diff --git a/includes/class-better-search-core-query.php b/includes/class-better-search-core-query.php
index 7e0be03..af655f3 100644
--- a/includes/class-better-search-core-query.php
+++ b/includes/class-better-search-core-query.php
@@ -917,7 +917,7 @@ public function posts_orderby( $orderby, $query ) {
 		// Initialize an array to build the orderby clauses.
 		$orderby_clauses = array();
 
-		if ( ! empty( $this->use_fulltext ) || empty( $this->match_sql ) ) {
+		if ( ! empty( $this->use_fulltext ) && ! empty( $this->match_sql ) ) {
 			$orderby_clauses[] = ' score DESC ';
 		}
 
diff --git a/readme.txt b/readme.txt
index 156cf6a..fde27eb 100644
--- a/readme.txt
+++ b/readme.txt
@@ -111,6 +111,11 @@ You can report security bugs through the Patchstack Vulnerability Disclosure Pro
 
 == Changelog ==
 
+= 4.0.4 =
+
+* Bug fixes:
+	* Search terms with three or less characters threw an error.
+
 = 4.0.3 =
 
 Release post: [https://webberzone.com/announcements/better-search-v4-enhance-wordpress-search-with-pro-features/](https://webberzone.com/announcements/better-search-v4-enhance-wordpress-search-with-pro-features/)