Skip to Main Content

Google and Google Scholar

Learn more about searching Google and Google Scholar

Google Search Tips

The basic Google search assumes the word "AND" in between search terms. But did you know that you can improve your Google searches with some simple search tools?

Phrase Searching

  • Use quotation marks (" ") to search for an exact phrase
  • Example: "lymphatic system"

Exclude Words

  • Put a minus sign (-) in front of the word to exclude from the search
  • Example: viruses -computer to search for viruses that are not computer viruses 

Wildcard

  • Put an asterisk (*) to search for a missing word/phrase in a search
  • Example: child* would search for child, children, childhood, etc.

Range Search

  • Add a dot dot (..) in between a range of numbers will search for a range of numbers
  • Example: laptops $500...800 will search for laptops that cost $500-$800

Searching Multiple Terms Using "OR"

  • Combine two terms with the word "OR" to search for webpages that include either word
  • Example: Covid-19 OR influenza will search for either Covid-19 or influenza

Site

  • Use "site: " to search a specific website
  • Example: "Covid-19" site:cdc.gov will search for Covid-19 information from the CDC's website

Define

  • Define can be used with or without a colon to find meanings or definitions of words, as well as relevant resources
  • Example: define plagiarism will show definitions of the word plagiarism 
  • Example: define: plagiarism will show definitions and related webpages

Webpage Title

  • Using "allintitle:" will find search terms that are all in the title of a webpage
  • Example: allintitle: medical school Nashville will show pages with the terms medical, school, and Nashville all in the title of the webpage

Search in Title

  • Use "intitle: " to search for a single word or phrase in the title of a search result
  • Example: intitle:systematic review will show pages with the words systematic review in the title 

File Type

  • Use "filetype:pdf" to search for specific file types. Many file types can be searched on Google, including Microsoft products (xls, xlsx, ppt, pptx, doc, docx) and more, including coding-specific file types.