Reasoning Glossary

Browse 30 reasoning terms defined in plain English, from the cultural dictionary of computing.

30 Reasoning Terms

Chain of Thought
Chain of Thought is a prompting technique and reasoning approach in large language models where the model is encouraged to show its step-by-step reasoning...
Chain of Thought Prompting
A prompting technique that encourages a model to produce intermediate reasoning steps before the final answer. It influences how models are trained, evaluated,...
Code Puzzle
A technical problem that feels interesting and solvable through careful reasoning rather than pure chaos. In engineering slang, code puzzle is what people call...
Dual Process Theory
A theory from cognitive science that distinguishes between fast intuitive reasoning and slower deliberate reasoning. In AI discussions it is often used as an...
Duck Test
An informal heuristic captured by the idea that if something looks and behaves like a duck, it is probably a duck. Engineers use it when pattern recognition is...
First Principle
A foundational assumption or basic truth from which further reasoning can be built. In tech culture, talking from first principles usually means trying to...
Implicit Reasoning
Reasoning that appears in a model's behavior without being explicitly exposed step by step in the output. The term is used when a system seems to perform...
Knowledge Graph
A graph of entities and relationships used to represent structured knowledge for retrieval or reasoning. It influences how models are trained, evaluated, or...
Mental Model
An internal conceptual map of how something works, used to predict behavior, explain failures, and make decisions. Strong engineers often differ less in syntax...
Mental Model AI
The user's or designer's conceptual model of how an AI system works, what it knows, and how it will behave in different situations. Clear mental models are...
MMLU Benchmark
A benchmark that measures broad multitask knowledge and reasoning across many academic and professional domains.
Multi-Step Reasoning
Reasoning that unfolds across several logical or computational steps rather than a single immediate response. Multi-step reasoning is important for tasks like...
Overthinking AI
A situation where an AI system applies unnecessary complexity or excessive reasoning to a simple task, often leading to slower responses or avoidable mistakes....
Problem Solving
The process of identifying a problem, understanding constraints, evaluating options, and arriving at an effective solution. In software culture, problem...
Reasoning Agent
An agentic AI component focused on planning, decomposing problems, or carrying out reasoning-heavy tasks, often with access to tools or memory. Reasoning...
Reasoning Benchmark
A benchmark designed to test reasoning ability, such as multi-step logic, math, planning, or problem decomposition. Reasoning benchmarks are useful, but they...
Reasoning Error
An error caused by faulty logical steps, invalid assumptions, or broken inference inside an AI system's reasoning process. Reasoning errors can occur even when...
Reasoning Model
A model optimized or selected for tasks that require stronger multi-step inference, planning, or problem decomposition rather than simple pattern matching...
Reasoning Step
An individual step within a larger reasoning process or chain of inference. Teams talk about reasoning steps when analyzing how an AI system reached a...
Reasoning Token
A token used during reasoning-focused generation or internal reasoning traces, often discussed in the context of cost, latency, or long multi-step responses....
Reasoning Trace
A record or visible sequence of reasoning-related steps, intermediate thoughts, or problem-solving actions used to analyze how an AI system arrived at its...
Self-Consistency
A prompting or decoding strategy in which multiple reasoning paths or outputs are generated and then compared to select the most consistent answer....
Self-Correction
The ability or workflow by which an AI system identifies and fixes its own mistakes after initial generation. Self-correction can improve quality, though it...
Self-Reflection
A reflective step where an AI system reviews its own reasoning, assumptions, or output quality and may revise accordingly. Self-reflection is often used to...
Situational Awareness
Awareness of relevant context about the environment, task, capabilities, and constraints in which a system is operating. In AI discussions, situational...
Step-by-Step
Describing instructions or outputs that proceed one step at a time rather than jumping directly to the conclusion. Step-by-step prompting is often used to...
Thinking Token
A token associated with intermediate reasoning or extended deliberation in a model's generation process. The term is often used when discussing tradeoffs...
Think Step by Step
A prompting instruction intended to encourage the model to reason in a more deliberate multi-step way rather than answering immediately. It is commonly used in...
Uncertainty
A measure or acknowledgment of how unsure an AI system is about an answer, prediction, or decision. Handling uncertainty well is important because systems...
Working Memory AI
The short-term memory mechanism an AI system uses to hold relevant information while reasoning or carrying out a task. Working memory is important for...

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