Basic search help Tips for searching like a pro Don't see what you're looking for in your search results? Here are some basic tips and tricks to help you find just what you want every time.
Keep it simple! Start by typing the name of a thing, place, or concept that you're looking for. puppy training tips london dinner cruise pasta recipe
Add relevant words if you don't see what you want after doing a simple search. First try: puppy More precise: puppy training Even more precise: dalmatian puppy training class Don't worry if it takes several attempts to find the right words to describe your search.
Try words that a website would use to describe what you're looking for. Not ideal: my head hurts Not ideal: why is my head killing me Better: headache Why? Google matches the words in your search to the words appearing in pages on the Internet. "Headache" is the term that informative webpages are likely to use, so using that term will help you reach the type of information you want.
Use only the important words rather than a full sentence or question. Not ideal: country where bats are an omen of good luck Better: bats good luck Why? Generally, all of the words that you include in your search will be used to find matching content. Too many words will limit your results.
Let Google do the work! Certain types of searches will show you special information directly below the search box. Weather: weather edinburgh Calculations: 45 x .88
Exceptions Sometimes Google search will act differently than what's described above if doing so could improve your search. Here are a few of these cases: ●
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Common words like "the," "a," and "for," are usually ignored, but might not be if they're integral to your search phrase. For example, the word "the" differentiates a search for the who (likely referring to the band) and who (likely referring to the World Health Organization). A webpage could appear in your results even if it doesn't contain all of the words from your search. For example, the query overhead view of the bellagio pool will give you nice overhead pictures from webpages that do not include the word "overhead." Synonyms might replace some words in your original query, but you can put a word or phrase in quotes to prevent this from happening. Generally, most punctuation and special characters are ignored, however there is a growing list of punctuation and symbols that are recognized in searches.
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Explore Google's search tips and tricks to help you find information and answers faster. Try including search operators or filters to narrow down your search results. Use the Advanced Search page to learn ways to make your searches even more precise.
Results page full overview The basics Each blue underlined line is a search result our search engine found for your search terms. The first item is the most relevant match we found, the second is the next most relevant, and so on down the list. If you click the title of any result, you'll be taken to that webpage.
Overview of the search results page Here's a quick guide to all the elements and tools that you'll find on a Google search results page. Click these links to learn more:
filters
Header
Search bar
Search results
Tools &
Right-hand
Bottom of the
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Header Google products bar The Google bar runs across the top of the browser of nearly all Google services and offers easy access to Google’s products. When you're on the search results page, you can click on one of the light gray links to be taken to other Google products. Sign in & out Sign in to a Google Account to customize your search experience. If you're signed in to your Google Account, the email address or name and profile picture associated with your account will be shown on the top of the page. If you share a computer and don't want others to have access to your Google Account, be sure to always click your email address or name and select Sign outwhen you're finished using the computer. Google logo On special occasions, you may see a new Google Doodle for the day.
Search bar To do a search on Google, just type in a few descriptive search terms, then hit Enteron your keyboard or click the Search button. If you have Google Instant enabled, results may appear dynamically as you type.
Search results A typical result
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Title: The first line of any search result is the title of the webpage. Click the title to reach that webpage. URL: In green, you'll see the web address of that result's webpage. Snippet: Below the URL is a description of the webpage and can include an actual excerpt of text from the page. Your search terms will appear in bold to make it easier for you to decide if the page has what you're looking for.
Interact with your search results Click the
button located below a search result to see a cached version of the page, see similar results
to the page, or to share the page with your friends.
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Cached: Google crawls the web and takes snapshots of each page. When you click Cached, you'll see the webpage as it looked when we last indexed it. The "Cached" link won't appear for sites that haven't been indexed or for any sites whose owners requested that we refrain from caching their content. Similar: Click Similar to see other websites that are related to that result.
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Share: Like a certain search result? Click the Share button next to any search result to like, agree with, or recommend it.
Indented results When Google finds multiple results from the same website, the most relevant result is listed first, with other relevant pages from that site indented below it. The remaining results can be accessed by clicking the More results from link. Universal results Google's search technology looks for the most relevant information across all types of internet content, so your results can include images, maps, videos, news articles, books, and more. Results for similar searches When there aren’t many relevant results for your original query, Google gives you search results for a few different variations of your search terms. For example, Google might remove some search terms from your original query, or replace them with similar ones. If you don't see what you're looking for in your search results, try some of the basic search tips and tricks to help you find exactly what you want. When you’d like to search for very specific terms, you can use the Verbatim tool. The tool allows you to search for the exact words you enter in the search box. Learn more about theVerbatim tool.
Tools & filters The panel at the top of your results page will show a location as well as dynamically show the search modes and filters that are most useful for your particular search. Use these tools to filter and customize the results you see. ●
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Location: The location used to customize your results can be found at the top of your results page. Our location detection technology will automatically set a location for you, or you can easily specify an alternate location. Learn more about location Type of content: Limit your results to a particular type of web content likeImages, News, or Discussions. Or, stick to the default, Web, to see results of all types of content. Gear: Click the gear icon to access your search settings (like search language and the number of results you'd like to see per page), Advanced search or your Google Web History. SafeSearch: SafeSearch filters provide you with the ability to change your browser setting to prevent adult content from appearing in your search results. Learn more about SafeSearch settings and how to change them.
Learn more about the search options
Right-hand section Ads When you search Google, you'll often see text ads above and along the side of the search results pages. The ads are relevant to your search and can provide you with valuable information about what you're looking for. If there are no relevant ads to show with your search, then we won't you show any. Ad revenues help us bring you free products such as Search, Gmail, Google Maps, Google Drive, and more. Knowledge graph When you search on Google for a person, place, or thing, you might see a section to the right of your search results that highlights facts, images, location map, and other snippets of information about your search. Use this section to find quick information and facts about the subject, or to start exploring related subjects. Learn more aboutKnowledge graph.
Bottom of the page Related searches Sometimes the best search terms for what you're looking for are related to the ones you actually entered. Click these related search terms to see alternate search results. More results If the webpage or information you're looking for is not on the first page of search results, you can click Next at the bottom of the page to see more results. Feedback Unhappy with your Google results for a particular search? Have a great idea to improve search? Want to share a positive Google experience you've had? Click theSend feedback link below the bottom search bar.