Wildcard symbols, such as the asterisk (*), are powerful tools in Google Search that allow you to find variations of keywords, accommodating multiple terms or spellings, and enabling more comprehensive searches. The asterisk acts as a placeholder for one or more unknown words in a phrase. This can be incredibly useful when you're unsure of a specific word or when you want to find a range of results that include similar phrases with different terms. Here's how to effectively utilize the asterisk in Google Search:
1. Finding Variations of a Phrase: The most common use of the asterisk is to find multiple variations of a phrase. Instead of manually searching for each term, you can use the asterisk to cover any missing word, which allows you to quickly discover all the different possibilities.
Example: Suppose you’re trying to remember a quote that is similar to "the best of my life." You’re not sure of the exact word, and you might remember it as “time” or “day” or some other similar word. By searching `“the best of my life”` Google will return results containing phrases such as “the best time of my life,” “the best day of my life,” “the best moment of my life”, and many other similar variations. The asterisk is acting as a placeholder, and is finding results that contain a range of variations. You may even discover a version that you had never even heard before. This example shows that using the asterisk is a quick way to reveal the different forms a phrase can take.
2. Accommodating Multiple Spellings or Forms: The asterisk is invaluable for accommodating different spellings or forms of a word, which makes your search more robust and removes any assumptions you might have made about how a word is written. It is especially helpful when you’re unsure about the specific spelling or are aware that different versions of a word might be used.
Example: If you are researching the concept of “eco*friendly” you may be unsure if the word is spelled as "eco-friendly" ....
Log in to view the answer
