Which description best characterizes LookupOrderedRows in AMPscript?

• A. All rows from the data extension sorted alphabetically.
• B. A specified number of rows from a data extension, ordered by a field as ASC or DESC, with optional AND clauses. Returns empty if no match.
• C. A single row selected by primary key.
• D. A data extension key values set.

Answer: (B)

LookupOrderedRows retrieves a limited, ordered set of records from a data extension. You specify how many rows to return, the field to sort by, and the sort direction (ascending or descending). You can also include one or more field/value pairs as filters, which are combined with AND, so only rows matching all conditions are returned. If no records satisfy the criteria, you get an empty rowset. This behavior makes it ideal for pulling the top-N results in a specific order, such as the most recent five active orders for a customer. For example, you could fetch up to five rows from a data extension, ordered by OrderDate in descending order, with filters like Status = 'Completed' and CustomerID = '12345'. It differs from methods that return a single row by primary key and from those that return all rows regardless of filters.