Grammar Safari

Finding examples of grammatical structures on the WWW
using the Find Function

AN OVERVIEW

There are two ways to look for examples of how English works on the WWW:

  • USING THE FIND FUNCTION:

    If you are looking for very common words or phrases (like articles, gerunds, infinitives, etc.) you need to locate a document first, and then use the FIND button at the top of the screen to locate the words you are looking for. That's what this page will help you do.

  • USING THE SEARCH FUNCTION:

    If you are looking for less common words, you can make use of search engines provided to help locate information on particular topics. These will help you locate texts that contain the words you are looking for, and then you can use the FIND function to locate the word within the text. Here is an example:

Finding examples of relative clauses in Little Women

(an example of a "Common" Grammar Safari -- using FIND)

OPEN A WEB BROWSER

  1. (like Netscape or Internet Explorer)

GET A BOOK:

  1. Go to Books on-Line.
  2. Choose a book that you would like to use to find examples of your structure. (You can follow the directions on the screen to look for a specific author or title, or to browse through a list of books arranged by author or title.)
    • You want language similar to what is used today. Don't choose poetry. Don't choose a VERY old, or unusual book.
    • If you choose a pretty long book or chapter, you will have a better chance of finding your words. But if you choose a book that is TOO long, it will take a long time for it to appear on the screen.
    • If you get tired of waiting for a book to appear, click on the STOP icon at the top of the screen, and you can choose another book.
    • Some books are marked "compressed text or local text." It may not be possible for your computer to read them. If you can't get your first choice, try another book. (If you get a book but want to go back to the list, press the BACK icon at the top of the screen.)

GET A WORDPROCESSING PROGRAM READY:

  1. Open a wordprocessing program (for example, MicroSoft Word). Start a new document.
  2. Click on the box in the lower right corner of the document screen, and drag it up and to the right, so this window is wider but shorter than the Netscape window. This way you will always be able to see both windows, and move back and forth between them -- by clicking anywhere on the window you want to work in. (Look at the picture below.)

USE THE FIND FUNCTION TO FIND EXAMPLES OF YOUR STRUCTURE:

  1. Now you can begin your hunt. You want to look for a particular structure, but you have to tell the computer exact words or parts of words to look for. Select "Find ..." or "Find in Page" under the EDIT menu at the top of the screen and type in the word or phrase you want to find, exactly the way you want.
      NOTE: If you type a space before and after the word, the computer will find only the word you type in. But if you don't type a space after the word, for example, it will find words that begin with the letters you have typed.
        Example: If you type who with no space, the computer will find who, whom, whose, whole , etc.
      This may be useful if you're interested in several words that contain the same letters (like who and whom). It may be a nuisance if many unrelated words do.

  2. Press FIND.... find window

  3. .. and you will see some of the text from your book, with words containing the letters (and spaces) you have typed in highlighted. Look at this example and decide if it is what you are looking for . (Remember, even if you find the word you want, it might not have the meaning you are looking for.)

      by our giving that. I agree not to expect anything from Mother or you, but I do want to buy UNDINE AND SINTRAM for myself. I've wanted it so long," said Jo, who was a bookworm.
      her exellently, for she seemed to live in a happy world of her own, only venturing out to meet the few whom she trusted and loved. Amy, though the youngest, was a most important person in her own

  4. To continue looking through the document for the next example, type "command" + G if you are on a Mac or "control"+G if you are on a PC.
  5. Of course, it is possible that your word does not occur in the document you have chosen. Then the computer will "beep," the very top of the screen will flash black or a message will appear saying the word cannot be found.
  6. TO LOOK FOR A DIFFERENT WORD IN THE SAME BOOK or ARTICLE: You can scroll to the top of the document, click the cursor at the top of the page, press "command" + F if you are on a Mac or "control" +F, and then type in a different word or string of letters to look for in the same document.
  7. TO CHOOSE A DIFFERENT BOOK: Click on the BACK icon at the top of the screen to return to the list of books, select a different book, and keep looking.

COPY YOUR EXAMPLES TO YOUR WORDPROCESSING DOCUMENT + ANALYSE THEM

  1. Whenever you find an example you would like to save, highlight the entire sentence or paragraph it is in, Copy it (using the Copy command under the Edit menu, for example), click on your wordprocessing window, and Paste your example into it (using the Paste command under the Edit menu). Be sure to copy or type in the source of the example, too. (this is usually written at the very top of the document).
  2. Edit your document (change the font, the margins, add comments, bold or underline parts, etc.) as you add each example, or wait until you have collected several examples and edit them later. But be sure to save time to do this!

GO BACK AND KEEP HUNTING
  1. Click on the Netscape (or Explorer) window to get back to your document and ..
    • keep looking for more examples of the same word in the same document: (type "command" + G or "control" +G)
    • look for a different word in the same document: (scroll up, select "Find in Page" under EDIT)
    • choose a different book: (click BACK )

The more examples you find, the more you'll learn!

Ann Salzmann
Intensive English Institute
Division of English as an International Language
University of Illinois