LockedIn FDE Training field practice · Free and open

Validate meaning after validating shape

Keep a well-formed model response from becoming an unsupported business fact.

Read the concept. Explore two decisions. Leave with a test you would run next.

The working model

Understand the boundary.

Structured output constrains the format a model returns. Your application still needs to handle refusals and incomplete responses, and check business meaning against the source. A number in the right field can still be the wrong number.

Decode
Handle completion and refusal
Validate
Check schema and business rules
Confirm
Bind the value to its source

A worked example

An assistant extracts a total from a fictional quote. The response contains a valid currency and numeric amount, but the quote includes a discount. Compare the extracted total with the actual source and the calculation rule before presenting it as confirmed.

Claude: structured outputs and invalid responses

Primary reading checked 2026-10-10. Provider learning stays with its issuer.

Practice deskDecision 1 of 2

Make a decision

The source quote says subtotal 200, discount 20, total 180. The model returns {currency: 'USD', total: 200}, matching your schema.

Can the application mark that total confirmed?

Choose one response before comparing the reasoning.Yes, because the response satisfies the schema.No. Check the source and discount rule; flag the mismatch.Ask for three more responses and use the most common number.

Another concept

Test the answer against changing evidence

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