Named Entity Recognition Server 25.4
Named Entity Recognition Server Reference

# AllowMultipleResults

This parameter specifies how many results to return, when Named Entity Recognition finds multiple matches at the same offset (starting position) in the input text. Named Entity Recognition returns only one result by default, but you can choose to return all of the matches or up to one per entity.

Set this parameter to one of the following values:

- `All` or `True`. Named Entity Recognition returns all results.
- `OnePerEntity`. Named Entity Recognition returns up to one result per entity at each offset.
- `No` or `False`. Named Entity Recognition does not return multiple results at the same offset.

This parameter can be useful when the same text has multiple interpretations. For example, if the input text contains the word `Georgia`, it might refer to a person's name, the U.S. state, or the country. By default, Named Entity Recognition returns only one match. This behavior is appropriate if it is not important to you that `Georgia` has multiple interpretations. Set `AllowMultipleResults=All` to return all three matches. Set `AllowMultipleResults=OnePerEntity` to return one match from each entity.

Example

The following table shows how the results from Named Entity Recognition change when you set the parameters `AllowMultipleResults` and `AllowOverlaps`.

In this example, the input is "The President of the United States of America is in London today to meet the British Prime Minister", and three entities have been defined:

- entity1 matches political offices, for example "President of the United States".
- entity2 matches corporate titles including "President".
- entity3 matches places including "United States" and "United States of America".

Parameters | AllowOverlaps=False | AllowOverlaps=True
AllowMultipleResults =False | Named Entity Recognition returns the match "President of the United States" (entity1). The match "President" (entity2) is ignored because it shares the same starting point as "President of the United States" and `AllowMultipleResults=FALSE`. The matches "United States" and "United States of America" (entity3) are ignored because they overlap with "President of the United States" and `AllowOverlaps=FALSE`. | Named Entity Recognition returns the match "President of the United States" (entity1). The match "President" (entity2) is ignored because it shares the same starting point as "President of the United States" and `AllowMultipleResults=FALSE`. Overlapping matches are allowed, so Named Entity Recognition returns a match "United States of America" (entity3). The match "United States" (entity3) is ignored because it shares the same starting point as "United States of America" and `AllowMultipleResults=FALSE`.
AllowMultipleResults =OnePerEntity | Named Entity Recognition returns the match "President of the United States" (entity1). Named Entity Recognition returns the match "President" (entity2). Although it shares the same starting point as "President of the United States" it is matched by a different entity and `AllowMultipleResults` is set to `OnePerEntity`. The matches "United States" and "United States of America" (entity3) are ignored because they overlap with "President of the United States" and `AllowOverlaps=FALSE`. | Named Entity Recognition returns the match "President of the United States" (entity1). Named Entity Recognition returns the match "President" (entity2). Although it shares the same starting point as "President of the United States" it is matched by a different entity and `AllowMultipleResults` is set to `OnePerEntity`. Overlapping matches are allowed, so Named Entity Recognition returns a match "United States of America" (entity3). The match "United States" (entity3) is ignored because it shares the same starting point as "United States of America" and `AllowMultipleResults` is set to `OnePerEntity`.
AllowMultipleResults =True | Named Entity Recognition returns the match "President of the United States" (entity1). Named Entity Recognition returns the match "President" (entity2) because `AllowMultipleResults=True`. The matches "United States" and "United States of America" (entity3) are ignored because they overlap with "President of the United States" and `AllowOverlaps=FALSE`. | Named Entity Recognition returns all of the matches. These are "President of the United States" (entity1), "President" (entity2), "United States" (entity3), and "United States of America" (entity3).

NOTE: You can override the value of this parameter for specific actions by setting the AllowMultipleResults action parameter.

Type: | String
Default: | False
Required: | No
Configuration Section: | Eduction
Example: | `AllowMultipleResults=All`
See Also: | AllowOverlaps NonGreedyMatch

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Version 25.4 | Last updated October 2025

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Product: Knowledge Discovery Named Entity Recognition Server 25.4

Topic Title: AllowMultipleResults