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.
