more than 1 cell as search range: result is wrong

hello,
i've been using an IF function in order to display a certain value when one or more criteria are met in one cell in one specific worksheet. here's how it looks like:
=IF(OR(ISNUMBER(SEARCH("value1",Worksheet1!A1)),ISNUMBER(SEARCH("Value2",Worksheet1!A1))),"yes","no")
with different values and names.. but it's just to give you the idea of what kind of function it is.
this one works perfectly, but i also needed another one in which the logical test range is no longer only one cell, but more, thus a selection. i wrote the same formula, but instead of the "A1" i wrote for example "A1:A20" which i thought it would work.. but it doesn't. even more surprising, when i open the insert function (the helping wizard that pops up when i click the "fx" button on the left of the function string) and i put in the logical test, at the bottom of the window it says the correct result (ie: yes). but on the actual worksheet, the cell displays the wrong result (no). i know there are no errors in the formula, so i really don't know how to solve the problem.
any help will be greatly appreciated
andrea

Perhaps?

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The * is a wildcard and used when you want to find a string within a string...

is Value a number or text... if it is a number then you can't use the wildcard and you can't use the quotations.

Supply a sample workbook showing your expectations.

Try:

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or

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If you want to search for any/all of those conditions and you have them listed in a separate range, say in X1:X10, then you should use:

=IF(SUMPRODUCT(--(ISNUMBER(MATCH(A1:A20,X1:X10,0)))),"yes","no")