Search time is reduced with a search engine that includes a bi-directional inverted index facility which can be accessed with a keyword search in one of a number of languages and provide a listing of documents contained in all of those languages. The keywords in all supported languages are preferably stored in an inverted index lookup table cross referenced to documents in those language containing the keywords. Keywords with the same meaning in different languages are accessible together when that keyword in one of the languages is queried. The search engine containing the table can identify pertinent documents either in a selected language, a second language or in all supported languages, as determined by the user. Information about each document can include not only the identity of the document but also information used in ranking the documents such as the number of times that a keyword appears in that document, and the keywords proximity to other keywords. The use of the inverted index table therefore reduces search time by eliminating the need for translation of keywords, their identification in documents and accumulating of ranking information at search runtime and avoids inaccuracies which may result from full text translations of documents.