Narrowing a Search


Many of the same techniques apply to narrowing and expanding a search. Look for better words to describe your topic or change the way you combine them in the search engine.

Select a promising record from among your results. Click on the title to see the whole record for that item. You will find several clues to other search terms on this screen.
Use the Show Similar Button

Click on the "Show Similar" button at the top or bottom of the screen. This will retrieve more items similar to this one.

Use Subject Headings

Look at the subject headings at the bottom of the page. Click on subject headings that best meet your needs, and examine the records under that subject. Books are grouped by subject heading. Where you find one, you may find others.

Find Synonyms and other Keywords

Examine the words in the table of contents and subject headings. Do a new Keyword search using the best word(s) from these. Frequently, records will contain synonyms and other keywords that describe your topic that will help you do a more accurate search.