Clause Search

Clause search allows you to search every sentence clause in the Bible for terms acting in specific grammatical or semantic roles.

Note: Available in a Verbum Max subscription and in legacy packages Bronze and above.

Skip ahead to:

Running a Clause Search

Search Results

Refining Your Search

What To Do if Required Bibles Are Not Downloaded

 

Running a Clause Search

To begin a Clause search:

  1. Click the Search icon in the toolbar (in Verbum 9 this was to the left of the command box).

  2. Ensure that the Clause search type is selected. (Other search types available depend on your base package.)
  3. Select the resource you want to search.

    1. Note: although you can search entirely in English, your search results will be based on the grammatical and semantic relations in the original language version.

      Note: If you don't have the required resources downloaded, the software will display an error message. To fix this, follow the instructions in the section on what to do if the required Bibles are not downloaded.

     

  4. Clause search queries are composed of fields (a grammatical or semantic category) and terms (e.g. a noun). Pay close attention to the suggestions Verbum provides as you type; these may help you build a more precise search query. (In some cases you must select a suggestion in order to disambiguate your search term.) Verbum provides several tools to help you formulate an effective query:
    • Search Helps (in the main search pane) provide basic guidance about how to construct your search.

    • Search Suggestions: As you type, Verbum will populate a list of suggestions to help you refine your search. For best results, select one of these. Otherwise,  finish typing your search query and press Enter.

 

Search Results

Verbum can display your search results in two ways:

 

Verses View

The Verses view displays your search results in the version you searched. Clicking a search result (highlighted phrase) opens it in a new window in the clicked Bible.

 

Analysis View

The Analysis view displays detailed grammatical and semantic information from the original language version of your search results.

 

Refining Your Search

Bible Sections

You can limit your search to specific sections of the Bible, or to a Passage List, by clicking All Passages and typing a reference or by selecting a suggested section or range of verses from the drop-down menu.

 

Using Search Operators

You can use operators to create more advanced searches. For example, if you'd like to find a media item that contains specific elements, try [field]:[term] OR [field]:[term]. Your search results will display items that match either of your search terms.

 

List of Clause Search Fields 

You can find a complete list of search fields in Verbum Help: Search Fields.

 

What To Do if Required Bibles Are Not Downloaded

To run a Clause Search on:

To download a required Bible, open the Library, locate it, right-click it, and select Download:

  • Use the filter sblgnt for the Greek New Testament 
  • Use the filter lhb for the Hebrew Old Testament 
  • Use the filter "lxx swete" for the Septuagint

Note: If you don't see the required resource in your Library, you will need to purchase it before you can use it.

After requesting the download you will see a couple of Library update messages - this should take just a few seconds. After that, the resources will be available to use. 

Note: If you have a Clause Search window open, you will need to close it and open another one before the downloaded resources are recognized.

 

Additional Resources

Verbum Help: Clause Search

Verbum Documentation: Hebrew and Greek Clauses: Dataset Documentation

Verbum Documentation: Semantic Roles and Case Frames: Dataset Documentation

Verbum Documentation: Lexham Glossary of Semantic Roles.

Verbum Documentation: Bible Sense Lexicon: Dataset Documentation

Faithlife Groups: Hebrew and Greek Clauses Dataset Group

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