How to do boolean searches in Plural

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For a domain as complex as public policy, Boolean search is essential to finding exactly what you need. With just a few simple operators, you can build powerful, refined searches in Plural.

❗Pro Tip: AI chatbots (like ChatGPT) are helpful starting places for drafting your Boolean search. Always double-check for accuracy and adjust based on search results. 

🔍 Quotation Marks

Use quotation marks to search for an exact phrase.

Example:

• Searching absentee voting returns 19,000+ results.

• Searching “absentee voting” returns just 360 bills that use that exact phrase.

💡 Use this when you want bills that include a specific phrase — not just similar words.

➕ OR Operator

Use OR (must be uppercase) to find bills that match any of your terms.

Example:

• Searching “education” OR “schools” OR “teachers” finds bills with any of those words.

💡 Use OR to combine related terms so you don’t miss bills that use different language.

 

🔗 AND Operator

Use AND (must be uppercase) to find bills that include both terms, even if they’re not next to each other.

Example:

• “marijuana” AND “banking” finds bills that mention both topics — even if “marijuana banking” doesn’t appear as a phrase.

💡 Use AND when two or more ideas must appear together in the bill.

🚫 NOT Operator

Use NOT (must be uppercase) to exclude words from your results.

Example:

• “marijuana” NOT “medical” finds bills that mention marijuana but exclude medical marijuana.

💡 Use NOT when a search pulls in results you don’t need.

🧩 Parentheses

Use parentheses to group terms and control how your search runs.

Example:

• sports AND (wagering OR gambling) finds bills that mention “sports” and either “wagering” or “gambling.”

💡 Use parentheses when mixing AND and OR to keep your logic clear.

💬 Pro Tips

• Start by defining what kind of legislation you’re looking for in simple parts.

• Think about words always used in relevant bills but rarely used in unrelated ones.

• Combine these parts with Boolean logic to cover variations in wording.

• AI chatbots (like ChatGPT) are helpful starting places for drafting your Boolean search. Always double-check for accuracy and adjust based on search results. 

Example:
If you’re looking for bills regulating social media access for minors, try:

“Social Media” AND (“Minor” OR “Children” OR “Kids”) AND (“Algorithm” OR “Addictive” OR “Restrict Access”)

 

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Need to move your cursor to the very end of a long search clause quickly? Use one of the following keyboard shortcuts:

• On PC:
  • fn + right/left arrow to move to the beginning or end of a line
  • Ctrl + right/left arrow to move to the beginning or end of a word
• On Mac:
  • command + right/left arrow to move to the beginning or end of a line
  • option + right/left arrow to move to the beginning or end of a word.