Definition

Tool Description

A tool description is the text in a function schema that tells the model when a tool is relevant and how to format its arguments. The model reads it, not humans; it is the only documentation the agent ever sees. The book calls it the most important text in an agent: vague descriptions cause wrong tool selection, precise ones with examples make it reliable. Type hints drive the parameter schema.

Explained in

Chapter 12: The Agent Toolbox

The protocols, tools, and infrastructure that make agents actually useful.

Related terms

This is one term. The chapter is the argument.

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