language model

noun

plural language models

: a mathematical model (see model entry 1 sense 3) that analyzes a corpus of text in order to accurately represent the relationships between words

We have tremendous freedom to put words in any order we like. The computer has to have some kind of handle, a language model. It has to figure how likely any particular word is to pop up at any time.

—Robert Mercer, quoted in Chicago Tribune

also : software that uses a language model to generate text (such as responses to queries or prompts)

For example, given the task of analyzing the sentiment of the sentence 'I missed the bus today,' researchers could continue with the prompt 'I felt so [blank]' and ask a language model to fill in the blank with an emotion.

—Kyle Wiggers

see also large language model

Examples of language model in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

There is fascinating research around small language models that may be able to provide similar levels of value without requiring the same processing power. —Eric Miquelon, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024

At Apple, Hughes led the design and implementation of AI and language models for Apple News. —Todd Spangler, Variety, 31 Oct. 2024

Small language models are trained on much more compact and specific datasets compared to large language models, such as OpenAI’s GPT-4. —Lee Ying Shan,arjun Kharpal, CNBC, 24 Oct. 2024

Multi-agent dynamics are also a major gap in our efforts to plug the hole of risks from frontier models: Red-teaming efforts to make sure that our most powerful language models can’t be prompted into helping someone build a bomb do not go near the question of what happens in multi-agent systems. —Gillian Hadfield, Fortune, 17 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1976, in the meaning defined above