AI Dictionary of Terms

AI Dictionary of Terms

AI Dictionary of Terms

Welcome to the most accessible AI Dictionary on the web. Whether you are looking for an artificial intelligence glossary to understand basic concepts or a technical machine learning terms reference, this living dictionary provides clear, jargon-free definitions alongside rigorous technical explanations.

Built for everyone — from complete beginners to seasoned practitioners.

Created and curated by Alex Nubla.

💡 Goal: To promote AI literacy by providing clear, accessible explanations of complex AI concepts.
Every term includes a “Simple Version” written in plain English — no jargon, no assumptions — so anyone can understand, regardless of their technical background.

🎯 Scope & Rigor: We strictly exclude “confabulations,” marketing fluff, or made-up buzzwords that lack real currency in standard AI terminology. This dictionary focuses exclusively on validated, widely recognized concepts with established technical definitions.

233 Terms 9 Categories Updated August 2026 MIT License

Browse by Category

🏗️ Architecture — 52 terms · Core model designs, neural network structures, and foundational paradigms Activation Function · AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) · Algorithm · Artificial Intelligence (AI) · ASI (Artificial Superintelligence) · Attention Mechanism · Autoregressive · BERT · CNN · Computer Vision · Context Window · Deep Learning · Diffusion Model · Embedding · Encoder-Decoder · Expert Systems · FlashAttention · Foundation Model · Frontier Model · GAN · Generative AI · GPT · GRU · Layer Normalization · LLM · LRM · LSTM · Machine Learning (ML) · Mamba / SSMs (State Space Models) · Mixture of Experts (MoE) · Model · Multimodal · Narrow AI · Natural Language Processing (NLP) · NER (Named Entity Recognition) · Neural Network · Object Detection · Open-Weight Model · Parameter · Positional Encoding · RNN · Reasoning Model · Residual Connections (Skip Connections) · Robotics · RoPE (Rotary Position Embedding) · Spatial Intelligence · Softmax Function · Token · Transformer · Weights · XGBoost · YOLO
⚙️ Training — 44 terms · How models learn, adapt, and improve Adam / AdamW (Adaptive Moment Estimation) · Backpropagation · Batch Size · Best-of-N Decoding · Catastrophic Forgetting · Chain of Thought · Constitutional AI · Context Engineering · Convergence · Data Augmentation · Distillation · DPO · Federated Learning · Few-Shot Learning · Fine-tuning · Gradient Descent · Gradient / Gradient Flow · GRPO (Group Relative Policy Optimization) · Hyperparameter · In-Context Learning · Learning Rate · LoRA · Loss Function · Optimizer · Overfitting / Underfitting · PEFT · Pre-training · Prompt · Prompt Engineering · QLoRA (Quantized Low-Rank Adaptation) · Reinforcement Learning (RL) · Regularization · Reward Model · RLHF · Scaling Laws · Self-Supervised Learning · Supervised Learning · Synthetic Data · Training · Transfer Learning · Unsupervised Learning · Validation Set · Vanishing Gradient Problem · Zero-Shot Learning
🚀 Deployment — 29 terms · Putting models into production Batch Processing · Beam Search · Caching · Edge Computing · Feature Store · GPU Cloud · Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) · Grounding · Inference · Inference-Time Compute · KV Cache · Latency · LLM Reverse Proxy · MCP · Model Serving · Observability · Orchestration · Prompt Injection · Quantization · RAG · Sampling · Semantic Search · Speculative Decoding · Streaming · Temperature · Throughput · vLLM / PagedAttention · Top-p Sampling (Nucleus Sampling) · Vector Database
📏 Evaluation — 9 terms · Measuring model performance and quality AI Hallucinations · Benchmarking · Cross-Validation · Data Contamination · Deterministic · Generalization Error · Hallucination · Non-Deterministic · Perplexity
🛡️ Ethics & Safety — 19 terms · Responsible AI and risk mitigation AI Safety · AI Slop · AI Sycophancy · AI Washing · Alignment · Bias · Data Privacy · Deepfake · Digital Labor · Ethical AI · Explainability / XAI · Guardrails · HITL · Human-Centered AI (HCAI) · Jailbreak · Parasitic AI · Red Teaming · Responsible AI · Spiralism
🏢 Enterprise AI & Agents — 16 terms · AI infrastructure, governance, and autonomous agent management Agent · Agentic AI · AI Gateway · Chatbot · Compliance · Conversational AI · Copilot · MLOps / LLMOps · Model Monitoring / Drift Detection · Open Source · Predictive Analytics · ReAct Paradigm (Reasoning and Acting) · Shadow AI · SOAR (Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response) · Tool Use / Function Calling · Vibe Coding
🏥 Healthcare AI — 29 terms · AI applications, standards, and regulations in healthcare delivery and clinical care Clinical Decision Support (CDS) · Clinical NLP · Clinical Prediction Model · Clinical Trials AI · Clinical Validation · Computer-Aided Detection (CAD) · De-identification · Diagnostic AI · DICOM · Digital Biomarker · Digital Pathology · Digital Therapeutics (DTx) · Digital Twin · Drug Discovery AI · EHR Integration · FDA Approval (SaMD) · FHIR · Health Informatics · In Silico Trials · Interoperability · Medical Imaging AI · PHI · Precision Medicine · Radiomics · Real-World Evidence (RWE) · Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) · Regulatory AI · Risk Stratification · Wearable AI
⚖️ Legal AI — 20 terms · AI terminology, regulatory frameworks, and legal principles governing AI systems AI Act · AI Copyright & IP · AI Forensics (Media Forensics) · AI-Generated Evidence · AI Liability · Algorithmic Accountability · Algorithmic Audit · Algorithmic Risk Assessment · Automated Decision-Making (ADM) · Conformity Assessment · eDiscovery · Generative AI Disclosure · High-Risk AI System · Impact Assessment · Prohibited AI Practices · Regulatory Sandbox · Right to Explanation · Systemic Risk · TAR (Technology-Assisted Review) · Trustworthy AI
🔒 AI Security & Adversarial ML — 15 terms · AI security vulnerabilities, adversarial attacks, and red teaming methodologies Adversarial Machine Learning · ASCII Smuggling · Autonomous AI Agents · ChatInject · DAN (Do Anything Now) Jailbreak · Deep Prompt Injection · Framing Injection · Indirect Prompt Injection · Just-In-Time (JIT) Access · LLM Code Injection · LLM Hijacking · Prompt Obfuscation (Encoding & Transliteration) · TAP (Tree of Attacks with Pruning) · Token Breaking · UEBA (User and Entity Behavior Analytics)

🔤 Browse All Terms (A-Z)

Letter Terms
A Activation Function, Adam / AdamW (Adaptive Moment Estimation), Adversarial Machine Learning, Agent, Agentic AI, AGI (Artificial General Intelligence), AI Act, AI Copyright & IP, AI Forensics (Media Forensics), AI Gateway, AI Hallucinations, AI-Generated Evidence, AI Liability, AI Safety, AI Slop, AI Sycophancy, AI Washing, Algorithm, Algorithmic Accountability, Algorithmic Audit, Algorithmic Risk Assessment, Alignment, Artificial Intelligence (AI), ASI (Artificial Superintelligence), Attention Mechanism, Autonomous AI Agents, Automated Decision-Making (ADM), Autoregressive
B Backpropagation, Batch Processing, Batch Size, Beam Search, Benchmarking, BERT, Best-of-N Decoding, Bias
C Caching, Catastrophic Forgetting, Chain of Thought, Chatbot, ChatInject, Clinical Decision Support (CDS), Clinical NLP, Clinical Prediction Model, Clinical Trials AI, Clinical Validation, CNN, Compliance, Computer-Aided Detection (CAD), Computer Vision, Conformity Assessment, Constitutional AI, Context Engineering, Context Window, Convergence, Conversational AI, Copilot, Cross-Validation
D DAN (Do Anything Now) Jailbreak, Data Augmentation, Data Contamination, Data Privacy, Deep Learning, Deep Prompt Injection, Deepfake, De-identification, Deterministic, Diagnostic AI, DICOM, Diffusion Model, Digital Biomarker, Digital Forensics, Digital Labor, Digital Pathology, Digital Therapeutics (DTx), Digital Twin, Distillation, DPO, Drug Discovery AI
E Edge Computing, Embedding, Encoder-Decoder, eDiscovery (Electronic Discovery), EHR Integration, Ethical AI, Explainability / XAI, Expert Systems
F FDA Approval (SaMD), Federated Learning, Feature Store, Few-Shot Learning, FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources), Fine-tuning, FlashAttention, Foundation Model, Framing Injection, Frontier Model
G GAN, Generalization Error, Generative AI, Generative AI Disclosure, GPT, Gradient Descent, Gradient / Gradient Flow, Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), GPU Cloud, Grounding, GRPO (Group Relative Policy Optimization), GRU, Guardrails
H Hallucination, Health Informatics, High-Risk AI System, HITL, Human-Centered AI (HCAI), Hyperparameter
I Impact Assessment (Algorithmic), In Silico Trials, In-Context Learning, Indirect Prompt Injection, Inference, Inference-Time Compute, Interoperability
J Jailbreak, Just-In-Time (JIT) Access
K KV Cache
L Latency, Layer Normalization, Learning Rate, LLM, LLM Code Injection, LLM Hijacking, LLM Reverse Proxy, LoRA, Loss Function, LRM, LSTM
M Machine Learning (ML), Mamba / SSMs (State Space Models), MCP, Medical Imaging AI, Mixture of Experts (MoE), MLOps / LLMOps, Model, Model Monitoring / Drift Detection, Model Serving, Multimodal
N Narrow AI, Natural Language Processing (NLP), NER (Named Entity Recognition), Neural Network, Non-Deterministic
O Object Detection, Observability, Open Source, Open-Weight Model, Optimizer, Orchestration, Overfitting / Underfitting
P Parameter, Parasitic AI, PEFT, Perplexity, PHI (Protected Health Information), Positional Encoding, Precision Medicine, Predictive Analytics, Pre-training, Prohibited AI Practices, Prompt, Prompt Engineering, Prompt Injection, Prompt Obfuscation (Encoding & Transliteration)
Q QLoRA (Quantized Low-Rank Adaptation), Quantization
R RAG, Radiomics, ReAct Paradigm (Reasoning and Acting), Real-World Evidence (RWE), Reasoning Model, Red Teaming, Regularization, Regulatory AI, Regulatory Sandbox, Reinforcement Learning (RL), Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM), Residual Connections (Skip Connections), Responsible AI, Reward Model, Right to Explanation, Risk Stratification, RLHF, RNN, Robotics, RoPE (Rotary Position Embedding)
S Sampling, Scaling Laws, Semantic Search, Self-Supervised Learning, Shadow AI, Softmax Function, SOAR (Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response), Spatial Intelligence, Speculative Decoding, Spiralism, Streaming, Supervised Learning, Synthetic Data, Systemic Risk
T TAP (Tree of Attacks with Pruning), TAR (Technology-Assisted Review), Temperature, Throughput, Token, Token Breaking, Tool Use / Function Calling, Top-p Sampling (Nucleus Sampling), Training, Transfer Learning, Transformer, Trustworthy AI
U UEBA (User and Entity Behavior Analytics), Unsupervised Learning
V Validation Set, Vanishing Gradient Problem, vLLM / PagedAttention, Vector Database, Vibe Coding
W Wearable AI, Weights
X XGBoost
Y YOLO
Z Zero-Shot Learning
🔍 Search the Dictionary 📚 View All Terms

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

What is an AI dictionary?
An AI dictionary is a curated reference resource that defines artificial intelligence and machine learning terminology in plain language, making complex concepts accessible to everyone.

How many terms are in this AI terminology glossary?
This living dictionary contains 230+ AI and machine learning terms across 9 specialized categories, ranging from foundational Architecture to Legal AI, Healthcare AI, and AI Security.

Who is this AI dictionary for?
It is built for everyone. Every term includes a “Simple Version” written in plain English for beginners, alongside detailed technical definitions and code examples for developers and practitioners.

Is this AI dictionary free to use?
Yes! This is an open-source project licensed under the MIT License. You are free to use, share, and contribute to this machine learning glossary.

🤝 Contributing & License

Want to add a term? Check out our Contributing Guidelines. This project is open source under the MIT License.