Facet-based query refinement based on multiple query interpretations is provider through a process that includes receiving a query for querying documents, of a whole document set, that deviate by one or more facet values. The process generates different query interpretations from query text of the query. The process executes the different query interpretations to obtain resulting document sets. For each different query interpretation, the executing executes the query interpretation to obtain a resulting document set corresponding to that query interpretation, and identifies facet values represented in the resulting document set. The process builds and presents to a user a query refinement interface, presenting the different query interpretations and properties of the resulting document sets, as well as, for each of the one or more facet values, and relative to each other, facet value representation of the facet value in each of the resulting document sets.