Advanced searching

The Advanced search form offers a Full Text search of the entire Dictionary text with added options and greater flexibility:

• Combining searches using Boolean operators
• Case-sensitive searching
• Exact character searching
• Restricting a search to entries matched in the previous search, or to entries with a particular part of speech
• Searching pronunciations
• Searching the Second Edition

How can I run an Advanced search?

Here's how to run the basic type of search:

1. Switch to Advanced search mode by clicking the button at the base of the screen.

2. The Advanced search panel is displayed in the main window.

3. Choose from the tabs whether you want to retrieve entries or quotations. The currently selected tab is red.

   

   Choosing Entries means that the results will consist of entries containing the specified term or terms. Choosing Quotations means that the results will consist of quotations containing the specified term or terms.

4. Type the word or phrase you want to find into the first box.

5. Choose your search area.

6. Click the button.

7. The results are displayed in the results list.

   The results list has the same format as the normal Full Text search results list.

8. To go to the top of any entry, click its name (in the left-hand column). To go to the first match in any entry, click the matching term (in the right-hand column).

You can build on this basic procedure to search for phrases, look for more than one term near another, and/or include wildcards in your search.