Working With AI Tools•Working With AI Tools•12 min lesson

The Anti-Patterns — Prompts That Produce Bad Code

Recognize and avoid the most common prompting mistakes that lead to buggy, bloated, or wrong code.

ai-toolsprompt-engineeringanti-patternsmistakes

Copy-ready prompt

**Use this when a conversation with the agent keeps going sideways:**
"I am going to paste three prompts that produced bad results.
For each prompt:
1. Classify the anti-pattern causing the failure
2. Explain why the prompt created bad code or bad direction
3. Rewrite it into a safer, more specific prompt
4. Add the right constraints, review gates, and stop conditions

Use these anti-pattern labels when relevant:
mega prompt, vague request, implicit standards, error dump,
moving target, trust fall, kitchen sink, outdated assumption.

After the rewrites, give me one reusable rule I should add to my workflow so I stop making the same mistake."

Prompt FAQ

Questions to answer before you paste it

When should I use the The Anti-Patterns — Prompts That Produce Bad Code prompt?

Recognize and avoid the most common prompting mistakes that lead to buggy, bloated, or wrong code. Use it when you need a safer starting point than a blank prompt and you want the agent to stay inside explicit constraints.

Should I paste this prompt exactly as written?

No. Treat it as a safe starter. Replace the task, files, constraints, and verification details with your actual context before you run it.

What should I do after the agent answers?

Read the diff, run the checks, and stop after one reviewable step. If you need deeper context, open the lesson that explains the reasoning behind the prompt.

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