors, operators, conversions, etc. Navigating from the syntactic construct (a brace, a keyword, an operator token) to the actual function being called is essential for understanding what code is really executing.

Implicit navigation requires an unambiguous source token — patterns where the token already has a well-defined go-to-def target (e.g., a variable name always goes to its declaration) cannot be repurposed for implicit call navigation.

Keywords

• override / final → the overridden base class virtual method

  struct Base { virtual void draw(); };
  struct Derived : Base {
      void draw() override;  // go-to-def on override → Base::draw
  };

• break / continue → enclosing loop or switch head (clangd#1921). See also Document Highlight for highlighting all related control flow tokens in context.

Construction & destruction

• Constructor calls — from parentheses/braces to the selected constructor

  struct Widget { Widget(int w, int h); };
  Widget w(800, 600);        // go-to-def on ( → Widget(int, int)
  Widget w2{800, 600};       // go-to-def on { → same
  auto w3 = Widget(1, 2);   // go-to-def on ( → same

• Copy/move construction and assignment

  Widget a(1, 2);
  Widget b = a;              // go-to-def on = → Widget(const Widget&)
  Widget c = std::move(a);   // go-to-def on = → Widget(Widget&&)
  b = c;                     // go-to-def on = → operator=(const Widget&)

• CTAD — navigate to the selected constructor

  std::vector v{1, 2, 3};  // go-to-def on { → vector(initializer_list<int>)

• Aggregate initialization → struct definition

  struct Point { int x, y; };
  auto p = Point{1, 2};  // go-to-def on { → Point

• delete expression → destructor

  delete widget;  // go-to-def on delete → Widget::~Widget

• new expression → constructor (and custom operator new if overloaded)

  struct Pool {
      static void* operator new(size_t);
  };
  auto* p = new Pool();       // go-to-def on new → Pool() constructor
                               // also: Pool::operator new (if overloaded)
  auto* arr = new Pool[10];   // go-to-def on new → Pool() default constructor

• Member initializer list → base class and member constructors

  struct Base { Base(int); };
  struct Logger { Logger(std::string name); };
  struct App : Base {
      Logger logger;
      App() : Base(42), logger("app") {}
      // go-to-def on Base → Base::Base(int)
      // go-to-def on logger → Logger(std::string)
  };

• Delegating constructors

  struct Widget {
      Widget(int w, int h);
      Widget() : Widget(0, 0) {}  // go-to-def on Widget → Widget(int, int)
  };

• Inherited constructors — navigate to the base constructors brought in by using

  struct Base { Base(int x); Base(int x, int y); };
  struct Derived : Base {
      using Base::Base;  // go-to-def on Base::Base → list Base's constructors
  };

• Return value implicit construction

  Widget create() {
      return {800, 600};  // go-to-def on { → Widget(int, int)
  }

• Lambda init-capture → constructor

  Widget w;
  auto f = [w = std::move(w)] {};     // go-to-def on = → Widget(Widget&&)
  auto g = [s = std::string("hi")] {};  // go-to-def on = → string(const char*)

Operators

• Overloaded operators — from the operator token to its definition

  Vec a, b;
  auto c = a + b;   // go-to-def on + → Vec::operator+
  a += b;            // go-to-def on += → Vec::operator+=
  ++it;              // go-to-def on ++ → iterator::operator++
  v[0];              // go-to-def on [ → vector::operator[]
  fn(42);            // go-to-def on ( → Functor::operator()
  ptr->member;       // go-to-def on -> → SmartPtr::operator->

• C++20 rewritten operators — navigate to the actual operator used by the rewrite

  struct S {
      bool operator==(const S&) const;
      auto operator<=>(const S&) const = default;
  };
  S a, b;
  a != b;   // go-to-def on != → S::operator==
  a > b;    // go-to-def on > → S::operator<=>

• User-defined literals

  using namespace std::chrono_literals;
  auto d = 500ms;  // go-to-def on ms → operator""ms

Conversions

• Implicit conversion operators — from contexts where a conversion is invoked

  struct Guard { explicit operator bool() const; };
  Guard g;
  if (g) {}              // go-to-def on ( → Guard::operator bool()
  while (g) {}           // same
  !g;                    // go-to-def on ! → Guard::operator bool()  ([clangd#1931](https://github.com/clangd/clangd/issues/1931))
  bool ok = bool(g);     // go-to-def on bool( → Guard::operator bool()

• Casts invoking constructor or conversion operator

  struct Meters { explicit operator double() const; };
  Meters m;
  double d = static_cast<double>(m);  // go-to-def on static_cast → Meters::operator double()
  
  struct Foo { explicit Foo(int); };
  auto f = static_cast<Foo>(42);      // go-to-def on static_cast → Foo(int)

Range-for & structured bindings

• Range-based for — navigate to begin()/end()

  std::vector<int> v;
  for (auto& x : v) {}  // go-to-def on : → vector::begin

• Structured bindings — navigate to the underlying accessors or fields

  std::map<int, std::string> m;
  for (auto& [key, val] : m) {}  // go-to-def on key → pair::first
                                  // go-to-def on val → pair::second

Coroutines

• co_await / co_yield / co_return → the corresponding awaiter/promise method

  co_await some_awaitable;   // go-to-def on co_await → operator co_await() or await_resume()
  co_yield value;            // go-to-def on co_yield → promise::yield_value()
  co_return result;          // go-to-def on co_return → promise::return_value()

Go to Declaration

Navigate from a symbol usage or definition to its declaration. In C++, many entities have separate declarations and definitions; go-to-declaration always targets the declaration side.

clice returns the declaration locations plus the definition: symbols defined inline have no separate declaration, and navigating to the definition is what clients expect in that case.

• Index-based cross-TU go-to-declaration

• Functions — from usage or out-of-line definition to the declaration/prototype

  // widget.h
  class Widget {
      void draw();  // declaration
  };
  
  // widget.cpp
  void Widget::draw() { }  // out-of-line definition
  // go-to-decl from usage or definition → in-class declaration in widget.h

• Forward declarations of classes and structs

  class Widget;           // forward declaration in fwd.h
  class Widget { ... };   // full definition in widget.h
  // go-to-decl on Widget (from usage or definition) → forward declaration

• Static data member → in-class declaration

  struct Config {
      static int timeout;    // declaration
  };
  int Config::timeout = 30;  // out-of-class definition
  // go-to-decl on timeout → in-class declaration

• extern variable → declaration

  // globals.h
  extern int log_level;      // declaration
  // globals.cpp
  int log_level = 0;         // definition
  // go-to-decl on log_level → extern declaration in globals.h

• Multiple declarations — list all when an entity is declared in more than one location

• Navigate even when declaration and definition signatures mismatch (e.g., parameter names differ, const qualification)

Go to Implementation

• Index-based go-to-implementation (direct overrides; each level of a deep chain navigates to its own overriders)

• Virtual method → all override implementations

  struct Base { virtual void draw(); };
  struct Circle : Base { void draw() override; };
  struct Rect : Base { void draw() override; };
  // go-to-impl on Base::draw → list Circle::draw, Rect::draw

• Non-virtual function declaration → out-of-line definition (go-to-impl as superset of go-to-def) (clangd#854)

  // widget.h
  class Widget {
      void draw();  // go-to-impl on draw → out-of-line definition in widget.cpp
  };

• Go to implementation listing all derived classes for a base class

  struct Base {};
  struct Circle : Base {};
  struct Rect : Base {};
  // go-to-impl on Base → list Circle, Rect

• Template duck-type navigation — when a template has known instantiations, jump to the concrete implementations of dependent member calls. Also applies to generic lambdas with known call sites.

  template<typename T>
  void process(T& obj) {
      obj.foo();  // go-to-impl on foo → list A::foo, B::foo (from all instantiations)
  }
  
  process(a);  // T = A
  process(b);  // T = B

  std::vector<std::string> names;
  std::ranges::for_each(names, [](const auto& s) {
      s.size();  // go-to-impl on size → std::string::size (from the single call site)
  });

Go to Type Definition

Navigate to the type definition of a symbol. Applicable to variables, parameters, fields, and any other named entity that has a type. When the type is a type alias or a pointer-like wrapper, navigation should unwrap to the underlying/pointee type.

• Index-based go-to-type-definition for declared entities (variables, parameters, fields). Known limitations: auto-deduced variables have no type relation yet, and alias-typed variables navigate to the using declaration rather than unwrapping to the underlying type.

• Local variables and parameters

  void process(Widget w) {
      auto result = w.compute();
      // go-to-type-def on w → Widget
      // go-to-type-def on result → return type of compute()
  }

• Class/struct fields

  struct App { Logger logger; };
  App app;
  // go-to-type-def on app.logger → Logger

• auto deduced types

  auto it = map.begin();
  // go-to-type-def on it → map::iterator

• Smart pointer → pointee type (clangd#1026)

  std::unique_ptr<Widget> w;
  // go-to-type-def on w → Widget, not unique_ptr

• Type aliases — unwrap typedef / using to the underlying type definition (behavior may depend on cursor position and context, e.g. whether the cursor is on the variable or on the alias name itself)

  using Connection = detail::ConnectionImpl;
  Connection conn;
  // go-to-type-def on conn → detail::ConnectionImpl (unwraps alias)

• Structured binding variables

  std::map<int, Widget> m;
  auto& [id, widget] = *m.begin();
  // go-to-type-def on id → int (from pair::first)
  // go-to-type-def on widget → Widget (from pair::second)

Find References

• Index-based cross-TU find references

• Include declarations option

• Implicit references from range-based for loops (clangd#1081)

  struct Container { iterator begin(); iterator end(); };
  for (auto& x : container) {}  // find-refs on begin() should include this loop

• Implicit constructor/destructor calls

  struct Blob { Blob(); };
  Blob b;  // find-refs on Blob() should include this declaration

• References through forwarding functions — find-refs on a constructor should include calls via std::make_unique, std::make_shared, emplace_back, etc. (clangd#716, clangd#1872)

  struct Widget { Widget(int w, int h); };
  auto p = std::make_unique<Widget>(800, 600);  // find-refs on Widget(int, int) should include this
  vec.emplace_back(800, 600);                    // and this

• References in dependent/template contexts (clangd#258, clangd#675)

  template<typename T>
  void process(T& obj) {
      obj.foo();  // find-refs on A::foo should include this (from instantiation T = A)
  }

• Read/write classification — annotate each reference as read or write access (clangd#2139)

  int x = 0;        // write
  int y = x + 1;    // read
  x = y;            // write

• Enclosing function context — include the name of the enclosing function in each reference result for better readability (clangd#177)

• Macro definition/expansion references (including uses within other macro definitions) (clangd#346)

• Label → goto references

  retry:
    if (failed) goto retry;  // find-refs on retry label → list all gotos

Call Hierarchy

• Prepare call hierarchy (functions and methods)

• Incoming calls

• Outgoing calls

• Show function signature in detail field

• Include class name for member functions

  // current:  "draw" in file.cpp
  // expected: "Circle::draw" in file.cpp

• Follow virtual dispatch (callers of Base::draw should include calls via derived overrides)

• Support non-function targets (variables, enum constants) (clangd#1308)

• Calls inside lambdas

  auto task = [&] { foo(); };  // foo() should appear in foo's incoming calls

• Constructor calls through forwarding functions — make_unique, emplace_back etc. should appear in incoming calls of the constructor (clangd#2242)

  struct Widget { Widget(int w, int h); };
  auto p = std::make_unique<Widget>(800, 600);
  // incoming calls for Widget(int, int) should include this call site

Type Hierarchy

• Prepare type hierarchy (class/struct/enum/union)

• Supertypes (base classes)

• Subtypes (derived classes)

• Template inheritance (derived classes via template specialization)

  template<typename T>
  struct CRTP : Base {};
  // type hierarchy on Base should show CRTP<T> as subtype

• Show template arguments in type hierarchy items (clangd#31)

  // current:  CRTP (subtype of Base)
  // expected: CRTP<Foo> (subtype of Base)

Workspace Symbol

• Basic workspace-wide symbol search

• Fuzzy matching with word-boundary-aware scoring (camelCase, snake_case)

  VecIt → matches std::vector<int>::iterator
  strvi → matches std::string_view

• Partially qualified name search (clangd#550)

  ns::Foo → matches deeply::nested::ns::Foo

• Include parameter types for overloaded function disambiguation (clangd#1344)

  // query: "process"
  // results: process(int), process(std::string), process(Widget&)

• Enum enumerator lookup under enum scope (clangd#931)

  Color::Red → matches Color::Red (even for unscoped enums)

• Fuzzy matching for macros (consistent with other symbol types) (clangd#914)

• Prioritize underlying declarations over type aliases in results (clangd#2253)

• Search by mangled (linker) name

Module Navigation

• import module_name → jump to module interface unit (clangd#2310)

  import mylib;  // go-to-def on mylib → module interface unit (export module mylib;)

• import :partition → jump to partition unit

  import :core;  // go-to-def on core → partition unit (export module mylib:core;)

• Navigate between interface and implementation units of the same module (implementation → interface works via go-to-def on the module m; name; the reverse is not implemented)

  // interface unit:       export module mylib;
  // implementation unit:  module mylib;
  // go-to-def on mylib → switch between interface and implementation units

• Dot-separated module name — navigate each segment to its module

  import std.io;
  // go-to-def on io → std.io module interface
  // go-to-def on std → std module interface (if exists)

Document Highlight

Highlight all references to the symbol under cursor within the current file (textDocument/documentHighlight).

• Highlight all references to the symbol under cursor in the current file

• Read/Write classification for symbol highlights

• Control flow token highlighting (return, break, continue, throw, case/default for switch) (clangd#1921)

  for (int i = 0; i < n; i++) {
      for (int j = 0; j < m; j++) {
          if (done) break;     // highlighting break → also highlights inner for
          if (skip) continue;  // highlighting continue → also highlights inner for
      }
  }

Switch Source/Header

• Switch between source and header file

Changelog

Date	Change	PR
2026-07-04	go-to-definition on include directives and module names	#481
2026-07-03	declaration / implementation / typeDefinition; references includeDeclaration includes declarations	#480
2026-04-02	Index-based go-to-definition and find references; call hierarchy; type hierarchy	#382