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Definitions & Glossaries

The problem​

Legal documents and technical specs define terms — "Provider", "API", "Service Level Agreement" — but these definitions are buried in prose. Nobody can extract all defined terms from a set of contracts without reading every page.

The solution​

def: makes defined terms machine-readable. Use them inline (near first use) or grouped (in a formal Definitions section). Query them across documents.

Inline definitions​

Place def: near the first use of a term:

title: Cloud Services Agreement

section: Scope

def: Provider | meaning: Acme Corp, a Delaware corporation

text: The Provider shall deliver cloud infrastructure services as described in Exhibit A.

def: SLA | meaning: Service Level Agreement — the uptime and response time commitments in Section 4 | abbr: SLA

text: Provider commits to the SLA terms including 99.9% uptime and < 1 hour incident response.

def: Client | meaning: GlobalTech Industries, a California corporation

text: The Client shall provide access credentials within 5 business days of contract execution.

Grouped definitions (glossary)​

Place all definitions in a dedicated section:

section: Definitions

def: API | meaning: Application Programming Interface — a set of protocols for building and integrating software
def: Endpoint | meaning: A specific URL path that accepts requests and returns responses
def: Rate Limit | meaning: Maximum number of API requests allowed per unit of time | abbr: RL
def: SDK | meaning: Software Development Kit — a collection of tools and libraries for building applications | abbr: SDK
def: Webhook | meaning: An HTTP callback triggered by a specific event in the source system
def: Idempotent | meaning: An operation that produces the same result regardless of how many times it is executed
title: Master Services Agreement

section: Definitions

def: Agreement | meaning: This Master Services Agreement including all exhibits and amendments
def: Confidential Information | meaning: Non-public information disclosed by either party, including trade secrets, business plans, and technical data
def: Deliverables | meaning: Work products to be provided by Provider as specified in each Statement of Work
def: Effective Date | meaning: The date on which both parties have executed this Agreement
def: Force Majeure | meaning: Events beyond reasonable control, including natural disasters, war, government action, and epidemic
def: Intellectual Property | meaning: Patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, and other proprietary rights
def: Term | meaning: The 12-month period beginning on the Effective Date, automatically renewing for successive 12-month periods

Properties​

PropertyDescription
meaning:The definition text
abbr:Abbreviation/acronym

Querying definitions​

# All defined terms across all contracts
intenttext query ./contracts --type def --format table
File                      Type  Content                   Meaning
contracts/msa.it          def   Confidential Information  Non-public information disclosed by...
contracts/msa.it          def   Deliverables              Work products to be provided by...
contracts/cloud-svc.it    def   Provider                  Acme Corp, a Delaware corporation
contracts/cloud-svc.it    def   SLA                       Service Level Agreement — the uptime...
# Search for a specific term
intenttext query ./contracts --type def --content "Confidential" --format json

# Natural language
intenttext ask ./contracts "What is the definition of Force Majeure?" --format text

Building a master glossary​

Query all definitions across your document collection and export:

# CSV for spreadsheets
intenttext query ./company --type def --format csv > glossary.csv

# JSON for applications
intenttext query ./company --type def --format json > glossary.json

Next steps​