Community Component 25.3
Community Component Help

# Boolean Search Operators

The following operators allow you to manipulate a query by applying them to words, exact phrases, or other Boolean expressions. The Content component uses APCM (Adaptive Probabilistic Concept Modeling) to rank the results that match the Boolean query.

Boolean search operators

Operator | Explanation
--- | ---
`AND` | Binary operator. Ensures that every document that returns contains both terms. For example:
    action=Query&Text=cat+AND+dog
This query returns only documents that contain both cat and dog.
`NOT` | Unary operator. Ensures that the term following NOT is excluded from all the returned documents. For example:
    action=Query&Text=cat+NOT+dog
This query returns only documents that contain cat and not dog. NOTE: NOT applies only to the term that immediately follows it. To exclude multiple terms, place them in brackets. To exclude a phrase, put the phrase in quotation marks and in brackets. For example: Doc 1: I went to the city for the New Year Doc 2: I went to New York City for the New Year The following query does not match either of these documents:
    action=Query&Text=city NOT (New York)
The following query matches the first document but not the second:
    action=Query&Text=city NOT ("New York")
`OR` | Binary operator. One or both terms must appear for the document to return. This is the default behavior if no explicit operator is given between two terms. For example:
    action=Query&Text=cat+OR+dog
This query returns only documents that contain either cat, dog, or both terms.
`EOR` or `XOR` | Binary operator. Logical exclusive OR. Only one of the terms is permitted to appear for the document to return. This operator is rarely used. For example:
    action=Query&Text=cat+XOR+dog
This query returns only documents that contain either the term cat or the term dog. Documents that contain both cat and dog do not return.
`( )` | Bracketed expressions. These expressions are evaluated left to right and can be nested. They dictate the precedence and behavior of combined operator statements. For example:
    action=Query&Text=(fish EOR pie) AND (chips EOR mash)
This query returns only documents that contain one of these combinations: fish and chips fish and mash pie and chips pie and mash

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Version 25.3 | Last updated July 2025

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Product: Knowledge Discovery Community Component 25.3

Topic Title: Boolean Search Operators