diff --git a/snip/search/engine.py b/snip/search/engine.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9a6ebe1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/snip/search/engine.py
@@ -0,0 +1,28 @@
+"""FTS5 search engine for snippets."""
+
+from typing import Any
+
+from snip.db.database import Database
+
+
+class SearchEngine:
+    def __init__(self, db: Database):
+        self.db = db
+
+    def search(
+        self,
+        query: str,
+        limit: int = 50,
+        language: str | None = None,
+        tag: str | None = None,
+    ) -> list[dict[str, Any]]:
+        """Search snippets using FTS5."""
+        return self.db.search_snippets(query, limit=limit, language=language, tag=tag)
+
+    def highlight(self, text: str, query: str) -> str:
+        """Add highlighting markers around matched terms."""
+        terms = query.split()
+        result = text
+        for term in terms:
+            result = result.replace(term, f"**{term}**")
+        return result