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Prompt

A text instruction given to an AI model to generate a response.

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Definition

A prompt is a text-based instruction or question that you give to an AI model like ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini. The prompt tells the AI what you want it to do — whether that's writing an email, answering a question, generating code, or acting as a specific character. The quality of your prompt directly affects the quality of the AI's response.

A vague prompt gets a vague answer; a specific, well-structured prompt gets a focused, useful response. Prompts can range from a single sentence ("Write me a poem about cats") to multi-paragraph instructions that define a role, tone, rules, and examples for the AI to follow.

Examples

1

"Write a professional email declining a meeting invitation" — a simple, direct prompt

2

"You are a senior marketing strategist. Analyze this campaign data and recommend 3 improvements with expected ROI for each." — a structured prompt with role and specific output requirements

Related Terms

Prompt EngineeringSystem PromptFew-Shot Prompting

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes a good prompt?
A good prompt is specific, provides context, defines the desired output format, and includes examples when possible. The more specific your prompt, the better the AI's response.
How long should a prompt be?
There's no perfect length. Simple tasks need short prompts (1-2 sentences). Complex tasks like building an AI agent may need prompts that are several paragraphs long with roles, rules, and examples.

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