A compact reference for the terms used across these docs. Each entry uses the product's
own name, a one-line definition, and a link to where it is explained in full. For the
states each entity moves through, see the [lifecycle reference](/reference/lifecycle/);
for how the stages hand off, see the [workflow reference](/reference/workflow/).

## Core entities

<div class="table-scroll" role="region" aria-label="Core entity terms" tabindex="0">

  | Term | Definition |
  | --- | --- |
  | **Idea** | A request entering the pipeline; it goes through elaboration before a proposal is drafted. See [Capture an idea](/guides/capture-an-idea/). |
  | **Proposal** | A review container of document drafts and task drafts; approving it creates the Documents and Tasks. See [Review a proposal](/guides/review-a-proposal/). |
  | **Task** | A unit of work with a priority, an estimate, acceptance criteria, and dependencies; verified before it is done. See [Run tasks](/guides/run-tasks/) and [Verify and complete](/guides/verify-and-complete/). |
  | **Document** | A written artifact — a PRD, spec, design, or report — created from a proposal's document drafts and attached to the project. See [Review a proposal](/guides/review-a-proposal/). |
  | **Reference** | A link to external evidence (docs, a repository, an issue/PR, or a paper/blog) attached to an idea, proposal, or task; the URL and a note are stored, never the page itself. See [Attach references](/guides/references/). |
  | **Project** | The container that holds a project's ideas, proposals, documents, and tasks. See [Create a project](/guides/create-a-project/). |
  | **Project group** | A folder that organizes related projects under one heading. See [Create a project](/guides/create-a-project/). |
  | **Private project / group** | A project or group visible only to its members and the agents they own (a project's group members also count); it is hidden from everyone else in the workspace. See [Control who can see a project](/guides/project-access/). |
  | **Viewer / Editor / Admin** | The roles a member can have. **Viewer** can read (private projects only; on a public project everyone is at least an Editor). **Editor** can read and write, including approving proposals and verifying tasks. **Admin** can also change visibility and manage members. See [Control who can see a project](/guides/project-access/). |

</div>

## Elaboration and idea shape

<div class="table-scroll" role="region" aria-label="Elaboration and idea-shape terms" tabindex="0">

  | Term | Definition |
  | --- | --- |
  | **Acceptance criterion** | A testable condition a task must satisfy to be verified. See [Verify and complete](/guides/verify-and-complete/). |
  | **Elaboration round** | One structured question-and-answer pass that clarifies an idea's requirement; elaboration loops in rounds until it is resolved. See [Capture an idea](/guides/capture-an-idea/). |
  | **Theme** | An idea that only groups related child ideas under a shared direction; a theme cannot itself become a proposal. See [Capture an idea](/guides/capture-an-idea/). |
  | **Derived (child) idea** | A full idea with its own elaboration, proposal, and tasks, linked to a parent idea. See [Capture an idea](/guides/capture-an-idea/). |

</div>

## Agents and remote work

<div class="table-scroll" role="region" aria-label="Agent and remote-work terms" tabindex="0">

  | Term | Definition |
  | --- | --- |
  | **Session / Conversation** | An agent work session; the daemon chat surface shows these as conversations, one exchange per turn. See [Operate the Chorus daemon](/guides/daemon-operations/). |
  | **Daemon** | A long-lived local process that keeps an agent online so it can be woken to work remotely. See [Operate the Chorus daemon](/guides/daemon-operations/) and [Start work on a remote agent](/guides/remote-control/). |

</div>