Embedded Files
Shared by OSLIS with the Creative Commons License: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International.
Boolean Searching
Boolean Searching
Boolean searching uses the terms AND, OR, and NOT to combine or exclude keywords, helping you get more focused and useful results. This method is named after mathematician George Boole.
Using AND:
Narrows your search to articles that contain all your search terms.
In some databases, AND is automatically included.
Example: The search college AND university finds articles where both terms appear.
Using OR:
Broadens your search to include articles that contain either search term.
Useful for linking synonyms or related terms.
Example: The search college OR university finds articles with either or both terms.
Using NOT:
Narrows your search by excluding articles that contain the term after NOT.
Example: The search college NOT university finds articles with the term college but excludes articles about university.
Page updated
Report abuse