A lightweight TypeScript utility library for intelligently trimming text strings. This library provides an easy way to trim text to specified lengths while preserving whole words or cutting mid-word, and handling punctuation. Perfect for summaries, previews, and UI components where clean text presentation matters.

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Choose your package manager:

npm install text-smart-trimmer

yarn add text-smart-trimmer

pnpm add text-smart-trimmer

import { smartTrim } from 'text-smart-trimmer';
// Basic usage with default options
smartTrim('This is a long sentence that needs to be trimmed', 20);
// Output: "This is a long..."

const { smartTrim } = require('text-smart-trimmer');
// Basic usage with default options
smartTrim('This is a long sentence that needs to be trimmed', 20);
// Output: "This is a long..."

// Returns original string if shorter than maxLength
smartTrim('Short text', 20); // "Short text"
// Custom suffix
smartTrim('This is a long sentence', 15, { suffix: ' [more]' });
// Output: "This is [more]"
// Cut words in the middle (disable whole word preservation)
smartTrim('This is a long sentence', 15, { preserveWholeWords: false });
// Output: "This is a lo..."
// Remove trailing punctuation
smartTrim('This is a sentence, with punctuation.', 22, { preservePunctuation: false });
// Output: "This is a sentence..."

function smartTrim(
  str: string,
  maxLength: number,
  options?: SmartTrimOptions
): string

• Smart word handling: Automatically trims at word boundaries (configurable)
• Customizable suffix: Use any string as the truncation indicator
• Punctuation awareness: Intelligently handles trailing punctuation
• Thoroughly tested: Handles all edge cases reliably
• Zero dependencies: Lightweight and efficient
• TypeScript ready: Full type definitions included

• Returns the original string if it's already shorter than maxLength
• Truncates the suffix if maxLength is smaller than the suffix length
• When preserveWholeWords is enabled with very long words, returns only the suffix
• Strict input validation ensures predictable behavior

While text trimming seems simple, handling all the edge cases correctly can be tricky:

• What if there are no spaces?
• How should punctuation be handled?
• What if the max length is very small?

This library has been thoroughly tested against dozens of edge cases so you don't have to worry about them.

MIT