Choosing the Best Terms for Your Search

Library databases are amazing resources that provide you with access to millions of articles, book chapters, news articles, streaming media, and other materials to help you work on research projects and learn more in your courses. If you are new to research or need a refresher, visit the Getting Started with Library Research guide to get an overview of the research process.

Usually when you start a search, you use a database to enter keywords describing the main ideas of your topic in order to find sources. The search process can be a bit of an artform, requiring you to try different terms until you discover the combination that returns the most relevant results.

Sometimes searching can be straightforward, such as when you are looking for information about a specific object, event, or person. But a topic may be identified by many different words, particularly when your research question isn't yet fully developed. You can make your research process more efficient by creating a list of terms associated with your topic before you start searching in a library database. The more specific your choice of search terms, the more relevant your results are likely to be. An added benefit of investigating many keywords possibilities is that it helps you learn the vocabulary associated with your discipline.

One method for creating a keyword list is to brainstorm a list of any terms related to your main idea. If you're not familiar with the topic, you can use the resources suggested under the Acquiring Background Information page to help generate a keyword list.

Consider the term "nutrition." Nutrition is not the only word that describes the concept of food necessary for health and growth. Other words might describe this concept, such as:

• diet
• food
• nourishment
• sustenance
• eating

The word "nutrition" can also refer to a branch of science that deals with the relationship between food and health, the process by which an organism extracts energy from its food, and the effects of a poor diet on an organism. Some of the terms listed above might be formally used in medical textbooks or courses, and some terms may be used both formally and informally. 

When not combined with additional terms, a single word like "nutrition" may apply to many different subjects and disciplines, such as baby food, eating disorders, sports medicine, school lunch programs, biotechnology, animal welfare, climate change, and on! Searching with strategic keyword combinations that closely describe your research question is crucial for any search, particularly when searching for multiple topics or the interactions between topics. The best keyword combinations will retrieve the most relevant results and the fewest irrelevant results.

While brainstorming a broad topic like nutrition, try to think of the question you really want to ask. For example, perhaps you are trying to investigate the relationship between school food programs public health crises. Once you have a list of terms, organize them according to the essential ideas of your research question. For each keyword, think of synonyms, plural forms, and alternate spellings, and write those down too.

Here are some words that might initially associate with the topic and some ways that they might be categorized:

When searching in library databases, unlike Google, you should type only one term or idea on each search line. Do not type questions or phrases that are more than 3 or 4 words long. If only one search box is available, separate your terms with the word AND (capitalized) between them.