diff --git a/nexus/mnemosyne/archive.py b/nexus/mnemosyne/archive.py
index 847f9a46..8a8a2eb8 100644
--- a/nexus/mnemosyne/archive.py
+++ b/nexus/mnemosyne/archive.py
@@ -72,6 +72,53 @@ class MnemosyneArchive:
         scored.sort(key=lambda x: x[0], reverse=True)
         return [e for _, e in scored[:limit]]
 
+    def semantic_search(self, query: str, limit: int = 10, threshold: float = 0.05) -> list[ArchiveEntry]:
+        """Semantic search using holographic linker similarity.
+
+        Scores each entry by Jaccard similarity between query tokens and entry
+        tokens, then boosts entries with more inbound links (more "holographic").
+        Falls back to keyword search if no entries meet the similarity threshold.
+
+        Args:
+            query: Natural language query string.
+            limit: Maximum number of results to return.
+            threshold: Minimum Jaccard similarity to be considered a semantic match.
+
+        Returns:
+            List of ArchiveEntry sorted by combined relevance score, descending.
+        """
+        query_tokens = HolographicLinker._tokenize(query)
+        if not query_tokens:
+            return []
+
+        # Count inbound links for each entry (how many entries link TO this one)
+        inbound: dict[str, int] = {eid: 0 for eid in self._entries}
+        for entry in self._entries.values():
+            for linked_id in entry.links:
+                if linked_id in inbound:
+                    inbound[linked_id] += 1
+
+        max_inbound = max(inbound.values(), default=1) or 1
+
+        scored = []
+        for entry in self._entries.values():
+            entry_tokens = HolographicLinker._tokenize(f"{entry.title} {entry.content} {' '.join(entry.topics)}")
+            if not entry_tokens:
+                continue
+            intersection = query_tokens & entry_tokens
+            union = query_tokens | entry_tokens
+            jaccard = len(intersection) / len(union)
+            if jaccard >= threshold:
+                link_boost = inbound[entry.id] / max_inbound * 0.2  # up to 20% boost
+                scored.append((jaccard + link_boost, entry))
+
+        if scored:
+            scored.sort(key=lambda x: x[0], reverse=True)
+            return [e for _, e in scored[:limit]]
+
+        # Graceful fallback to keyword search
+        return self.search(query, limit=limit)
+
     def get_linked(self, entry_id: str, depth: int = 1) -> list[ArchiveEntry]:
         """Get entries linked to a given entry, up to specified depth."""
         visited = set()
diff --git a/nexus/mnemosyne/cli.py b/nexus/mnemosyne/cli.py
index 1ab08f15..6691b244 100644
--- a/nexus/mnemosyne/cli.py
+++ b/nexus/mnemosyne/cli.py
@@ -23,7 +23,10 @@ def cmd_stats(args):
 
 def cmd_search(args):
     archive = MnemosyneArchive()
-    results = archive.search(args.query, limit=args.limit)
+    if getattr(args, "semantic", False):
+        results = archive.semantic_search(args.query, limit=args.limit)
+    else:
+        results = archive.search(args.query, limit=args.limit)
     if not results:
         print("No results found.")
         return
@@ -96,6 +99,7 @@ def main():
     s = sub.add_parser("search", help="Search the archive")
     s.add_argument("query", help="Search query")
     s.add_argument("-n", "--limit", type=int, default=10)
+    s.add_argument("--semantic", action="store_true", help="Use holographic linker similarity scoring")
 
     i = sub.add_parser("ingest", help="Ingest a new entry")
     i.add_argument("--title", required=True)
diff --git a/nexus/mnemosyne/tests/test_archive.py b/nexus/mnemosyne/tests/test_archive.py
index 0c2b354b..11371e82 100644
--- a/nexus/mnemosyne/tests/test_archive.py
+++ b/nexus/mnemosyne/tests/test_archive.py
@@ -197,6 +197,71 @@ def test_archive_stats_orphan_count():
         assert s["newest_entry"] is not None
 
 
+def test_semantic_search_returns_results():
+    with tempfile.TemporaryDirectory() as tmp:
+        path = Path(tmp) / "test_archive.json"
+        archive = MnemosyneArchive(archive_path=path)
+        ingest_event(archive, title="Python automation", content="Building automation tools in Python")
+        ingest_event(archive, title="Cooking recipes", content="How to make pasta carbonara with cheese")
+        results = archive.semantic_search("python scripting", limit=5)
+        assert len(results) > 0
+        assert results[0].title == "Python automation"
+
+
+def test_semantic_search_link_boost():
+    """Entries with more inbound links rank higher when Jaccard is equal."""
+    with tempfile.TemporaryDirectory() as tmp:
+        path = Path(tmp) / "test_archive.json"
+        archive = MnemosyneArchive(archive_path=path)
+        # Create two similar entries; manually give one more links
+        e1 = ingest_event(archive, title="Machine learning", content="Neural networks deep learning models")
+        e2 = ingest_event(archive, title="Machine learning basics", content="Neural networks deep learning intro")
+        # Add a third entry that links to e1 so e1 has more inbound links
+        e3 = ingest_event(archive, title="AI overview", content="Artificial intelligence machine learning")
+        # Manually give e1 an extra inbound link by adding e3 -> e1
+        if e1.id not in e3.links:
+            e3.links.append(e1.id)
+        archive._save()
+        results = archive.semantic_search("machine learning neural networks", limit=5)
+        assert len(results) >= 2
+        # e1 should rank at or near top
+        assert results[0].id in {e1.id, e2.id}
+
+
+def test_semantic_search_fallback_to_keyword():
+    """Falls back to keyword search when no entry meets Jaccard threshold."""
+    with tempfile.TemporaryDirectory() as tmp:
+        path = Path(tmp) / "test_archive.json"
+        archive = MnemosyneArchive(archive_path=path)
+        ingest_event(archive, title="Exact match only", content="unique xyzzy token here")
+        # threshold=1.0 ensures no semantic match, triggering fallback
+        results = archive.semantic_search("xyzzy", limit=5, threshold=1.0)
+        # Fallback keyword search should find it
+        assert len(results) == 1
+        assert results[0].title == "Exact match only"
+
+
+def test_semantic_search_empty_archive():
+    with tempfile.TemporaryDirectory() as tmp:
+        path = Path(tmp) / "test_archive.json"
+        archive = MnemosyneArchive(archive_path=path)
+        results = archive.semantic_search("anything", limit=5)
+        assert results == []
+
+
+def test_semantic_search_vs_keyword_relevance():
+    """Semantic search finds conceptually related entries missed by keyword search."""
+    with tempfile.TemporaryDirectory() as tmp:
+        path = Path(tmp) / "test_archive.json"
+        archive = MnemosyneArchive(archive_path=path)
+        ingest_event(archive, title="Python scripting", content="Writing scripts with Python for automation tasks")
+        ingest_event(archive, title="Baking bread", content="Mix flour water yeast knead bake oven")
+        # "coding" is semantically unrelated to baking but related to python scripting
+        results = archive.semantic_search("coding scripts automation")
+        assert len(results) > 0
+        assert results[0].title == "Python scripting"
+
+
 def test_archive_topic_counts():
     with tempfile.TemporaryDirectory() as tmp:
         path = Path(tmp) / "test_archive.json"