When "Just Do It" Isn't Enough: Invoking Claude Code Tools by Name

By Elias Bachaalany — @0xeb on GitHub · Binary Wizards on YouTube · @eliasbchlny on X

The cases where naming the exact tool beats describing the outcome.

Claude Code exposes a few dozen tools, and most of the time you should never name one. You say what you want ("find every place we validate emails", "build it and run it") and the model routes the request to the right tool. That default is good, and you should lean on it.

But routing is the model's guess at your intent, and sometimes the guess isn't what you wanted. It answers when you wanted to be asked. It presses on when you wanted a checkpoint. It skips the task list you wanted kept. It improvises three shell commands when you wanted one specific search. In those moments the fix is the same: stop describing the outcome and name the tool. Saying "use the AskUserQuestion tool" or "use TaskCreate" or "use Monitor" turns a guess into a guarantee.

This article is about those moments, the legitimate cases where naming the tool gives you deterministic control, followed by a full, typed reference so you know exactly what to say and with which arguments.

Two ways to invoke, and when to switch

The model is a good dispatcher. Tell it what you want and it walks to the toolbox, picks a tool, and uses it. Ninety percent of the time that is exactly right, and you should let it drive. But a dispatcher is guessing at your intent, and every so often you want to reach past it and grab a specific tool yourself. That reach is the whole skill this article teaches: knowing the names well enough to ask for one on purpose.

• Outcome phrasing (the default): "Find where auth is handled." The model picks the tool. Best for almost everything.
• By-name invocation (this article): "Use the Grep tool with pattern='validateAuth', output_mode='content'." You pick the tool and, optionally, its exact arguments. Best when the specific behavior matters more than the outcome.

Switch to by-name when any of these is true: you want a specific mechanism (this tool, not a substitute), you want a behavior the model wouldn't trigger on its own, or the tool is keyword-gated and has no other way in.

When naming the tool wins

Make it stop and ask you: AskUserQuestion

Here is a fun one to try right now. Prompt the model with:

"Use the AskUserQuestion tool and present me three color choices."

It pops a little structured menu, red / green / blue, and waits for you to pick. Nothing about choosing a color needs a tool, which is exactly why it makes such a clean demo: you aren't asking for an outcome, you are commandeering a specific piece of UI on demand. The model is smart enough to reach for this tool on its own, but here you are the one deciding it should.

Now swap the toy for something real:

"Use the AskUserQuestion tool to give me options before you choose the auth library."

Same move, real stakes. You convert "the model decided" into "the model asked." This is the single most useful by-name habit to build.

Force a task to exist: TaskCreate / TaskUpdate

The todo system auto-engages on big, multi-step work, but for a two- or three-step job it may not bother. When you want a durable, visible checklist regardless of the model's judgment:

"Use TaskCreate to add a task: subject='Migrate auth to OAuth'. Then keep it updated as you go." "Use TaskUpdate taskId=2, addBlockedBy=['1'] so task 2 waits for task 1."

Naming TaskCreate makes the task exist on purpose; naming TaskUpdate lets you drive status and dependencies by hand instead of hoping they're tracked.

Start something recurring or watching, on purpose: CronCreate, Monitor, /loop

"Keep an eye on the build" is ambiguous; the mechanism you actually want isn't. Name it, and you choose polling vs. streaming vs. self-pacing:

"Use CronCreate cron='*/15 * * * *' to re-run the tests every 15 minutes." "Use Monitor command='tail -f dev.log | grep --line-buffered ERROR' to tell me every time an error appears." "/loop 5m /babysit-prs" to run a prompt on an interval.

Behaviors that only exist by name: the keyword-gated tools

Some tools cannot be summoned any other way. Here the name or keyword is the API:

• worktree unlocks EnterWorktree: "do this in a worktree."
• ultracode (or "use a workflow") unlocks Workflow: deliberate multi-agent orchestration.
• /loop with no interval unlocks ScheduleWakeup: model-paced loops.
• an active code review unlocks ReportFindings: typed findings to the UI.

No amount of outcome phrasing unlocks these; the deliberate keyword is the point. They can spawn many agents or relocate your edits, so they wait for explicit consent.

Pin the exact operation: Grep, Glob, Edit, Agent

When you want one specific mechanism and no substitution:

"Use Grep with pattern='TODO', output_mode='content', -n=true" (not a subagent). "Use an Explore agent to search, don't grep inline." "Use Edit on config.ts with replace_all=true."

Naming removes the routing guess when the how matters as much as the what.

Run a specific, known procedure: Skill

Skills are packaged multi-step procedures. Naming one runs that procedure rather than hoping the model reconstructs the same steps:

"Use the deep-research skill on X", or type /deep-research <question>.

Choose the output channel: Artifact, PushNotification, WebFetch

When you want a specific destination for the result:

"Make an Artifact I can share." / "Use PushNotification to ping me when the build finishes." / "Use WebFetch url=… prompt='what changed in 2.1?'."

How to phrase a by-name call

Two levels of precision:

• Name only: "Use TaskCreate to track this." The model fills in the arguments.
• Name plus arguments: "Use TaskCreate with subject='…', description='…', activeForm='…'." You pin the exact call.

The rest of this article is the reference that makes the second form possible: every tool, its parameters, types, and defaults.

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The catalog: always-loaded vs deferred

The reference is the full toolset of a Claude Code 2.1.223 session (Windows, August 2026): 32 tools, 13 always-loaded and 19 deferred. Always-loaded tools are callable immediately; deferred tools are announced by name and their schemas load on demand (the model pulls one in with a ToolSearch call before first use). Parameters are marked * when required, with types and defaults noted.

File, search & shell

• Read: read a file (text, image, PDF, notebook).
  • file_path* string (absolute) · offset int · limit int · pages string (PDF range)
• Write: create or overwrite a file you've Read.
  • file_path* string · content* string
• Edit: exact string replacement.
  • file_path* string · old_string* string · new_string* string · replace_all bool=false
• Glob: filename pattern match, sorted by mtime.
  • pattern* string · path string
• Grep: ripgrep content search.
  • pattern* string · path · glob · type · output_mode content|files_with_matches|count · -i/-n/-o bool · -A/-B/-C int · multiline bool · head_limit int=250 · offset int
• Bash: Git Bash / POSIX shell.
  • command* string · description · timeout ms=120000 (max 600000) · run_in_background bool · dangerouslyDisableSandbox bool
• PowerShell: pwsh (primary shell on Windows; absent on macOS/Linux).
  • command* string · description · timeout ms (max 600000) · run_in_background bool · dangerouslyDisableSandbox bool
• NotebookEdit: replace/insert/delete one Jupyter cell.
  • notebook_path* string · new_source* string · cell_id string · cell_type code|markdown · edit_mode replace|insert|delete (default replace)

Delegation

• Agent: spawn a subagent.
  • description* string (3 to 5 words) · prompt* string · subagent_type string · model sonnet|opus|haiku|fable · isolation worktree|remote · run_in_background bool=true
  • subagent_type values: claude, general-purpose, Explore, Plan, statusline-setup.
• SendMessage: the only way agents talk to each other; resume a spawned agent with its context, or post to main.
  • to* string (teammate name, or "main") · message* string · summary string (<=200, required when message is a string)
• Workflow (gated: ultracode): deterministic JS orchestration over many subagents.
  • script string · scriptPath string · name string · args any · resumeFromRunId (wf_…)

Task list & background jobs

• TaskCreate: new task (starts pending).
  • subject* string · description* string · activeForm string · metadata object
• TaskUpdate: modify a task.
  • taskId* string · status pending|in_progress|completed|deleted · addBlockedBy[] · addBlocks[] · owner · subject · description · activeForm · metadata
• TaskList: list all tasks. (no params)
• TaskGet: one task's full detail.
  • taskId* string
• TaskStop: kill a background task or named agent.
  • task_id string (also name@team or a bare agent name) · shell_id (deprecated)
• TaskOutput (deprecated): read a background job's output.
  • task_id* string · block bool=true · timeout ms=30000 (max 600000)

Scheduling & watching

• CronCreate: schedule a prompt on 5-field local-time cron; session-only, recurring auto-expires after 7 days.
  • cron* string · prompt* string · recurring bool=true · durable (no effect)
• CronList: list this session's cron jobs. (no params)
• CronDelete: cancel one. · id* string
• Monitor: stream events from a command's stdout or a WebSocket; one notification per line.
  • description* string · timeout_ms* number=300000 (max 3600000) · persistent* bool=false · command string or ws {url* string, protocols[]} (mutually exclusive)
• RemoteTrigger: claude.ai cloud routines (backs /schedule).
  • action* list|get|create|update|run · trigger_id string · body object (required for create/update)
• ScheduleWakeup (gated: /loop without interval): self-paced loop scheduling.
  • delaySeconds number (60 to 3600) · prompt string · reason string · stop bool

Web & output

• WebFetch: fetch a URL, convert to markdown, answer a prompt (15-min cache, HTTP upgraded to HTTPS, no auth).
  • url* uri · prompt* string
• WebSearch: web search (US-only).
  • query* string (min 2) · allowed_domains[] · blocked_domains[]
• PushNotification: desktop/phone ping.
  • message* string (<200 chars) · status* const "proactive"
• AskUserQuestion: structured multiple-choice back to you (interactive only).
  • questions[]* where each has: question string, header string (<=12), options[] (2 to 4: label, description, preview), multiSelect bool

Planning, isolation & design

• EnterPlanMode / ExitPlanMode: read-only planning and approval (interactive; also shift+tab). (no params)
• EnterWorktree (gated: worktree): isolated git worktree.
  • name string (<=64) or path string, mutually exclusive
• ExitWorktree: leave the worktree session.
  • action* keep|remove · discard_changes bool (true to remove a dirty worktree)
• DesignSync: read/write claude.ai design-system projects; ordering is read, then finalize_plan, then write.
  • method* list_projects|get_project|list_files|get_file|finalize_plan|write_files|delete_files|register_assets|unregister_assets|create_project|report_validate · plus projectId, planId, path/paths[], writes[]/deletes[], localDir, files[], assets[], name

Specialized & internal

• Skill: run a packaged skill / slash command.
  • skill* string (exact name, no leading slash) · args string
• ReportFindings (gated: code-review): typed findings to the UI.
  • findings[]* where each has: file, summary, failure_scenario*, line, category, short_summary, verdict, outcome · level low|medium|high|xhigh|max
• Artifact: publish an HTML/Markdown file as a private claude.ai page (interactive).
  • file_path string · favicon emoji (required to publish) · title · description · url (update) · action publish|list
• ToolSearch: load deferred tool schemas on demand (internal; never prompt for it).
  • query* string (select:A,B, keywords, or +name term) · max_results* number=5

Compact reference

Loaded = always-on; Deferred = schema loads on demand. * = required.

Tool	Loaded	Purpose	Key arguments
Read	always	read file / image / PDF / notebook	file_path*, offset, limit, pages
Write	always	create / overwrite a Read file	file_path, content
Edit	always	exact string replacement	file_path, old_string, new_string*, replace_all
Glob	always	filename pattern match	pattern*, path
Grep	always	ripgrep content search	pattern*, path, glob, type, output_mode, -i/-n/-o, -A/-B/-C, multiline, head_limit
Bash	always	POSIX shell	command*, timeout, run_in_background
PowerShell	always (Windows)	pwsh shell	command*, timeout, run_in_background
NotebookEdit	deferred	edit one Jupyter cell	notebook_path, new_source, cell_id, cell_type, edit_mode
Agent	always	spawn a subagent	description, prompt, subagent_type, model, isolation, run_in_background
SendMessage	deferred	agent-to-agent message	to, message, summary
Workflow	always (gated: ultracode)	multi-agent orchestration script	script / scriptPath / name, args
TaskCreate/List/Get/Update	deferred	todo tracking and dependencies	subject/description; taskId; status, addBlockedBy/addBlocks
TaskStop	deferred	kill background task / agent	task_id
TaskOutput	deferred (deprecated)	read a background job's output	task_id*, block, timeout
CronCreate/List/Delete	deferred	in-session scheduled prompts	cron, prompt, recurring; id*
Monitor	deferred	stream events from logs / cmds / WebSockets	description, timeout_ms, persistent*, command | ws
RemoteTrigger	deferred	cloud routines (/schedule)	action*, trigger_id, body
ScheduleWakeup	always (gated: /loop)	self-paced loops	delaySeconds, prompt, reason, stop
WebFetch / WebSearch	deferred	fetch a URL / web search	url+prompt; query*
PushNotification	deferred	desktop / phone ping	message, status
AskUserQuestion	interactive	structured question to the user	questions[]*
EnterPlanMode / ExitPlanMode	interactive	read-only planning and approval	(none)
EnterWorktree / ExitWorktree	deferred (gated: worktree)	isolated git worktree	name | path; action*, discard_changes
DesignSync	deferred	claude.ai design-system read/write	method*, projectId, planId, writes/deletes, files, assets
Skill	always	run a slash command	skill*, args
ReportFindings	always (gated: code-review)	typed findings to UI	findings[]*, level
Artifact	interactive	publish HTML/MD as a private page	file_path, favicon, url, action
ToolSearch	always	load deferred tool schemas	query, max_results

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How this was measured

Three methods, each more authoritative, and no network capture needed. The parameter schemas come straight from the running session.

• Ask, interactively: "list all your tools with their arguments."
• Headless, scriptable: claude -p "Introspect and list every tool… output markdown." One thing to know: headless -p exposes a reduced toolset. Artifact, AskUserQuestion, and the plan-mode tools don't appear (no interactive surface), so add them back by hand.
• Read the session logs: ~/.claude/projects/<encoded-cwd>/<session-uuid>.jsonl records the roster (tool_reference, deferred_tools_delta, skill_listing, agent_listing_delta) from the harness, independent of the model, though not the argument schemas (inputSchema isn't in the transcript).

The typed parameters above come from ToolSearch loading each deferred tool's full JSONSchema, the same definition the CLI would send on the wire, so a packet capture would only show what the session already hands over.