Search based on word frequency?

[CMBessette]

Hi! I'd like to highlight words in the original languages based on word frequency but I don't know how to do a search that would bring up results based on word frequency. Essentially, for my end result, I'd like to highlight all words red in the GNT that occur 9 or less times in the NT. This way I'll know which words I can look up for vocab without "cheating" (I want to learn vocab to the point that I know all words occuring 10+ times). Can someone help? (I intend to do something similar with the OT). Thanks!

[Joe Fleener]

Try this:

1. On the Command Line set your search version to GNT
2. Open the Advanced Search Engine (ASE)
3. Double click on the Word Box
4. Select the Radio Button: Use Inclusion/Exclusion List
5. Selet the 'More' Button
6. Select the option to use World List Manager (WLM)
7. In the WLM click "Load or Generate Word List."
8. Select the radio button "Load Word List from Bible Version"
9. Make sure the version in GNT
10. Make sure "Greek Accents" is not checked.
11. Click "Generate list"
11.1 Under "Sort" choose "Sort by frequency"
11.2 Click on the first word in the list then scroll down until you get to the last word that occurs 10 times.
11.3 Hold the shift key and click on that word. You have now highlighted all the words that occur 10 or more times.
11.4 Under "Edit" choose delete selected words.
12. Save the list as an IEL - under file.
13. Click close - you should be prompted whether you want to keep the list for the ASE query, click yes.
14. Click OK in the Word Box
15. Execute the ASE Query
- This will take a little while...
16. In the ASE Results box click on Options (or More, something like that) and select the option to send the results to the Command Center. (Now that I have added 11.1 - 11.4 above you will only have those words which occur fewer than 10 times highlighted.)
17. Now Right click on any highlighted word in the main BW Results Window and select the Color Selection option
18. In this window select your color and apply the color to the "Last Search Results"
19. Click Apply

There you have it!


Some of the menu options or button names given may not be exact, I just did this and am now typing it out from memory. But I think you will get it.

This is actually a very good idea. I am glad you asked how to do it, I had never thought of using the highlighter this way before...

[CMBessette]

There you have it!

Thanks so much for answering my post! Although, I think there might be a step missing? In the end, every word is highlighted -- at what point do I enter a word frequency to limit the word list? (Perhaps this should be obvious to me? )

Thanks again for your help!

[Joe Fleener]

Thanks so much for answering my post! Although, I think there might be a step missing? In the end, every word is highlighted -- at what point do I enter a word frequency to limit the word list? (Perhaps this should be obvious to me? )

Thanks again for your help!

Wow! Sorry about that.

I edited the post. See steps 11.1 - 11.4

[CMBessette]

Ahh, this is great -- thank you! I did change one thing, though. Instead of creating the word list from the GNT, I used the GNM. This way the frequency will be based on the lemma and not the actual form.

[Joe Fleener]

Ahh, this is great -- thank you! I did change one thing, though. Instead of creating the word list from the GNT, I used the GNM. This way the frequency will be based on the lemma and not the actual form.

I actually used BNM, but I then looked at your message and you said GNT so I mentioned GNT in the instructions.

Glad it worked!

[Joe Fleener]

Between steps 16 & 17 did you leave the ASE open or did you close it after sending the results to the CC?

I just tried it both ways and I got your error if I closed the ASE before finishing the steps.

However, if I just moved the ASE out of the way (including the ASE results box - don't close it either) and then finished the steps it worked.

See if this does it for you.

[CMBessette]

See if this does it for you.

I played around with it a bit and got it to work (I kept sending the results from the ASE back the the CC). Strangely, it seems to depend on the order you click on the windows -- sometimes the results seem to just disappear! Oh well, I got hightlighted what I wanted highlighted. Thanks!

[Joshua Luna]

This is an excellent idea

I was able to get right to the end, but in BW5 I was not able to change/save the highlighting. Is this possible or will I need to wait for BW7 to give this a retry? or am I missing the obvious here

Btw, if anyone tries this with the Hebrew Bible it does take a while to compile, so be paitent.

Ps - Thanks for the tip on creating your own Lexicon; I never got around to doing this but it really is very easy and has a lot of application, especially when doing some indepth study into a particular section of text. With Holliday in BW7 I am excited about some of the possibilities.