The Expanded Thesaurus (Maknaz) is an authority list of descriptors or indexing terms integrated into an information system application. It is an indispensable tool for indexers to use suitable terms or descriptors to describe the content of documents, it is also a fundamental tool for researchers to use for retrieval.

The Expanded Thesaurus(Maknaz) focal point between the indexer and the researcher providing the highest efficiency for saving and retrieval purposes.

• Meeting the requirement and needs of computerized libraries and information centers
• Providing an economic and effective documentation system for subject analysis and retrieval
• Facilitating the information exchange process between libraries and information centers
• Ensuring stable representation for subject content by the indexer or researcher
• The ability to search the descriptor and all its relations records through the retrieval search criteria as an essential foundation for retrieving information
• Enabling comprehensive search in a certain subject through connected terms
• Highlighting Arabic and Islamic terms internationally

The main purpose behind developing a comprehensive Arabic thesaurus is to meet the needs of libraries and information and documentation centers in The Arab World and to provide the fundamental tool for information resources’ subject analysis in order to keep up with development in the information technology sector as it will be the scientific foundation to extract specialized Arabic Thesauruses meeting the needs of specialized libraries and information and documentation centers.

• Deleting a descriptor or turning it into a non-descriptor
• Adding new non-descriptors
• Adding new relations
• Deleting non-descriptors and turning it into descriptor
• Deleting existing relations
• Changing scope notes or definitions
• Adding a new facet code or part of it to The Expanded Thesaurus(Maknaz) facets
• Transferring a descriptor from one facet code to another in The Expanded Thesaurus(Maknaz)