A query in information retrieval (IR) is the input provided by a user in order to find relevant documents or information from a database or dataset. The query can be in the form of text (e.g., a search phrase or question), voice input, or even images in some advanced IR systems.
The system processes the query, typically by tokenizing it and matching it against a database of documents using various techniques such as keyword matching, semantic analysis, or machine learning models.
The effectiveness of an IR system depends on its ability to understand the user's intent behind the query and retrieve the most relevant documents.