Meaning in language
Intent, scope, tone, and audience
Change how a message reads without changing its obligations, audience, or factual boundaries.
Lesson 2 of 6 in the recommended order · About 25 min (estimate)
On this page
Practical AI glossary — terms and common confusions
- Model
- A learned component used to produce a result.
A drafting model is one part of a letter app; it is not the whole app.
- Application
- The software experience around components and services.
A letter app adds accounts, storage, and a Send button.
- Prompt
- Instructions and input supplied for a task.
“Summarize this notice in two bullets” specifies a task and shape, not a truth guarantee.
- Token
- A unit a model processes; it need not be a whole word.
A tokenizer can split a name into pieces; count using the actual system.
- Context
- Information available for the current request.
An earlier attachment may be absent even when its filename is visible.
- Training
- Adjusting a model using examples.
A training log differs from a conversation correction.
- Inference
- Using a trained model to produce a result.
Drafting another sentence does not by itself prove retraining.
- Retrieval
- Selecting material to supply to a task.
A retrieved notice still needs a relevance and date check.
- Embedding
- A numerical representation used to compare or organize items.
A similar search match is a candidate, not proof of the same meaning.
- Tool
- A function an application can call.
A calendar lookup can be read-only; finding an event is different from creating one.
- Agent
- Software that can choose and carry out steps toward a goal.
An agent still needs bounded permissions and checked action receipts.
- Hallucination
- Plausible generated content that is unsupported or false.
An invented opening time needs evidence or removal, even when phrased confidently.
- Evaluation
- Checking results against stated criteria.
Twenty checked examples establish a bounded result, not universal reliability.
- Multimodal
- Working with more than one kind of input or output.
A photo plus text does not prove every small label in the photo was read correctly.
Outcome
Check a rewrite against a brief while separating stylistic freedom from material meaning.
Why it matters
Change how a message reads without changing its obligations, audience, or factual boundaries.
Concept
A useful request identifies what the reader should understand or do, who the reader is, and which facts must stay fixed. Tone describes the manner of expression, such as warm or direct. It does not authorize changing a deadline, promising a benefit, or dropping an exception.
Make scope explicit. “Improve this” leaves the kind of improvement unclear; “make the welcome warmer while preserving the date and eligibility condition” offers a checkable target. Several phrasings can satisfy that target. Evaluate meaning and the actual brief before imposing a personal preference.
Worked example
A fictional brief asks for a friendly reminder that volunteers may attend a rehearsal and staff must attend. “We would love to see volunteers; staff attendance is required” preserves both roles. “Everyone must attend” is a factual change, even if it sounds clear. Keep the first version unless another requirement is unmet.
Optional extension: compare two invitation treatments
Treatment A
Invitation- We would love to see volunteers; staff attendance is required
Terracotta and cream colors; visible brush texture.
Treatment B
Invitation- We would love to see volunteers; staff attendance is required
Navy and grey colors; smoother shading.
Compare the two treatments, rather than choosing a favorite. What impression of the invitation does each create for you, and which visible features support that reading? Do you think either suggests a different audience? Separate that interpretation from what the identical sentence actually requires. Different interpretations are acceptable when supported by observable features; appearance alone does not change the written attendance rules.
Before you check
Write a brief with four fields: reader, purpose, fixed facts, and permitted style changes. Use it to check the complete output rather than a single sentence.
Practice and fresh transfer
The packets below are fictional and contain the facts needed for these cases. External references are optional background. Judge each response independently: it may be supported, contradicted, or unresolved. Select the passages needed to justify your judgment and write why the distinction matters before revealing feedback.
Assess the response
Use Accept when all material claims are supported. Use Revise when a supplied fact or requirement is contradicted. Use Evidence is insufficient when a key fact cannot be established either way. If a response contains both an unknown and a direct contradiction, choose Revise and explain both problems. Conflicting claims with no established authority remain insufficient; a claim does not become a governing fact merely because a source asserts it.
Some responses are fully supported. Others need correction or more evidence. Judge each on its sources; do not edit a correct answer just to change it.
Your written notes stay in this page and disappear when you leave. Only a self-reviewed completion can be saved to your learning account. These practice checks do not establish independent proficiency.
Practice
Case 1
Consider a fictional welcome rewrite for first-time attendees.
Source packet
- Source 1
- Brief: Use a warm tone. Retain that doors open at 6 p.m. and registration is required.
- Source 2
- Original: Doors open at 6 p.m. Entry requires registration.
Response to assess
We look forward to welcoming you! Doors open at 6 p.m.; please register before attending.
Practice
Case 2
Consider a fictional rewrite requested for a public audience.
Source packet
- Source 1
- Brief: Explain the rescheduled date in plain language; do not speculate about reasons.
- Source 2
- Update: The session has moved from 4 May to 11 May. No reason is given.
Response to assess
The session moved to 11 May because the organizer was careless.
Fresh transfer
Case 3
Consider the fictional instruction drafted for a narrow audience.
Source packet
- Source 1
- Brief: Address team leads only. Ask them to nominate one reviewer; do not direct all staff.
- Source 2
- Workflow: Each team lead is responsible for naming the reviewer.
Response to assess
All staff must nominate a reviewer.
Fresh transfer
Case 4
Consider whether this fictional refusal fits its requested style and limits.
Source packet
- Source 1
- Brief: Decline the request politely, name the stated capacity limit, and make no future promise.
- Source 2
- Capacity note: The Tuesday session is full. No additional session has been scheduled.
Response to assess
Thank you for your interest. Tuesday’s session is full, so we cannot add a place.
Save your self-review
Completion records that you reviewed the cases. Your explanation and transfer performance need a facilitator to establish independent learning.
Sign in with your learning-center account to save completion.
Review the explanation for every case before saving.
Summary and next step
Apply the checklist to a new task. Preserve supported content, explain any change with evidence, and name what remains unresolved. Saving records self-review, not independently demonstrated proficiency. A facilitator must assess the explanation and fresh transfer for human learning evidence.