HOME: Keywords

So, where do you get keywords?

1. Keywords can be synonyms, antonyms, related words, phrases, dates, names of events, of people, etc.
    E.g., of related words: "war of independence", "revolutionary war", "american revolution"

2. Watch for alternative spellings of proper names. They are often spelled differently in different languages.
    E.g. of alternative spelling: 1) Mao Tse-Tung / Zedong    2) Toussaint Louverture / L'Ouverture

3. Put yourself in the author's shoes and think about words he might have used to write on the topic.
    E.g. of similar terms: 1) teens, teenagers, adolescents, youth, youngsters, "young adults"   2) anorexia, bulimia, "eating disorders"  3) nutrition, food, diet, "healthy eating"

The order of the keywords in your query is important: [paris hilton] will not give you the same results as [hilton paris]

Example of keywords for an essay on IMPERIALISM:

Ex. 1st tier keywords are keywords directly related to your topic        

. imperialism - empire          

. colonisation - colonial        

. expansionism            

. conquest                 

. independence          

. name of country (countries)     

 
Ex. 2nd tier keywords are words that will help define your topic 

. impact

. legacy

. motivation, causes

. environment, geography, resources

 . “primary sources”, artefacts, documents, images

. timeline
 

 

Here are other keywords that could help you narrow your topic:

study, "primary source", statistics, analysis, controversy, legacy, advantages, effect, causes
 

Remember, not all keywords will be give the results you expect. Be creative, focused, and patient.

This great video tutorial from Utah State University shows how to generate good keywords for your searches. 

Remember

. Understand your topic.
. Read purposely and keep track of meaningful words you encounter. 
. Use an online thesaurus to find synonyms.
. Try thinking like the author.
. Visualize your answer.
. Don't overthink.