# Prompt Template

> A prompt template is a reusable prompt with placeholder variables that are filled in at run time, separating the fixed instructions from the per-request data.

- Identifier: PTL-0013
- Category: Foundations
- Canonical URL: https://protologue.com/t/prompt-template/
- Also known as: prompt scaffold

## Description

Templates make prompts testable and versionable, and they are the unit optimized by frameworks such as DSPy. Keeping untrusted data in clearly delimited slots also supports defenses against prompt injection.

## Broader terms

- [Prompt](https://protologue.com/t/prompt/)

## Related terms

- [Delimiters](https://protologue.com/t/delimiters/)
- [DSPy](https://protologue.com/t/dspy/)
- [Spotlighting](https://protologue.com/t/spotlighting/)

## Sources

- Schulhoff et al. (2024). The Prompt Report: A Systematic Survey of Prompt Engineering Techniques. https://arxiv.org/abs/2406.06608

## Cite this entry

Protologue. (2026). Prompt Template. In Protologue: A Taxonomy of Prompting and LLM Techniques (v1.0.0, PTL-0013). https://protologue.com/t/prompt-template/

License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)