diff --git a/frontend/src/app/pages/Directory/DirectorySkillsTab.tsx b/frontend/src/app/pages/Directory/DirectorySkillsTab.tsx
index adad843d..6cdb37d3 100644
--- a/frontend/src/app/pages/Directory/DirectorySkillsTab.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/app/pages/Directory/DirectorySkillsTab.tsx
@@ -14,6 +14,8 @@ import { fetchSkills } from '@/shared/state/skillsSlice';
 import {
   fetchAllRegistrySkills,
   installCuratedSkill,
+  INSTALL_COMMAND_RE,
+  parseInstallCommand,
   searchCommunitySkills,
   CommunitySkill,
   RegistrySkill,
@@ -73,7 +75,14 @@ const DirectorySkillsTab: React.FC<Props> = ({ onOpenInstalled }) => {
       const seq = ++searchSeq.current;
       setCommunityLoading(true);
       try {
-        const res = await searchCommunitySkills(query.trim());
+        // A pasted README install command ("npx skills add pdf-filler", a skills.sh URL) resolves to
+        // its skill id server-side first, so the box accepts the grammar people actually copy (ENG-217).
+        let effective = query.trim();
+        if (INSTALL_COMMAND_RE.test(effective)) {
+          const skillId = await parseInstallCommand(effective).catch(() => null);
+          if (skillId) effective = skillId;
+        }
+        const res = await searchCommunitySkills(effective);
         if (seq === searchSeq.current) setCommunity(res);
       } catch {
         if (seq === searchSeq.current) setCommunity([]);
@@ -95,7 +104,9 @@ const DirectorySkillsTab: React.FC<Props> = ({ onOpenInstalled }) => {
   }, [localSkills]);
 
   const cards = useMemo((): SkillCardModel[] => {
-    const q = query.trim().toLowerCase();
+    // A pasted install command already resolved server-side into the community results; filtering
+    // those hits against the raw paste string would hide the exact skill the user asked for.
+    const q = INSTALL_COMMAND_RE.test(query.trim()) ? '' : query.trim().toLowerCase();
     // Join curated skills to their skills.sh twin (source anthropics/skills) so Anthropic cards get real install counts.
     const communityByName = new Map(community.map((cs) => [cs.name.trim().toLowerCase(), cs]));
     const out: SkillCardModel[] = [];
diff --git a/frontend/src/shared/state/skillRegistrySlice.ts b/frontend/src/shared/state/skillRegistrySlice.ts
index e444236b..8bdde524 100644
--- a/frontend/src/shared/state/skillRegistrySlice.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/shared/state/skillRegistrySlice.ts
@@ -207,6 +207,20 @@ export interface InstallDisclosure {
   secret_findings: string[];
 }
 
+// The grammar people copy out of READMEs; cheap local gate so plain searches never buy a round-trip.
+export const INSTALL_COMMAND_RE = /^(npx|npm|pnpm|bunx|yarn)\s|skills\.sh\//i;
+
+export async function parseInstallCommand(command: string): Promise<string | null> {
+  const res = await fetch(`${SKILL_REGISTRY_API}/parse-command`, {
+    method: 'POST',
+    headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
+    body: JSON.stringify({ command }),
+  });
+  if (!res.ok) return null;
+  const data = (await res.json()) as { skill_id: string | null };
+  return data.skill_id ?? null;
+}
+
 export async function searchCommunitySkills(q: string): Promise<CommunitySkill[]> {
   const params = new URLSearchParams({ q, limit: '30', source: 'community' });
   const res = await fetch(`${SKILL_REGISTRY_API}/search?${params}`);