The Field for Searching Terms
The Dictionary Properties window includes a field for searching terms within the dictionary. This field is located in the Terms tab.
In the Search field, you can enter a word or a sequence of characters to filter the list of terms. You can also use a variety of wildcard characters in this field to extend and enhance the search filter. After entering the search string, click the Find button (or press Enter).
An additional button is available to refine the search for terms. The gear button can be activated to display a list of attribute types and grammatical types, allowing you to select additional criteria.
The wildcard characters that can be used in the "Search" field are as follows:
- * (asterisk): This wildcard can be used on its own or in combination with other characters or wildcards. Entering "*" in the search field will display all words (the same effect can be achieved by leaving the field empty). Adding the wildcard at the end of a character sequence will display all words that have that sequence as a prefix. For example, entering "ab*" will display all words starting with "ab." Similarly, if the wildcard precedes a character sequence, it will display all words ending with that sequence. For instance, entering "*ba" will show all words ending in "ba." If the wildcard is placed both at the beginning and the end of a character sequence, it will display all words containing that sequence anywhere in the word. For example, entering "*ara*" will show all words that include "ara." Lastly, when the wildcard is placed between two character sequences, it will display all words starting and ending with those sequences. For example, entering "a*la" will show all words starting with "a" and ending with "la."
- ? (question mark): This wildcard substitutes any single character. The search will consider any character at the position where the wildcard is specified. For example, entering "cas?" will display words starting with "cas" and ending with any single character, such as "casa," "case," "casi," and "caso." The wildcard can be used in any position and in conjunction with the "*" wildcard. It can also be used to find words of a specific length. For instance, to display all three-letter words, use the search filter "???."
- % (percent): This wildcard works like the previous one but matches any consonant in the specified position. For example, entering "%aro" will display words like "caro," "faro," "raro," etc.
- & (ampersand): Similar to the previous wildcards, this one matches any vowel.
- @ (at sign): This wildcard matches any accented vowel.
- # (hash): This wildcard matches any numeric character.
- _ (underscore): This wildcard matches any punctuation mark.
- < (less than): This wildcard matches all lowercase letters.
- > (greater than): This wildcard matches all uppercase letters.
- =n (equal): This is not a wildcard, but a command. When followed by a number, it shows all words of the specified length. For example, entering "=8" will display all 8-letter words.
- - >n (greater than): Unlike the similar wildcard, when used as a command, it shows all words longer than the specified length. - ^ (caret): A marker that can be used as in the Find and Replace fields. The number following it is transformed into the corresponding Unicode character.