Hey everyone! I’m trying to set up some Gmail filters but I’m running into a bit of a roadblock. I get a lot of emails in two languages and there are tons of similar words that I want to catch. Right now, I’m using these long, clunky filters:
subject:{+updates +updated +updating +update}
subject:{+verify +verification +verified}
subject:{+terms +termes +terma}
subject:{+invois +invoice}
subject:{+privacy +privasi +privacidad}
subject:{+e-statement +estatement +statement}
subject:{"log in" +login +"log-ins" "logged in"}
Is there a way to simplify this? I feel like I’m missing something obvious. Maybe there’s a trick to handle word families, variations, and loanwords more elegantly?
I know Gmail is pretty smart, so I’m hoping there’s a shortcut or a more efficient way to do this. Any tips or tricks would be super helpful! Thanks in advance!
As someone who’s dealt with multilingual email filtering, I can relate to your struggle. While Gmail’s filtering capabilities are robust, they do have limitations when it comes to complex word variations.
One approach I’ve found effective is using wildcard characters. For instance, ‘updat*’ would catch ‘update’, ‘updates’, ‘updating’, etc. This can significantly shorten your filters.
Another trick is to leverage Gmail’s search operators. The ‘OR’ operator (represented by ‘|’) can help combine related terms. For example: ‘subject:(verify | verification | verified)’.
For loanwords and cross-language variations, unfortunately, there’s no perfect solution within Gmail’s native filtering. You might need to list out the variations explicitly.
Lastly, consider using third-party email management tools if Gmail’s built-in filters aren’t meeting your needs. They often offer more advanced filtering options, including regex support, which could be a game-changer for your situation.
I’ve been in your shoes, dealing with multi-language emails and complex filtering. Here’s what worked for me:
Wildcards are your friend. Use ‘verif*’ to catch ‘verify’, ‘verification’, etc. It’s a real time-saver.
For cross-language stuff, I found combining terms with OR operators helps. Like ‘subject:(privacy OR privasi OR privacidad)’. It’s not perfect, but it cuts down the clutter.
One trick I discovered: create a separate label for each language, then use filters to apply these labels. Then you can create language-specific filters within those labels. It takes some setup, but it’s been a game-changer for me.
Also, don’t forget about the ‘Has the words’ field in Gmail filters. Sometimes it catches things the subject line misses.
Hope this helps streamline your filtering process!
yo, have u tried regex? it’s pretty sweet for catching word variations. like ‘updat.*’ grabs all those update words. for cross-language stuff, maybe group similar words with OR (|). it’s not perfect, but it’ll clean up ur filters a bit. good luck!