Glossary · Models & inference
Stop Sequence
An application-specified token or text pattern that causes generation to stop when the decoding system encounters it.
Why it matters
Stop sequences bound output protocols and multi-part generation without waiting for the model to decide semantically that it is finished.
In practice
Choose unambiguous delimiters, test tokenization and partial streaming matches, and still enforce output length and schema validation.
Common confusion
A stop sequence is a mechanical decoding condition, not proof that the answer is complete or that an agent goal is satisfied.
Related terms
Sources
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