Path Patterns

Variable-Length Paths

Use *min..max after the relationship type to traverse multiple hops.

-- 1 to 3 hops
MATCH (a:Person)-[:FRIEND*1..3]->(b:Person)
RETURN a.name, b.name

-- Exactly 2 hops
MATCH (a)-[:FRIEND*2]->(b)
RETURN a.name, b.name

-- Any length (use with caution on large graphs)
MATCH (a:Person {name: "Alice"})-[:FRIEND*]->(b)
RETURN b.name

Quantified Paths

Anvil supports GQL-style quantified path patterns for more precise hop control.

-- Exactly 3 hops
MATCH (a)-[:FRIEND]->{3}(b)
RETURN a.name, b.name

-- Between 2 and 5 hops
MATCH (a)-[:FRIEND]->{2,5}(b)
RETURN a.name, b.name

-- One or more hops
MATCH (a)-[:FRIEND]->+(b)
RETURN a.name, b.name

Named Paths

-- Assign a path to a variable
MATCH p = (a:Person {name: "Alice"})-[:FRIEND*]->(b)
RETURN p, length(p), nodes(p), relationships(p)

Shortest Path

-- Single shortest path
MATCH path = shortestPath(
  (a:Person {name: "Alice"})-[:FRIEND*]-(b:Person {name: "Dave"})
)
RETURN path, length(path)

-- All shortest paths (same length)
MATCH p = ALL SHORTEST (a:Person {name: "Alice"})--+(b:Person {name: "Dave"})
RETURN p

Negated Relationship Types

Exclude specific relationship types using the ! prefix.

-- Match any relationship except ACTED_IN
MATCH (a:Person)-[:!ACTED_IN]->(b)
RETURN a.name, type(b)

Path Functions