Agentic AI Glossary

Skill

A reusable bundle of instructions and optional supporting files for a particular workflow.

Illustrative conversation

  1. Why make our release process a skill instead of pasting a long prompt every time?
  2. A skill keeps the reusable procedure and its supporting files together, then loads them only when they are relevant.

Definition

A skill packages a reusable workflow so an agent can load specialized instructions only when a task needs them. A skill commonly includes a required SKILL.md file and may add scripts, references, or assets. It is not a separate autonomous agent; it is focused guidance and supporting material that shapes how the current agent performs a particular kind of work.

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