Reference

Structured query syntax

Multi-line query documents with term, intent, and hyde for explicit retrieval behavior.

For complex queries, GNO supports a multi-line query document syntax on gno query and gno ask. Use typed lines to steer the retrieval pipeline without reaching for CLI flags.

What this is

Structured query syntax is a small text format for telling GNO which parts of a question are exact terms, which parts describe intent, and which parts should act like a hypothetical ideal answer. It helps when a natural-language question is ambiguous or when your personal knowledge base uses inconsistent wording.

Example

auth flow
term: "refresh token" -oauth1
intent: how token rotation works
hyde: Refresh tokens rotate on each use and previous tokens are invalidated.

Rules

• Structured syntax is only activated for multi-line input.
• Blank lines are ignored.
• Recognized typed lines: term:, intent:, hyde:.
• At most one hyde: line is allowed per document.
• Unknown prefixes (e.g. vector:) are rejected.

Base query resolution

Every query document needs a base query. GNO picks the base in this order:

1. Plain untyped lines joined together
2. Otherwise all term: lines joined together
3. Otherwise all intent: lines joined together

hyde: lines are never searched directly — they serve only as hypothetical document expansion signal.

Supported surfaces

• CLI: gno query, gno ask
• REST: /api/query, /api/ask
• MCP: gno_query
• Web UI: Search and Ask text boxes
• SDK: client.query(...), client.ask(...)

CLI example

gno query $'auth flow\\nterm: "refresh token"\\nintent: token rotation'