Editing Help:Searching (section)

== Search string ==
{{anchor|search query}}

Whatever you type into the [[Search box#|search box]] is called the "search string". It may also be referred to as the "search query".

A basic search string is simply the topic you are interested in reading about. A direct match of a basic search string will navigate you directly to Wikipedia's article that has that title. A non-match, or any other type of search string will take you to Wikipedia's search results page, where the results of your search are displayed.

Terms in the search string are subject to [[#Stem matching|stem matching]], except for anything included between double quotation marks.

You can include in your search string [[#Special characters|special characters]] and [[#Parameters|parameters]] that activate specific search capabilities. Using any of these will take you to Wikipedia's search results page with the results of your search displayed. 

The maximum search string is 300 characters long.{{efn|name=Phabricator}}

The format of the text that is entered is called [[#Search string syntax|search string syntax]].