1. In a computer system having a relational database system, a method comprising: creating a number of materialized query tables (MQTs) within the database system; defining one or more database table specifications; receiving an incoming query at the database system; when the incoming query references a first subset of a set of tables, identifying an MQT with a definition query that references the set of tables, wherein said first subset includes one of: (a) a number of fact tables and a group of dimension tables; (b) a number of source tables and a group of dependent tables; and (c) a number of referencing tables and a group of referenced tables; and determining when the MQT is a candidate match for the incoming query; wherein said identified MQT is evaluated as a candidate match for the incoming query based on the first subset being within the set of tables referenced by the definition query of the MQT, and wherein said candidate match is a match that is able to provide a reliable and accurate set of data results for the incoming query. <<We can replace this paragraph with two paragraphs on accumulating the candidate MQTs and selecting the optimal MQT among the candidate MQTs.>>