Synonyms

A synonym is a rule that affects the search terms being input to your dataset, and are meant to help guide your users towards the optimal results for your searches.

There may be situations where you want certain otherwise unrelated terms to be linked together, either as subordinate terms related to an "umbrella", or simply because two terms might mean the same, and should produce similar results in the search.

A Note on Synonyms

Be aware that Synonyms cannot contain spaces. This means that "open" compound words (such as "Dog Collar") cannot be entered as a valid term in a synonym rule.

For more information, please see our FAQ

Types of Synonyms

Relewise operates with two different types of Synonyms: One-way and Multidirectional.

Simply put, a one-way synonym is one where a certain word points towards another, but not the other way around. This can be used to specify, for instance, that a generic search term ("Tablet") should also include searches for more specific product terms ("iPad"). This ensures that when you search for Tablet, you will also find iPads, but when you search for the more specific term iPads, you do not find a bunch of generic tablet products.

Conversely, a multidirectional synonym treats all words within the rule as equal, which is to say that a multidirectional synonym set up for "sweater" and "jumper" will treat a search for either as having been a search for both.

Please be aware when creating synonyms, that you keep them as sparse and as infrequent as possible. A long list of synonyms can easily cause confusion during debugging, especially if multiple synonym rules contain the same words.

To learn more about creating a Synonym, click here.