# Hybrid Search

> Combining traditional keyword search with semantic vector search.

- Category: Retrieval & Grounding
- Stage: Rising
- Also called: Keyword plus vector search
- Canonical: https://www.joelcsaji.com/ai-dictionary/hybrid-search

## Plain English

It searches by exact terms and by meaning at the same time.

## Example

A query for an error code uses exact keyword matching while also retrieving semantically similar troubleshooting docs.

## Why it matters

Hybrid search often beats pure vector search for enterprise docs, IDs, names, and technical references.

## Related

- [RAG](https://www.joelcsaji.com/ai-dictionary/retrieval-augmented-generation)
- [Reranking](https://www.joelcsaji.com/ai-dictionary/reranking)
- [Embedding](https://www.joelcsaji.com/ai-dictionary/embedding)

## Sources

- [IBM: Retrieval-Augmented Generation](https://www.ibm.com/think/topics/retrieval-augmented-generation)