# Best similarity for retrieving exact matches first

**URL:** <https://discuss.elastic.co/t/best-similarity-for-retrieving-exact-matches-first/288319>\
**Category:** Elasticsearch\
**Created:** [November 3, 2021, 11:25am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/best-similarity-for-retrieving-exact-matches-first/288319 "2021-11-03T11:25:00Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 9\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Giovanni\_Montobbio](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/giovanni_montobbio/32/78044_2.png) [@Giovanni\_Montobbio](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/Giovanni_Montobbio)\
**Post date:** [November 3, 2021, 11:25am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/best-similarity-for-retrieving-exact-matches-first/288319/1 "2021-11-03T11:25:00Z")

</div>

Hi I'm working on a project with elasticseach. I have an index with 1 million phrases inside and I want to retrieve phrases from the index which match with some query phrases. The phrases are in italian and I use an italian anlyzer in order to analyze them. Everything works fine but the problem is in the order (and the score) of the matches: ideally I want to get as the first matches the exact matches of the query phrases but that's not happening.  
For example:  
searching in my index for phrases containing the words "film cortometraggio" the first match is:  
Pappi Corsicato Ha diretto **film** , **cortometraggi** , documentari e videoclip.  
And then there is the match:  
Robinet aviatore Robinet aviatore è un **film**  **cortometraggio** del 1911 diretto da Luigi Maggi;

In this case the first phrase contains the second word ("cortometraggio") in a plural form, instead the second phrase contains an exact match but the similarity algorithm gives a higher score for the first phrase.  
I am using the default BM25 algorithm and I also tried the boolean algorithm but the problem does not solve.  
How can I can the similarity measure in order to get the matches in the correct order?

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![dadoonet](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/dadoonet/32/137187_2.png) [@dadoonet](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/dadoonet)\
**Post date:** [November 3, 2021, 1:38pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/best-similarity-for-retrieving-exact-matches-first/288319/2 "2021-11-03T13:38:12Z")

</div>

You should combine multiple ways for searching into `should` clauses of a `bool` query.

Like run a `phrase_match` and a `match` query together.  
If the `phrase_match` query matches, it will contribute to the final score.  
You can even boost it.

I have a full example here:

> <https://gist.github.com/dadoonet/5179ee72ecbf08f12f53d4bda1b76bab>

HTH

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Giovanni\_Montobbio](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/giovanni_montobbio/32/78044_2.png) [@Giovanni\_Montobbio](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/Giovanni_Montobbio)\
**Post date:** [November 3, 2021, 2:06pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/best-similarity-for-retrieving-exact-matches-first/288319/3 "2021-11-03T14:06:44Z")

</div>

Hi I found a solution by using this:

```auto
GET /research/_search
{
 "query": {
    "bool": {
      "should": [
        {
         `"match_phrase": {
            "frase": {
             "query": "film cortometraggio",
              "slop": 5
            }
          }
        },
        {
          "match_phrase": {
            "frase": "film cortometraggio"
          }
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

```

This seems to work fine but since I am using the Java Rest High Level Client I have to "translate" from DSL into Java but I'm having troubles on using the should clause (don't know how to insert the second match\_phrase). Do you have any suggestions?  
Thank you very much

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![dadoonet](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/dadoonet/32/137187_2.png) [@dadoonet](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/dadoonet)\
**Post date:** [November 3, 2021, 2:29pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/best-similarity-for-retrieving-exact-matches-first/288319/4 "2021-11-03T14:29:35Z")

</div>

> [@Giovanni\_Montobbio](#):
>
> don't know how to insert the second match\_phrase

Please share your current code and we will start from there.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Giovanni\_Montobbio](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/giovanni_montobbio/32/78044_2.png) [@Giovanni\_Montobbio](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/Giovanni_Montobbio)\
**Post date:** [November 3, 2021, 3:23pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/best-similarity-for-retrieving-exact-matches-first/288319/5 "2021-11-03T15:23:31Z")

</div>

I solved it in this way:

```auto
searchSourceBuilder.query(QueryBuilders.boolQuery()
  .should(QueryBuilders.matchPhraseQuery(field, text).slop(5))
  .should(QueryBuilders.matchPhraseQuery(field, text)));

```

But this only puts as first the exact matches, I also want in order:

1. the exact matches
2. phrases that match with the input text (with slop etc)  
3)phrases that match with the results of the stemmed words

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![dadoonet](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/dadoonet/32/137187_2.png) [@dadoonet](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/dadoonet)\
**Post date:** [November 3, 2021, 4:01pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/best-similarity-for-retrieving-exact-matches-first/288319/6 "2021-11-03T16:01:06Z")

</div>

So you have 3 conditions here.  
But in your query you put only 2.

I believe you need to add another querie(s).

If you don't succeed, please provide a full recreation script as described in [About the Elasticsearch category](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/about-the-elasticsearch-category/21). It will help to better understand what you are doing. Please, try to keep the example as simple as possible.

A full reproduction script is something anyone can **copy and paste in Kibana dev console** , click on the run button to reproduce your use case. It will help readers to understand, reproduce and if needed fix your problem. It will also most likely help to get a faster answer.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Giovanni\_Montobbio](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/giovanni_montobbio/32/78044_2.png) [@Giovanni\_Montobbio](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/Giovanni_Montobbio)\
**Post date:** [November 3, 2021, 4:20pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/best-similarity-for-retrieving-exact-matches-first/288319/7 "2021-11-03T16:20:33Z")

</div>

I did not succeed, the problem is that this script works fine if I use the boolean similarity algorithm:

```auto
GET /research/_search
{
  "query": {
    "bool": {
      "should": [
        {
          "match_phrase": {
            "frase": {
              "query": "film cortometraggio",
              "slop": 5
            }
          }
        },
        {
          "match_phrase": {
            "frase": "film cortometraggio"
          }
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

```

But it works fine in this case and not in many others.  
For example: if I'm searching for "bobina del film" I'd like to retrieve:

- An exact match like:  
La **bobina** contenente il **film** incompiuto e mai uscito nelle sale venne distrutta durante  
un bombardamento

- A phrase that is not an exact match but matches the input text like:  
Il **film** ,un cortometraggio in una **bobina** , fu distribuito dalla General **Film** Company e uscì in sala

- A phrase that matches with words resulting from stemming like:  
Il 30 maggio 2013 James **Bobin** viene scelto come regista del **film** , il cui titolo di lavorazione è "Alice"

This three cases must be in this order but I can't achieve it. I'm trying with the should-match\_phrase combination but I don't know how to specify these three different cases.

Becuase the boolean similarity algorithm does not work fine for me I went back to BM25 but still I have similar problems.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![dadoonet](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/dadoonet/32/137187_2.png) [@dadoonet](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/dadoonet)\
**Post date:** [November 3, 2021, 7:04pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/best-similarity-for-retrieving-exact-matches-first/288319/8 "2021-11-03T19:04:14Z")

</div>

Please invest some time in a full script. As I said:

> A full reproduction script is something anyone can **copy and paste in Kibana dev console** , click on the run button to reproduce your use case.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![system](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/original/3X/1/a/1ac57faf039f6b580b3f104ef42a2a89e41014de.png) [@system](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/system)\
**Post date:** [December 1, 2021, 7:04pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/best-similarity-for-retrieving-exact-matches-first/288319/9 "2021-12-01T19:04:49Z")

</div>

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