Output Format Specification
Domain: Prompt Engineering
🎯 Motivation
Telling the model exactly what format you want (JSON, table, bullet points) prevents messy, unparseable responses.
📋 Concrete Example
‘Return your answer as JSON with keys: sentiment (positive/negative), confidence (0-1), reasoning (string).’ The model outputs structured JSON instead of free text.
🔗 Analogy
Ordering at a restaurant with a form - instead of ‘I want food’, you fill out: Main: ___, Drink: ___, Dessert: ___. The form (format specification) ensures you get exactly what you ordered.