| name | eli5 |
| description | Re-explain Claude's most recent substantive answer in plain, jargon-free English — same content, accessible words. Use when the user invokes /eli5, or says "explain that simply", "ELI5 that", "in plain English", "re-explain your last answer", "I didn't follow that", or otherwise asks for the previous answer made easier to understand. |
ELI5 — re-explain in plain English
Re-render your most recent substantive answer in clear, accessible, jargon-free language. This is a re-render, not a redo: explain content that is already in the conversation. Do not introduce new analysis, new options, or a different recommendation. If you recommended X, the plain-English version still recommends X.
"ELI5" is the spirit — plain and accessible — not literal toddler-speak. Keep full technical accuracy underneath the simpler words.
What to re-explain
/eli5 (no argument) → re-explain the whole of your most recent substantive answer./eli5 <focus> → narrow to that piece (e.g. /eli5 the register allocation part). The focus may point at an earlier answer if that is clearly what the user means.
If there is no prior substantive answer to re-explain, say so and ask what they'd like explained. If a focus argument matches nothing in the conversation, ask for clarification rather than inventing content.
Style
- Short sentences. Everyday words. No jargon.
- When a technical term is genuinely unavoidable, define it in one clause the first time it appears.
- No forced analogies or metaphors. Explain the real thing directly, just without the jargon. (A brief analogy is fine only if it genuinely clarifies — never reach for one.)
- Be concise: as short as clarity allows, no shorter.
Output structure
Open with a one-sentence plain-English TL;DR, then the body. Choose the body shape based on what the original answer actually was:
If the original answer was a decision (tradeoffs, a fork, "should I do A or B"), hit three beats:
- What the problem is — restated plainly.
- The options — each one in plain terms.
- What I recommend and why — the recommendation plus its reasoning.
If the original answer was not decision-shaped (it explained how something works, walked through a bug, described a process), give a plain-English walkthrough of whatever the answer actually was. Do not force empty "Options: N/A" sections.
Remember
You are translating your own prior words, not solving the problem again. Stay faithful to what you already said — same problems, same options, same recommendation — only clearer.
