Definition

Noun: A search engine is a software system designed to carry out web searches. It systematically browses the World Wide Web, typically for the purpose of retrieving specific information or resources. It operates by finding and indexing web pages, then allowing users to query this index to get a list of relevant results.

Usage

A search engine is used to find information on the internet. You enter keywords or phrases (a query) into it, and it returns a list of web pages, images, videos, or other files that are relevant to your query.

Examples

• Noun:
  • Google is the most widely used search engine in the world.
  • I couldn't find the article, so I tried a different search engine.
  • A good search engine provides accurate and fast results.

Advanced Usage

• "to be indexed by a search engine": Refers to a website's pages being discovered, analyzed, and stored in the search engine's database so they can appear in search results.
  • For a new website to get visitors, it first needs to be indexed by a search engine.
• "search engine optimization (SEO)": This is a related compound term (not the target word itself) referring to the practice of improving a website to increase its visibility in search engine results.

Variants and Related Words

• Search (verb/noun): The act of looking for something or the query itself.
  • I will search for that recipe online.
• Web crawler / Spider (noun): A component of a search engine that automatically browses the web to discover and index new pages.
• Search algorithm (noun): The complex set of rules a search engine uses to rank and order results for a query.

Synonyms

• Web search tool
• Internet searcher

Related Phrases

• "to run a search": To execute a query using a search engine.
  • She ran a search for local weather forecasts.
• "search engine results page (SERP)": This is a related compound term for the page displayed by a search engine in response to a user's query, listing the found results.

Noun

1. a computer program that retrieves documents or files or data from a database or from a computer network (especially from the internet)