CC - Tools & Asking Questions

Getting to Know the Tools

Claude has a set of built-in tools — things it can do on your behalf. To see the full list, just ask it:

✏️ Run this prompt:

List out all of your built-in tools.

Claude can read and write files, run terminal commands, search the web, create tasks, ask you questions, and more. When you're writing prompts, it's worth knowing what tools are available — because you can reference them directly and tell Claude exactly which one to use.

Asking Questions

Normally you prompt Claude Code, it responds, and the interaction ends. But what if Claude Code needs information from you before it can do its job well? That's what the AskUserQuestion tool is for.

When you tell Claude Code to use AskUserQuestion, it pauses and presents you with a structured question — multiple choice, checkboxes, or free text — before continuing. It's a clean two-way exchange that doesn't require you to start a new message. You answer, and Claude Code picks up right where it left off.

This is useful any time the agent needs to collect input from a user as part of a workflow. Instead of just guessing or asking generically in a chat reply, Claude Code can ask specific, formatted questions and present specific options, which keeps the user focused and the output accurate.

Try It

✏️ Run this prompt:

Use the AskUserQuestion tool to ask me what my favorite book is.

Claude Code will present a question with a fill-in field. Answer it, and Claude Code will acknowledge your response.

Now try controlling the format:

✏️ Run this prompt:

Use the AskUserQuestion tool to ask me what my favorite book is. 
Give me checkboxes

This time Claude Code gives you choices to click rather than a blank text field. You can use multiple choice, checkboxes, or free text depending on what kind of input you need.

You can also use AskUserQuestion for an extended back-and-forth. Try this:

✏️ Run this prompt:

Let's play 20 questions. 
Use the AskUserQuestion tool to ask me yes/no questions 
until you can guess what I'm thinking of.

Claude Code will keep prompting you, one question at a time, until it has enough to make a guess. This shows how the tool can drive an entire interactive flow — no manual re-prompting needed.

✏️ Exercise

Write a prompt asking the agent to use the AskUserQuestion tool to interview you about your role at Bitovi with 5 questions

After the interview, the agent should create an employee_profile.md file at the root directory of the project summarizing the info.

BONUS: Give the agent a persona in the prompt

“You are a senior software engineer…”
“You are a hiring manager…”
“You are Rita Skeeter from Harry Potter…”
“You are Elvis Presley…”

You are a hiring manager.

Interview me about my role at Bitovi with 5 questions. 
Use the AskUserQuestion tool for each question.

Once the interview is complete, compile my answers into an employee-profile.md file 
at the root of the project.

Answer each question as it comes up. When you're done, check your project root — you should have a new employee-profile.md with your answers summarized.

Next: CC - Checklists & Todos