---
schema_version: "1"
id: 34b9794d3da5e502f03875e4f5f7dd2b5536d99d5bc0fb164f5ae89979a0c45c
title: Hypernyms and Hyponyms
collection: admin
version: current
locale: en-us
portal_url: https://docs.salesforce.com/admin/current/en-us/cc/264-0-0/b2c_hypernyms.md
canonical_url: https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=cc.b2c_hypernyms.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5
source_site: help.salesforce.com
content_type: documentation
content_hash: 3afd0e93c914861140e7e3bacdcc26cd15abdfca94e94134402c476938cb6ac9
description: A hypernym is a broad term for a group of B2C Commerce products. A hyponym is a term for an item in the group that the hypernym describes. A hypernym returns the results of all of its hyponyms, but the hyponyms only return their own results. Exclude specific hypernyms using negative hypernyms.
products:
  - Commerce
  - B2C Commerce
release: "264"
---
# Hypernyms and Hyponyms

A hypernym is a broad term for a group of B2C Commerce products. A hyponym is a term for an item in the group that the hypernym describes. A hypernym returns the results of all of its hyponyms, but the hyponyms only return their own results. Exclude specific hypernyms using negative hypernyms.

The total number of search results on the hypernym can be less than for each of the hyponyms if there’s overlap in the categories you’re searching on. In the following example, if you search for Tunic, Shirt, and Blouse individually, the sum of the search hits is 13. However, when you search for the hypernym "Tops", which has Tunic, Shirt, and Blouse as hyponyms, only nine search hits return. This is because several of the search hits contain more than one of the hyponyms. This is because the hypernym search removes duplicate results returned in the individual searches.

![Hypernym Results](https://sf-zdocs-cdn-prod.zoominsoftware.com/tdta-cc-b2c_merchandiser_administrator-264-0-0-production-enus/ea76f372-6cfa-42a6-8e7c-05c6df7abed8/cc/b2c_merchandiser_administrator/images/b2c_search_slide_08.gif)

![Note](https://sf-zdocs-cdn-prod.zoominsoftware.com/tdta-cc-b2c_merchandiser_administrator-264-0-0-production-enus/ea76f372-6cfa-42a6-8e7c-05c6df7abed8/images/icon_note.png)

Note Don't define each hyponym and hypernym with more than four words. Use the Common Phrases feature for multi-word search terms.

For example, consider the hypernym rule where the hypernym is `footwear`, and the hyponyms are `[shoes, boots, sandals, sneakers]`.

| Shopper Searches for... | Actual B2C Commerce Query |
| --- | --- |
| sneakers | `sneakers OR footwear` |
| boots | `boots OR footwear` |
| footwear | `footwear` |

In case of the hypernym `footwear`, if the shopper searches for footwear, the search results for only footwear appear and not results for shoes, boots, sandals, or sneakers.

## Negative Hypernyms

If you enter hypernyms (single or multi-word) with the '-' negative operator in front of it, products containing the negative hypernym are _not_ returned in the search results.

If _handbag_ is a hyponym of the _bag_ hypernym, a user search that excludes _bag_ expands into a search that excludes both the _handbag_ and _bag_ keywords.

 
| User Query | Actual B2C Commerce Store Query |
| --- | --- |
| \-bag | NOT handbag AND NOT bag |