Basic strategies for creating search strings to do research using library databases.

1. How to get the most out of the search box!

2. Choose Specific Keywords
Use keywords, the main ideas in your topic
question.
 Time period
 Geographic area
 Person
 Style
 Title
 Central themes
What drives the role of
tradition in Shirley
Jackson‘s short story
The Lottery?

3. Think about synonyms and
related terms!
 Use similar words to include relevant
results that don’t use the same exact
vocabulary
 Keyword: film
 Related terms: cinema, movie, motion
picture, animation, video

4. Use limiters to combine search
terms and customize results
 AND to narrow results
 OR to increase results
 Use NOT to keep out certain results
 (race OR ethnicity) NOT religion
Race OR ethnicity Race AND
ethnicity
Race EthnicityRace AND
Ethnicity Race AND
Ethnicity

5. Grouping
 Use quotation marks to search for a
contextual phrase or name
 The database will look for the terms in
sequential order
 “Mark Twain”
 “The Monkey’s Paw”
 “figurative language”

6. Truncation
 Use * with the shortened beginning of a
word to include all forms of that term
 Market*
 Market
 Marketing
 Marketer
 Markets