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Boolean Search
And / Or / Not
This is an algebraic concept, but don't let that scare you away. Boolean connectors are all about sets. There are three little words that are used as Boolean connectors:
- and
- or
- not
Think of each keyword as having a "set" of results that are connected with it. These sets can be combined to produce a different "set" of results. You can also exclude certain "sets" from your results by using a Boolean connector.
AND is a connector that requires both words to be present in each record in the results. Use AND to narrow your search.
Search Term | Hits |
---|---|
Television | 999 hits |
Violence | 876 hits |
Television and violence | 123 hits |
The words 'television' and 'violence' will both be present in each record.
OR is a connector that allows either word to be present in each record in the results. Use OR to expand your search.
Search Term | Hits |
---|---|
Adolescents | 97 hits |
Teenagers | 75 hits |
Adolescents or teenagers | 172 hits |
Either 'adolescents' or 'teenagers' (or both) will be present in each record.
NOT is a connector that requires the first word be present in each record in the results, but only if the record does not contain the second word.
Search Term | Hits |
---|---|
High school | 423 hits |
Elementary | 652 hits |
High school not Elementary | 275 hits |
Each record contains the words 'high school', but not the word 'elementary'.
Please note, your computer will require the Flash 5 plug-in for the interactive example below to work. If you don't have the Flash plug-in you can download it for free from (link will open in a pop-up window): Macromedia.
Boolean Search Examples
A (link will open in a pop-up window) text description of "Boolean Search Examples" is also available.
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