Be sure to use Caps for AND, OR, NOT when searching.
AND - searches for books and articles containing both terms. Example: Gay AND Lesbian
OR - searches for one of the words. Example: Virginia OR Georgia
NOT - exclude a term. Example: NOT California
Parenthetical notes () - excellent for OR or NOT searches. Like a math equation, the database will do this part first.
Example: ("gay culture" OR "gay pride") AND "Richmond" = search for Gay culture or gay pride in Richmond
Quotation Marks ""- Links words together in the search. Works best for phrases or proper names.
Example: "Gay Liberation Movement"
Example: "Gender Identity"
Warning: You might exclude results. A search for "transgendered person" will exclude "transgender person"
Asterisk * - Allows you to search several word endings at once, without using OR repeatedly.
Example: LGBT* will cover: LGBT, LGBTQ, LGBTQ+, LGBTIQA+
Example: Bisexual* will cover: bisexual, bisexuals, bisexuality,
Example: Trans* will cover Transexualism, Transexuals, Transgender, Transgender People, Transvestism,
Warning: You may get unexpected results. Trans* will also include transatlantic, transportation, transfiguration, and about 1,025 words also beginning with Trans