Excel MATCH function is not working on an array but works once directed to the matched value

Question

Using the ISNUMBER and MATCH functions, I am checking to see if a value is present on one of my sheets. Some people's responses to the first test were FALSE. Therefore, I manually reviewed the source data to see if this genuinely did not exist; fortunately, it did. I thus double-checked and ran a test using the ISNUMBER and MATCH functions, but this time, I simply directed the results to the specific cell containing the matched value. This time, the result was TRUE!

Why can Excel find a match on an array but not when pointed to the precise cell, I want to know. How can I solve it, then?

Answer 1

According to the definition here: support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/… if you do not define the match type, the lookup array must be in ascending order.