Wikipedia search app using Flask Framework - Python

In this article, we will learn how to build a Flask-based web application that retrieves and displays summaries from Wikipedia based on user input.

Installation

Install flask using the following pip command:

pip install flask

In order to extract the data from Wikipedia, we need Python's Wikipedia library. Install it using:

pip install wikipedia

Create a flask app

Create a file named "app.py", this will be our main file and also create a templates folder to store all the html files.

Directory Structure:

Implementation

Add this code in app.py:

Explanation:

• @app.route("/", methods=["POST", "GET"]): Defines the URL endpoint and explicitly allows both data retrieval (GET) and data submission (POST).
• request.method: Checks the incoming HTTP verb to decide whether to show the search form or process a query.
• request.form["search"]: Accesses the form data sent from the HTML input field named "search".
• wikipedia.summary(..., sentences=2): Calls the Wikipedia API to return a string containing only the first two sentences of the matching article.
• app.run(debug=True): Starts the local development server with hot-reloading enabled for easier debugging.

Create a file index.html inside the templates folder and add the following code that provides frontend interface for user interaction: 

Output:

If we search INDIA in this input tag then the output is:

Code Explanation:

• method="post": Ensures the form data is sent in the HTTP request body rather than the URL.
• name="search": Provides the key identifier that the Flask backend uses to extract the user's input.
• type="submit": Triggers the POST request to the current route when clicked.