Few-shot prompting
Few-shot prompting means including a few examples of what you want in your prompt, so the model copies the pattern. Zero-shot means asking with no examples at all.
In one line, for a 12-year-old
Few-shot prompting is showing the AI two or three examples so it gets the idea.
An example
"Turn these into friendly reminders. Example: 'Rent due 1st' → 'Hi! Quick reminder that rent is due on the 1st.' Now do: 'Recycling Tuesday'."
Why it matters to people
Examples are the fastest way to get a consistent tone in either official language — handy for bilingual notices.