Syntax search: Defining search syntax

Modified on Tue, 14 Oct at 4:52 PM

Searches can be formulated to specify the desired number of hits using full-text criteria and numerical restrictions, as well as arbitrarily nested Boolean links derived from them. The search syntax available for syntax searches is described below.

Keywords are generally searched for in syntax searches as they are entered. The rules listed in the table below apply. Deviations can be specified via the specifying keywords option.

Spelling	Meaning
Upper/lowercase	In general, the capitalisation of keywords, box names, search operators and other syntactic constructs is irrelevant. For example, searching for Clooney, CLOONEY or clooney will yield the same hits. To distinguish between uppercase and lowercase letters in your search, enclose the keyword in single inverted commas. For example, the search for ‘Clooney’ will not find CLOONEY or clooney.
Umlauts	The alternative spelling for umlauts (e.g. ë = ee) are not distinguished in the search. If you want to find the exact word, put it in single inverted commas. For example, ‘Zoee’ does not find Zoë, but also does not find zoee.
Diacritical characters	Letters with diacritical marks are converted to their basic form during the search (Â = A, â = a, è = e, í = i, etc.). For example, the search for Beyoncé will also find Beyonce and vice versa. If you place your keyword in single inverted commas, the diacritical marks will not be standardised in order to enable an exact search. For example, the search for ‘Beyoncé’ will not find Beyonce.
Special characters	The special characters # and & can be searched for. The special character # can be used to search explicitly for hashtags. The special characters . , ; : - _ / ^ ° = §, etc. are removed by the system when generating keywords. Keywords containing these special characters are divided into several keywords. Note: A search for “start-up” will therefore also find articles that contain the words “start/up”, “start up” and “start – up”.
Reserved characters	The following special characters are reserved for specific functions: Parentheses ( ) to prioritise the keyword link Equal sign = between field name and keyword
Phrases	Phrases are sequences of keywords that must appear immediately next to each other in the articles found. If you want your keywords to be interpreted as a phrase, they must also appear directly next to each other in the search. For better readability, you can also enclose phrases in double inverted commas. The search for “George Clooney” only finds articles that contain the name George Clooney. An identical AND link (George AND Clooney), however, would also find media in which, for example, “George Hamilton” encounters a “Rosemary Clooney”. Note: Phrase searches are particularly useful for searching for people’s names or company names. Film and book titles or quotations can also be found with a high degree of accuracy using this method.
Placeholders in phrases	In a phrase, * can be used as a placeholder for any word. Separation by spaces is necessary. For example: BRUCK * * LEITHA finds articles that contain “BRUCK AN DER LEITHA” or “BRUCK A. D. LEITHA”, among others.