ENGL 01 Diaz: Basic Search Strategies

The words you type into the search box affect your search results. Not all authors use the same language to describe similar topics, so you will need to try a variety of searches.

• Create a list of possible words that could appear in a book or article related to your topic.
• Come up with synonyms or related terms.
• Stick to using 2-4 concepts at a time.

• AND:  joins dissimilar terms to narrow your search since both terms need to be present
  • Example: vegetarian AND morality
• OR: joins similar terms to broaden your search since either term can be present
  • Example: vegetarian OR vegan OR plant-based
• AND & OR can also be used together
  • Example: (vegetarian OR vegan OR plant-based) AND (morality OR ethics)

• “United States”
• “meat industry”
• "political propaganda"

• The asterisk * is the most common truncation symbol.
  • Example: Latin* = Latin, Latino, Latina, Latinidad, Latinx, etc.
• You do have to be careful with truncation. Sometimes you might get unexpected results.
  • Example: minor*= minor, minors, minority, minorities, etc.

"How Library Stuff Works: How to Choose Keywords'" by McMaster Libraries (2:42) is licensed under CC BY 3.0.

"Online Research: Tips for Effective Search Strategies" (3:04) by Sarah Clark is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND