Using normal-mode motions in command-line mode in Vim

Question

Is modal editing possible in command-line mode?

Some examples:

• After writing !ls ~/foo/bar I want to db to delete bar

Answer 1

Search for :help cmdline-editingin Vim.

It will give a list of shortcut working in command line mode.

An extract for your current problem :

CTRL-B or                     *c_CTRL-B* *c_*
    cursor to beginning of command-line
CTRL-E or                      *c_CTRL-E* *c_*
    cursor to end of command-line
 or                     *c_*
    cursor one WORD left
                        *c_*
 or                   *c_*
    cursor one WORD right

or use q: as mentioned by Rene which allows you to edit previous typed commands in different modes.