Follow these five steps when searching for information on your topic:
Whether you're in Google or a library database, using "search operators" will help you find what you need faster and more effectively. The ones listed below generally work in most places, although you'll still want to experiment with your keywords and approach.
Use quotation marks around a phrase of two or more words to find exactly those words, in that order: "social media"
In some search engines, like Google, you can also put quotation marks around one word to search just for results with that exact word, not any words related to it.
Results must include both of these words or phrases (= fewer results).
In most search platforms, "and" is the default, so searching whatsapp AND russia is the same as searching whatsapp russia
Example: chatgpt AND deepseek will bring back results that talk about both of these AI tools.
Results must include at least one of these words or phrases (= more results).
Example: chatgpt OR deepseek will bring back all results about ChatGPT and all results about DeepSeek, even articles that only mention one of them.
Results should not include these words or phrases. Use this operator sparingly because it can eliminate relevant results!
In Google, use a minus sign (-) instead of the word "NOT." Some databases use "AND NOT" instead.
Example: ocean city maryland NOT new jersey brings back results about Ocean City, Maryland but nothing about Ocean City, New Jersey.
Phrases in parentheses are searched first/together (like algebra!).
Example: therapy AND (depression OR anxiety)
Add an asterisk to a word "root" or "stem" to find multiple variations of the same word.
Example: econ* will find all words that begin with "econ," like economic, economics, and economical.
Example: ("jake smith" OR "jacob smith" OR "jacob w. smith") (journalis* OR reporter) "salt lake city"
Removing or adding just one term or concept can dramatically change your results! Experiment with tweaking your search terms and operators to see what works best.
On the Google Search homepage, go to Settings > Advanced to access even more settings, including language, file type, and date last updated. Read more search tips.
