!wordsearch Help

How to Use

By default you can simply enter a word as you would in any dictionary search, the tool will list the shorthand outlines for that word along with any words that contain the search string.

You can select an Exact match, Starts with, Ends with, or Contains match from the from the radio buttons above the search box

Alternatively you can search the dash-delimited Gregg Shorthand Text notation (G-S-T) when it is available. All searches can can use regular expressions. Here's what you need to know:

Convert your search string into a Regex search pattern

To help you create regular expressions, buttons are available that insert regular expression characters into your search word. Instead of typing the characters, you can click the buttons to add them to your search pattern.

Here are the available buttons and their functions:

[ - Begins a list of characters valid for this position.
[^ - Begins a list of characters not valid in this position.
] - Ends a set of characters.
| - Separates multiple patterns. allows you to use multiple patterns in one search.
\w - Represents any alphanumeric chracter
* - Indicates the previous character repeats 0 or more times.
+ - Indicates the previous character repeats 1 or more times.
? - Indicates the previous character appears 0 or 1 times.

Clicking these buttons will insert the corresponding character at the cursor position or at the end of the text if no cursor position is selected.

The program not only finds exact matches but also finds words and their corresponding outlines that contain the word you Inserted.

Limit or increase the number of results returned

The search pattern may return many results. By default, only the first 100 matches are displayed.

You can increase the number of matches shown by increasing the number next to the search input box.

Search Examples

Find only the word you are searching for use the exact search.:

For example, Exact will find only the word "to", and none of the other words containing it.

Find words that start with something use the begins with search:

For example, begins with will find words that begin with pre like "prefix", "prelude", and "prevent".

Find words that end with something use the ends with search:

For example, ends with will find words that end with ing like "anything", "awning", and "bedspring".

Use multiple patterns in one search:

Separate the patterns with |. dog$|^rat$ will find the words "dog", "watchdog", and "rat".

More about Regular Expressions

Regular expressions are a powerful tool used to represent patterns in text. They allow us to search for words in a flexible and efficient way. For example, if you enter a word or part of a word, the program will find all words that match that pattern. For shorthand writers, this feature is particularly valuable because it helps you:

Explore Word Families: See how different words with the same root are handled.
Find word Prefixes and Suffixes: Understand how various prefixes and suffixes are used in shorthand.
Discover Exceptions: Find exceptions to common shorthand rules.

Since you have learned shorthand, in which you represent word patterns using symbols, the concept of regular expressions should be easy to grasp. Regular expressions use the regular alphabet and can represent categories of characters by embedding special symbols:

any character Use \w to match any single character.
Example: b\wd will match words containing "bad", "bid", "bud".
customzed enclose in Brackets [ ] to match any character listed in the brackets.
Example: p[aeiouy]t will match words containing the pattern. For example "pattern", "pet", "carpet", "pit", "despite"
customzed enclose in Brackets preceeded by ^ [^ ] to match any character not listed.
Example: p[^aeiouy]t will match words like "diphtheria", "slapstick"

Repetition

Repetition zero or more: Use * to match zero or more occurrences of the preceding character.
Example using *: ^pea.*$ will match "pea" followed by 0 or more characters: "pea", "peak", "peace", "peanut", "peasant, "peaceable", "peacemaker" ...
Repetition one or more: Use + to match zero or more occurrences of the preceding character.
Example using +: ^pea.+$ will match "pea" followed by 1 or more characters: "pea", "peak", "peace", "peanut", "peasant, "peaceable", "peacemaker" ...
Repetition zero or 1: Use ? to match zero or more occurrences of the preceding character.
Example using ? : pea.? will match "pea", "prefix", "preempt".
Repetition zero or 1: Use + to match zero or more occurrences of the preceding character.
Example using ? : pea.? will match "pea", "prefix", "preempt".
Custom repetition enclose the repetion count in braces{ } to match zero or more occurrences of the preceding character.
Example using custom:
- ^pea.{2}$ will match pea followed by exactly 2 characters: "peace"
- ^pea.{3,4}$ will match "pea" followed by 3 to 4 charactors: "peanut","peasant"
- ^pea.{0,3}$ will match "pea" followed by 0 to 3 characters: "pea", "peak", "peace", "peanut"
- ^pea.{6,}$ will match "pea" followed by 6 or more characters: "peaceable", "peacemaker"

Grouping

grouping characters group charaters inside ( ) to apply repetition.
Example applying repetition to a group: (er){2,} will match words where "er" occurs at least 2 times in succession. ie. "discoverer" and supererogation.
The | (pipe) character separates two or more patterns, acting as an OR operator. This means the all the results for patterns separated by the | (pipe) will be returned.
Example of using |: ^single$|^double$ will match "single", "double".

Don't worry if these special tricks seem confusing at first. You can always just search usin regular words, and the program will still help you find what you're looking for!

If you like using regular expressions but need help, describe the search to AI assistant such as ChatGPt and let it create a regular expression for your search. Happy word hunting!