To create a Basic Search:
Enter your search terms in the Find field on the Basic Search screen.
Click the Search Options link, if you would like to use any of the optional Limiters or Expanders. To close the Search Options, click the link again.
Select a specific search mode, such as "Find all of my search terms," or "SmartText Searching."
Apply Limiters such as Full Text or Publication type; or use search options that expand your search, such as "Apply related words."
Click the Search button. The Result List displays.
The search field is displayed above the Result List. Your search terms, limiters and expanders are retained. To revise your search, you can apply the limiters underLimit To on the left or click the Show More link to view all available limiters.
To use Advanced Search with Single Find Field:
Click the Advanced Search link below the Find field.
On the Advanced Search Screen, enter your search terms in the Find field.
Select from the available Search Options:
Search modes – Use specific search modes, such as “Find all my search terms,” or “SmartText Searching,” or use search options that expand your search such as “Apply related words.”
Limit your results – such as Full Text or Publication type.
Special Limiters – Apply limiters specific to a database. If you select a special limiter, it is applied only to the database under which it appears
Click the Search button. The Result List displays. The search field is displayed above the Result List. Your search terms, limiters and expanders are retained. To revise your search, you can apply the limiters under Limit To. Click the Show More link to view all available limiters and expanders.
Quotation Marks
When a phrase is enclosed by double quotations marks, the exact phrase is searched.
Truncation (*)
Truncation is represented by an asterisk (*). To use truncation, enter the root of a search term and replace the ending with an *. EBSCOhost finds all forms of that word.
For example, type comput* to find the words computer or computing.
Note: The Truncation symbol (*) may also be used between words to match any word.
For example, a midsummer * dream will return results that contain the exact phrase, a midsummer night’s dream.
Wildcards (? and #)
The wildcard is represented by a question mark ? or a pound sign #.
To use the ? wildcard, enter your search terms and replace each unknown character with a ?. EBSCOhost finds all citations of that word with the ? replaced by a letter.
For example, type ne?t to find all citations containing neat, nest or next. EBSCOhost does not find net because the wildcard replaces a single character.
Note: When searching for a title that ends in a question mark, the symbol should be removed from the search in order to ensure results will be returned.
To use the # wildcard, enter your search terms, adding the # in places where an alternate spelling may contain an extra character. EBSCOhost finds all citations of the word that appear with or without the extra character.
For example, type colo#r to find all citations containing color or colour.
Note: Searching the U.S. spelling of words will also include some spelling variations (i.e. colour or odour) but not all spelling variations.
When using the pound/hash (#) wildcard, plurals and possessives of that term are not searched. For example, when running a search for the term colo#r, the terms "colors" and "colours" will not be searched (which they are by default when using the singular "color" or "colour" without a wildcard operator).