By using advanced search you will find more specific search results. You can combine or exclude multiple search terms, match sentences and phrases exactly and also enter variations of search terms or synonyms.

You can start searching advanced by clicking Advanced search left under the search bar

You enter a menu where you can specify your search. Start by clicking on the field behind the first row. You will see a menu with 3 types of keywords.

All of these keywords

In this field you enter one or more terms that should appear in all search results. When you enter a single term, you will get all articles containing this word. By combining two or more search terms, only articles containing all of these words appear. You can also enter full sentences or phrases here.

Example: the search term 'Amsterdam' yields many results. The combination ; 'Amsterdam' and 'tourism' provide a more targeted search result. You will only see articles that contain both words.

Any of these keywords

In this field you enter terms that you want to include in the search results, but which do not necessarily have to be present. For example, you can add synonyms here. Articles containing these terms are included in the search results, but if the term does not appear in an article, the article is not excluded from the results.

Example: you are looking for articles about Amsterdam. Fill in 'Amsterdam', 'Mokum' and 'capital'. You will now receive all articles containing at least 1 of these 3 words.

None of these keywords

In this field you enter terms that you want to exclude from the search result. Articles containing these terms will not be displayed in the search result.

Example: if you search for articles about Amsterdam but do not want articles about tourism in your search results, enter 'tourism' at None of these keywords.

The combination of these 3 qualifications forms 1 rule. You can perform your search based on 1 rule, but you can also combine more rules.

Variations on a search term

In some cases it is useful not to enter a complete search term, but to take possible variations into account. To include all possible variations in your search result, choose Starts with when entering a search term.

Example: you are looking for articles related to freelancers. By using the search term freelance* you will get all articles that contain a variation of the search term freelance*. For example freelance, freelancer and freelancers.

See also: How can I use the News tab?