For example let's say you need information on the British monarchy. It would return the same results. Some databases don't require the AND for a Boolean AND search. The AND is assumed. This will vary from database to database.
Most databases allow some variation of wildcard operators.
The wildcard character, usually a question mark, replaces one character. It is especially useful in searching for the plural form of a word. The star is used to replace a string of characters, and is usually called a truncation character. Check the help pages for the database you are using for what wildcard characters it is using. Sometimes you need to search for a phrase.