What is retext-smartypants?
The retext-smartypants package is a plugin for the retext ecosystem that transforms plain ASCII punctuation into typographically correct punctuation. It is useful for converting straight quotes to curly quotes, double hyphens to em dashes, and other similar transformations to improve the readability and appearance of text.
What are retext-smartypants's main functionalities?
Convert straight quotes to curly quotes
This feature converts straight quotes (" and ') to their curly counterparts (“ and ’).
const retext = require('retext');
const smartypants = require('retext-smartypants');
const report = require('vfile-reporter');
retext()
.use(smartypants)
.process('"Hello, world!" she said.', function (err, file) {
if (err) throw err;
console.log(String(file));
console.error(report(file));
});
Convert double hyphens to em dashes
This feature converts double hyphens (--) to em dashes (—).
const retext = require('retext');
const smartypants = require('retext-smartypants');
const report = require('vfile-reporter');
retext()
.use(smartypants)
.process('This is an example--with an em dash.', function (err, file) {
if (err) throw err;
console.log(String(file));
console.error(report(file));
});
Convert triple dots to ellipses
This feature converts triple dots (...) to ellipses (…).
const retext = require('retext');
const smartypants = require('retext-smartypants');
const report = require('vfile-reporter');
retext()
.use(smartypants)
.process('Wait... what?', function (err, file) {
if (err) throw err;
console.log(String(file));
console.error(report(file));
});
Other packages similar to retext-smartypants
typogr
The typogr package provides similar functionality to retext-smartypants by improving the typography of text. It converts straight quotes to curly quotes, double hyphens to em dashes, and more. It is a standalone library and does not require the retext ecosystem.
smartypants
The smartypants package is a JavaScript port of the original SmartyPants Perl library. It provides similar transformations for typographic punctuation, such as converting straight quotes to curly quotes and double hyphens to em dashes. It is a standalone library and can be used independently of retext.
retext-smartypants
retext plugin to apply SmartyPants.
Contents
What is this?
This package is a unified (retext) plugin to apply SmartyPants to
the syntax tree.
It replaces straight/typewriter punctuation marks and symbols with smart/curly
marks and symbols.
When should I use this?
You can use this plugin any time there straight marks and symbols in prose,
but you want to use smart ones instead.
Install
This package is ESM only.
In Node.js (version 12.20+, 14.14+, 16.0+, or 18.0+), install with npm:
npm install retext-smartypants
In Deno with esm.sh
:
import retextSmartypants from 'https://esm.sh/retext-smartypants@5'
In browsers with esm.sh
:
<script type="module">
import retextSmartypants from 'https://esm.sh/retext-smartypants@5?bundle'
</script>
Use
import {retext} from 'retext'
import retextSmartypants from 'retext-smartypants'
const file = await retext()
.use(retextSmartypants)
.process('He said, "A \'simple\' english sentence. . ."')
console.log(String(file))
Yields:
He said, “A ‘simple’ english sentence…”
API
This package exports no identifiers.
The default export is retextSmartypants
.
unified().use(retextSmartypants[, options])
Apply SmartyPants.
options
Configuration (optional).
options.quotes
Create smart quotes (boolean
, default: true
).
Converts straight double and single quotes to smart double or single quotes.
The options options.openingQuotes
and options.closingQuotes
affect which
quotes are considered smart.
options.openingQuotes
Characters to use for opening quotes {single: '‘', double: '“'}
.
options.closingQuotes
Characters to use for closing quotes {single: '’', double: '”'}
.
options.ellipses
Create smart ellipses (boolean
, default: true
).
Converts triple dot characters (with or without spaces) into a single unicode
ellipsis character.
options.backticks
Create smart quotes from backticks (boolean
or 'all'
, default: true
).
When true
, converts double backticks into an opening double quote, and
double straight single quotes into a closing double quote.
When 'all'
: does the what true
does with the addition of converting single
backticks into an opening single quote, and a straight single quote into a
closing single smart quote.
👉 Note: options.quotes
can not be true
when backticks
is 'all'
.
options.dashes
Create smart dashes (boolean
or 'oldschool'
, 'inverted'
, default: true
).
When true
, converts two dashes into an em dash character.
When 'oldschool'
, converts two dashes into an en dash, and three dashes into
an em dash.
When 'inverted'
, converts two dashes into an em dash, and three dashes into
an en dash.
Types
This package is fully typed with TypeScript.
It exports the additional types Options
and QuoteCharacterMap
.
Compatibility
Projects maintained by the unified collective are compatible with all maintained
versions of Node.js.
As of now, that is Node.js 12.20+, 14.14+, 16.0+, and 18.0+.
Our projects sometimes work with older versions, but this is not guaranteed.
Contribute
See contributing.md
in retextjs/.github
for ways
to get started.
See support.md
for ways to get help.
This project has a code of conduct.
By interacting with this repository, organization, or community you agree to
abide by its terms.
License
MIT © Titus Wormer