Amazon PPC glossary
Search term
A search term is the exact words a shopper typed. It can be different from the keyword you chose. Your keyword is what you target. The search term is what actually happened.
Example
You target the keyword “water bottle.” A shopper types “insulated water bottle 32 oz with straw.” That full phrase is the search term your ad appeared for.
Where it matters most: Book 1, The Amazon PPC Clarity Guide, in the chapter “Reading Search Term Reports.”
Go deeper
The glossary gives you the one-line answer. The Amazon PPC Clarity Guide explains why it matters and what to do about it.