Clean Code Rules for AI Code Generation

These rules guide code generation to produce maintainable, professional-quality code.

Meaningful Names

• Use intention-revealing names that explain why something exists
• Avoid disinformation and meaningless distinctions (e.g., data, info, manager)
• Use pronounceable, searchable names
• Class names: nouns (e.g., UserAccount, PaymentProcessor)
• Method names: verbs (e.g., calculateTotal, sendEmail)
• Avoid mental mapping and encodings (Hungarian notation, prefixes)

Functions

• Keep functions small (< 20 lines ideal)
• Do one thing only - Single Responsibility Principle
• One level of abstraction per function
• Limit arguments: 0-2 ideal, 3 maximum, avoid flag arguments
• No side effects - function should do what its name says
• Separate commands (change state) from queries (return info)
• Prefer exceptions over error codes