Zero-shot prompting
Asking the model to do a task without showing it any examples first.
The fuller definition
Zero-shot prompting asks a model to perform a task without supplying task demonstrations in that prompt.
- Instruction
Define categories
- Input
Unseen document
- Output
Classify without examples
A simplified relationship, not a screenshot or a complete design.
A concrete example
Ask for a document classification using named categories but no completed example rows.
The distinction that matters
Zero-shot does not mean the model has never encountered related patterns during training.
Related terms
Few-shot prompting
Showing the model a few examples of what you want before asking it to do the same thing.
Prompting & contextPrompt
What you give a model to guide its reply. This may include a question, rules, and source text.
Training & generationTraining
Adjusting a model with examples and a learning rule. The aim is to improve how it handles tasks.
Where it is taught
Give AI a brief it can actually followSource and further reading
Anthropic · Context engineeringThe definition and example are written for this library. The link gives background, official documentation or legal authority as labelled. Legal scope depends on the jurisdiction and current text; product features depend on release and settings.