answerInlineQuery

Answer an inline query. When a user types @botusername keywords in the input box of any chat, the bot receives an inline_query update via getUpdates or Webhook, and must call this method to return a list of results for the user to choose from.

The current version supports two result types: article (text) and game. Other types are ignored.

Request

POST /:token/answerInlineQuery

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
inline_query_id	String	Yes	Unique identifier of the inline query to answer, taken from inline_query.id
results	InlineQueryResult[]	Yes	JSON-serialized array of result objects; article and game types are supported
cache_time	Integer	No	Time in seconds the results are cached on the server, defaults to 300

The official Telegram parameters is_personal, next_offset, switch_pm_text and switch_pm_parameter are accepted but have no effect in the current version.

Result Types

InlineQueryResultArticle

Field	Type	Required	Description
type	String	Yes	Must be article
id	String	Yes	Unique identifier of the result
title	String	Yes	Title of the result
description	String	No	Short description of the result
input_message_content	Object	Yes	Content of the message to be sent when the result is chosen; currently only the message_text field (plain text) is supported

InlineQueryResultGame

Field	Type	Required	Description
type	String	Yes	Must be game
id	String	Yes	Unique identifier of the result
game_short_name	String	Yes	Short name of the game, see Games Overview

Custom reply_markup on result objects is not supported yet; the default button of a game card is added by the server automatically.

Response

Returns Boolean true on success.

{
  "ok": true,
  "result": true
}

After the user chooses a result, the corresponding message is sent to the chat on behalf of the user; the bot can learn about the choice via the chosen_inline_result update.

Error Codes

Code	Description
400	Bad request parameters, e.g. inline_query_id is invalid, does not belong to this bot, or results is not a valid JSON array
401	Invalid or expired token
500	Internal server error

Examples

Answer with an Article

curl -X POST "https://api.safew.bot/<token>/answerInlineQuery" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "inline_query_id": "284861963386739430",
    "results": [
      {
        "type": "article",
        "id": "1",
        "title": "Weather Today",
        "description": "Sunny, 28°C",
        "input_message_content": {"message_text": "Weather today: sunny, 28°C"}
      }
    ],
    "cache_time": 60
  }'

Answer with a Game

curl -X POST "https://api.safew.bot/<token>/answerInlineQuery" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "inline_query_id": "284861963386739430",
    "results": [
      {
        "type": "game",
        "id": "1",
        "game_short_name": "my_game"
      }
    ]
  }'