Guide · Agent skill
How to use the Analogy Finder (ljg-analogy) agent skill
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
The ljg-analogy skill is a set of written instructions that tells an AI agent how to explain a concept or the difference between two things through a familiar everyday scene. Once installed, you ask for a comparison in plain language and get one carefully built analogy, with notes on where it stops working. This guide covers what the skill does, how to install it, how to trigger it, and where it should not be used.
Analogy Finder (ljg-analogy)lijigang/ljg-skills · MIT Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download the ZIP. Get the ljg-analogy ZIP file from this page.
- 2Unzip into a skills folder. Place the folder in ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use, or in .claude/skills/ inside a project.
- 3Or upload in the Claude apps. Open Settings, go to Capabilities, then Skills, and upload the skill.
- 4Describe the scene. Write what happens in the situation you want to understand and which relationship matters most.
- 5Ask in plain language. Use a trigger such as 找个类比 or 打个比方, or name ljg-analogy directly.
- 6Check the limits. Read the boundary note and do not use the analogy as proof.
What the ljg-analogy skill makes the agent do
The skill is built on structure-mapping theory. Its job is to find a scene you already know whose relationships match the relationships in the thing you want to understand. The agent keeps the key relationships, explains what the comparison adds, and states the limits of the transfer.
The skill names the thing you want to understand the target domain and the borrowed everyday scene the base domain. It searches from the target to the base, then carries knowledge back from the base to the target. The skill asks for a single, well-reasoned analogy rather than a list of loose ones.
- Finds one main analogy and walks through how the parts map onto each other.
- Compares two objects, products or mechanisms using a shared set of roles and relationships.
- Flags what the analogy cannot prove, so it is not mistaken for evidence.
- Respects requests for a particular audience, style or a single sentence.
Install the ljg-analogy skill
Download the ZIP file for the skill from this page. Unzip it so that the skill folder sits in one of these locations: your personal skills folder at ~/.claude/skills/, or a project folder at .claude/skills/ inside the project you work in. The folder contains SKILL.md, which holds the instructions, along with Theory.md, EvalCases.json and agents/openai.yaml.
If you use the Claude apps instead, open Settings, go to Capabilities, then Skills, and upload the skill there.
- Personal install: place the unzipped folder in ~/.claude/skills/.
- Project install: place the unzipped folder in .claude/skills/ inside your project.
- Claude apps: Settings → Capabilities → Skills, then upload.
How to trigger the skill with natural requests
You do not need special syntax. The skill's description lists the kinds of requests it responds to, and they are written in Chinese. Phrases such as 找个类比, 打个比方, 有什么精妙的隐喻, 用类比讲清两者区别 and 换个场景理解 are the main triggers. You can also name the skill directly by asking for ljg-analogy.
Give the agent a concrete situation and say what you want to see clearly. The more specific the relationship you care about, the more useful the analogy.
- Pick a scene: 找个类比，讲清我为什么要先做需求分析再写代码.
- Compare two things: 用类比讲清两者区别, one tool that delegates work and one that runs tasks in order.
- Ask for one line: 打个比方，只要一句.
Examples of good requests and what you get back
A good answer names the two scenes in one vivid sentence, then shows how each part of the everyday scene maps onto the part you asked about. For a comparison, the skill uses one shared set of roles so both sides stay comparable and the key differences show up. It then points out the spot where the analogy would mislead.
If your request is a short one, the skill returns only the single sentence. If you need text you can quote directly, it gives you a clean passage without commentary.
- Storing many articles but being unable to find one when needed: the skill focuses on the link between saving and retrieving, not on praising the size of the collection.
- Comparing two tools, one run step by step in a session and one that receives requests and hands them out: the skill keeps the differences in entry, routing and coordination.
- Describing a feeling of belonging in one line: the skill keeps the structure of sound, belonging and being awaited, and returns only that line.
What the skill needs and how it handles safety
The listed requirements are nothing beyond the skill itself. The skill does not run scripts and does not use the network for ordinary analogies. Building a scene from your own situation is done from the written instructions alone.
There is one exception. If the analogy depends on a scientific, historical or industry fact that is uncertain, the skill says to check it against primary sources using whatever search tool your agent has available. If that is not possible, it swaps in a reliable base scene or labels the scene explicitly as a hypothetical.
- Requires: nothing listed.
- Runs scripts: no.
- Uses network: no for everyday analogies; only for verifying uncertain facts, if your agent has search tools.
- The skill will not present an invented natural mechanism, historical event or famous person's story as fact.
Tips for getting a sharper analogy
Tell the agent what you need to understand: to identify something, to tell two things apart, or to predict a change. The skill chooses the analogy to match that task. State any power differences, time order or constraints you care about, since the skill keeps them rather than smoothing them away.
Remember that an analogy suggests a possibility. It does not prove that something is true, so do not use it as evidence in a decision or to explain social or political behaviour.
- Name the audience if it matters, for example a general Chinese-speaking reader or a class of students.
- If the situation is only one word, add a sentence of context so the skill can pick a useful scene.
- Ask for a second candidate if the first one does not fit. The skill will explain how the candidates differ in focus.
What people use it for
- Explaining a technical concept to students or colleagues with a familiar everyday scene.
- Clarifying how two tools, products or mechanisms differ in how they operate.
- Finding a memorable line for an article, talk or lesson.
- Seeing which relationship in a complicated situation an everyday comparison would hide or reveal.
Frequently asked questions
How do I install the ljg-analogy skill?
Download the ZIP from this page and unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use or into .claude/skills/ inside a project. In the Claude apps, you can instead upload it under Settings, then Capabilities, then Skills.
Does ljg-analogy need anything else to run?
The listed requirements are nothing. The skill runs no scripts and uses no network for ordinary analogies, so it works from its written instructions alone.
Is ljg-analogy free?
The skill is released under the MIT licence, as stated on this page. Check the licence file in the source repository for the full terms.
What is the difference between ljg-analogy and simply asking for a metaphor?
The skill builds a new analogy that keeps the key relationships of your situation, and it states where the comparison breaks down. It explicitly does not just explain an existing famous metaphor or polish prose style.
Why does the agent not answer when I ask it to prove a claim?
Analogies suggest possibilities and cannot establish that something is true. The skill is built to flag that limit, so use the output for explaining or thinking, not as evidence in a decision.
The skill did not trigger. What should I check?
Confirm the folder is in ~/.claude/skills/ or the project's .claude/skills/, or that the upload finished under Settings, Capabilities, Skills. Then use a trigger phrase such as 打个比方 or name ljg-analogy directly.
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Our verdict
Use this skill if you need one memorable, well-reasoned analogy to explain a concept or to separate two similar things, and you want it to say where it fails. Pick something else if you need to check facts, prove a claim, or get a plain explanation of an existing famous metaphor, since the skill is designed to exclude those tasks.
Download the skill