Domain Glossary Convention

What It Is

CONTEXT.md is an optional file at the repository root that defines the project's domain language. It gives the pipeline a shared vocabulary so specs, plans, and code use consistent terminology.

CONTEXT.md is optional. Commands work without it. When present, commands read it during context loading and prefer its defined terms over synonyms.

When to Create One

Create CONTEXT.md when:

• The same concept has multiple names in specs or code ("order" vs "transaction" vs "purchase")
• New team members (or AI) use wrong terms because the domain isn't documented
• start offers to scaffold it during repo initialization

Format

# Domain Context

## Language

| Term | Definition | Avoid |
|------|-----------|-------|
| [Term] | [What it means in this project] | [Synonyms to avoid] |

## Relationships

- A **[Term A]** contains one or more **[Term B]**
- A **[Term B]** references exactly one **[Term C]**

## Example Dialogue

> "When a customer places an **order**, the system creates **line items**..."

## Flagged Ambiguities

- "[Term]" — currently means both X and Y. Needs splitting when [condition].

Pipeline Behavior

Commands that read CONTEXT.md:

• feature — uses vocabulary when writing the feature spec
• plan — references terms when naming phases, steps, and components
• implement — uses terms in variable names, function names, comments, and commit messages; avoids synonyms listed in the "Avoid" column
• tech-review — checks that code uses defined vocabulary consistently; flags terminology drift

Graceful Degradation

• No CONTEXT.md → commands proceed normally, no warning
• Empty sections → skip those sections, use what's populated
• Ambiguities listed → flag them in generated artifacts when the ambiguous term appears

Related

• ADR-002 defines this convention: docs/decisions/2026-04-29-domain-glossary-convention.md
• start scaffolds CONTEXT.md when the user opts in during repo initialization
• The /virtual-team:grill command maintains CONTEXT.md inline during grilling sessions