Definition
Reranking is a second pass in retrieval where an initial set of candidate results is reordered by a more careful model to put the most relevant ones on top before they reach the answer.
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At a glance
- Categories Technical
- Related fields Technical
- Difficulty Advanced
How Reranking Works
Retrieval usually happens in two stages. A fast first stage pulls a broad set of plausibly relevant passages. Then a slower, sharper reranker scores those candidates more precisely and reorders them, so the answer gets built from the best few rather than the merely close. It is the quality filter between "found it" and "used it."
Why Reranking Matters
Being retrieved is not the same as being used. The reranking step is often where strong, clearly relevant content gets promoted and vaguer content gets dropped. Writing that directly and completely answers the query tends to survive reranking.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Why have a separate reranking step?
The first retrieval pass favors speed over precision. Reranking adds precision to a smaller candidate set.
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How do I write for reranking?
Make each passage clearly and fully answer a specific question, so a careful scorer rates it as the best match.