context engineering
[ KON-tekst en-juh-NEER-ing ]noun
Deciding on purpose what goes in front of the AI: the instructions, the files, the notes, the tools, the earlier conversation.
Explanation
It replaced prompt engineering as the phrase people use, and the shift matters. The leverage moved from how you word the question to what you put in front of it — and just as much, what you keep out.
Related words
- context window — How much the AI can hold in front of it at one time.
- RAG — Looking things up in your own documents and handing the relevant bits to the AI at the moment you ask, instead of hoping it already knew.
- mise en place — Getting all your notes, rules and reference material together before you type the first prompt.
Prompts that deal with it
- Write the Rules File — The standing rules, taken from your actual project