@Alan-Kilborn
true, i might tend to repetitions, to make things as descriptive as possible, at as many places as possible, if possible ;-)
@John-Murrell
if you like, you can modify (customise) all your notepad++ menus, titles and texts, by editing the file: your_program_files_path\Notepad++\localization\english.xml.
(i know, it’s not really necessary anymore, now that you know how the search mode behaves, but i’d completely understand, if it gets stuck at the back of your eyes, being a daily reminder of your experience)
for the search/replace mode text, change:
<Item id="1624" name="Search mode"/>
to e.g.:
<Item id="1624" name="Search and Replace mode"/>
after saving english.xml, you need to head to settings > preferences > general and change your localization to any other language and back to english, in order to reload all english menus and texts.
note: a notepad++ restart does not suffice to reload english.xml, so you have to swap your language briefly.