Tips for Translators: How to Use Google as a Research Tool (II)

Jan 30, 2012   //   by Sergio Guillen Rodriguez   //   In English  //  36 Comments

Listed below are some tips on how to use Google effectively as a research tool. Here, you will find advanced search operators and other operators which you can utilise to help accomplish your translation work in a more timely fashion. Read on to find out exactly how.



This is the second of two articles related to this topic; the first post on how to use Google as a research tool was released last week. With this article, it is our hope that you will find the information on advanced and other search operators useful in your research as a translator. In your line of work, time is money, and we want to help you work as efficiently as possible using these tips on how to use Google effectively as a valuable research tool:

Advanced Search Operators:

  • Website operator — [site:]
    The use of this operator tells Google that you want only results that can be found in the specific site you specify. Basic search operators can also be used in conjunction with this operator. For example, the search [site:microsoft.com “computer terminology”] will yield results from the site ‘microsoft.com’ that contain the phrase ‘computer terminology’.

  • File type operator — [filetype:]
    A file suffix can be added (e.g. ‘pdf’ or ‘doc’) and Google will show only results which contain pages that end in those specific suffixes. For example, the search [recycling glossary filetype:pdf OR filetype:doc] will yield results related to recycling glossaries in ‘pdf’ or ‘doc’ formats.

  • In title operator — [intitle:]
    The in title operator lets Google know that you are looking only for pages that have the term added after the operator in their title. For example, the search [genome intitle:glossary] will yield results that contain the word ‘glossary’ in their titles, and the word ‘genome’ anywhere within the document (regardless of whether it is found in the title).

  • In URL operator — [inurl:]
    When this operator is used, Google restricts results to sites that contain the term specified after the operator in their URL. For example, the search [printer site:samsung.com inurl:troubleshooting] will yield results from the Samsung site that contain the word ‘troubleshooting’ in the URL and also mention the word ‘printer’ anywhere within the text.

Other Search Operators:

  • Define operator — [define:]
    This operator is quite useful for looking up word, sentence or acronym definitions. The operator simply needs to be placed in front of the word you wish to look up. For example, the search [define:article] will yield results for the definition and synonyms of the word ‘article’.

  • Unit conversion operator
    This simplifies unit conversion. All you need do is type in the conversion unit you are looking for after the unit that you already have: e.g. [25 miles in km] or [370 Fahrenheit in Celsius].

These are only some of the many search operators you can use to help conduct your research via Google much more efficiently and effectively. Feel free to leave a comment and share with other readers any search operators that are not mentioned and that you find useful.

About Sergio Guillen Rodriguez

Sergio is an experienced translator, copywriter, proofreader, and editor. He works with the Spanish, Finnish and English languages. Connect with him on Google+, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook.

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36 Comments

  • luis marrero 30/01/2012 at 15:49

    This is really wonderful.Congratulations.!

    Reply
  • Diana Cedeno R. 30/01/2012 at 19:23

    Thank you very much, it’s very helpfull !

    Reply
  • Linh Brown 30/01/2012 at 21:56

    Fantastic. Thank you Sergio.

    Reply
  • Loubaba 31/01/2012 at 01:25

    Interesting! thanks for the effort.

    Reply
  • Tiffany 31/01/2012 at 19:21

    This is a great post! Thank you for sharing these tips; I’ll be sure to pass them on to my group members.

    Reply
  • Anna Fontebuoni 01/02/2012 at 13:56

    great tips! thank you, Anna

    Reply
  • Ekaterina 01/02/2012 at 14:20

    Really helpful! Unfortunately, the ‘define’ operator doesn’t work any more… too bad! I appreciated it very much.

    Reply
  • tamaiwa 02/02/2012 at 06:12

    Thank you for the tips! :) I sometimes use “site:.edu” for academic words. ;)

    Reply
    • Translations Lisko 03/02/2012 at 01:44

      Thanks for sharing! I had never used the .edu ending before, will give it a try!

      Reply
  • Apple Huang 02/02/2012 at 10:58

    Very useful for a lazy and impatient people as me. Thanks for the sharing.

    Reply
    • Translations Lisko 03/02/2012 at 01:43

      You’re welcome. I’m glad you liked it. Keep coming for more info and tips ;)

      Reply
  • Romaine 03/02/2012 at 11:28

    Thanks a million. This will save me the usual frustrations.

    Reply
  • K Chandan 03/02/2012 at 11:28

    Thanks for suggesting such a good way to refining our search in a very soft and specific manner.

    Reply
    • Translations Lisko 06/02/2012 at 10:45

      You’re welcome, K Chandan! I’m sure you will research information more efficiently.

      Reply
  • Marisa 04/02/2012 at 01:17

    Very useful! Have just bookmarked both your part I and II tips. Congrats! I’m always rushing and searching for elucidation. I may be asking you other “how tos” in the future. May I?

    Reply
    • Translations Lisko 06/02/2012 at 10:42

      Thanks, Marisa! I’m glad you found the tips useful. Of course you can ask me for more tips, you can also come back every week for new articles ;)

      Reply
  • Giusi Mossa 07/02/2012 at 17:22

    Good job! Very useful information. Thanks a lot for sharing! :-)

    Reply
  • Natalia 07/02/2012 at 19:02

    Thank you so much for your efforts.

    Reply
  • Gabriela 08/02/2012 at 05:37

    Thanks for the tips!
    Sometimes I use “site:” to look up a word used in a specific country, for example “word + site:ar” will bring up websites in Argentina that have the word I’m searching.
    Hope you find this helpful. :)

    Reply
    • Translations Lisko 08/02/2012 at 19:49

      My pleasure, Gabriela! That’s sounds like a good trick, especially when searching for localisms.

      Reply
  • Priti Bhatia 08/02/2012 at 10:02

    Thanks! Will be of tremendous help!

    Reply
  • Daniela 11/02/2012 at 00:05

    Thanks a lot for your tips! Much appreciated! :-)

    Reply
  • Amal Seffein 14/02/2012 at 11:55

    Very impressive site; many practical and useful information.

    Reply

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