Know when semantic search beats keywords
Choose between keyword, semantic, and hybrid retrieval based on the information need.
The reframe: semantic search is not a replacement for exact search. TF-IDF and related keyword approaches work by turning text into numerical features based on terms. They reward words that are specific to a document and down-weight common words. This is valuable when the exact term matters. Embeddings work differently. They map text into a semantic space where related ideas can be close even without shared words. This is valuable when people ask in natural language, paraphrase, or use a synonym that the document never uses. Neither approach is universally superior. Dense semantic retrieval can miss codes and official names…
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