# Wildcard query that searches for content with escape special character NOT Working

**URL:** <https://discuss.elastic.co/t/wildcard-query-that-searches-for-content-with-escape-special-character-not-working/29744>\
**Category:** Elasticsearch\
**Created:** [September 22, 2015, 4:54am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/wildcard-query-that-searches-for-content-with-escape-special-character-not-working/29744 "2015-09-22T04:54:07Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![div\_sriram\_Sriram](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d2c977/32.png) [@div\_sriram\_Sriram](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/div_sriram_Sriram)\
**Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 4:54am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/wildcard-query-that-searches-for-content-with-escape-special-character-not-working/29744/1 "2015-09-22T04:54:08Z")

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I have my mapping as follows:

```
mappings: {
    person: {
        properties: {
           name: {
               type: "string"
           }
       }
   }
}

```

> I do a PUT of "name" : "ba\tch"

The Following WILDCARD QUERY fetches NO RESULT:

```
{"query": 
    {"bool" : 
       {"must" : 
          { "wildcard" : 
             { "name" : "ba\\tch*" 
             }
          }
       }
   }
 }

```

I dont follow the STRANGE behavior. And when I have a normal string without backslash then the wildcard search works Perfectly.  
Please explain to me why does it not work as expected? And the Solution?

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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:** [September 22, 2015, 5:27am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/wildcard-query-that-searches-for-content-with-escape-special-character-not-working/29744/2 "2015-09-22T05:27:23Z")

</div>

Did you put `ba\tch` or `ba\\tch`?

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![div\_sriram\_Sriram](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d2c977/32.png) [@div\_sriram\_Sriram](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/div_sriram_Sriram)\
**Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 6:07am UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/wildcard-query-that-searches-for-content-with-escape-special-character-not-working/29744/3 "2015-09-22T06:07:55Z")

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I did a 'POST' of **ba\\tch** -\> and in ES its indexed as **ba\tch**..

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<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:** [July 5, 2017, 11:48pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/wildcard-query-that-searches-for-content-with-escape-special-character-not-working/29744/4 "2017-07-05T23:48:52Z")

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