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Activate skill tool (activate_skill)

The activate_skill tool lets Gemini CLI load specialized procedural expertise and resources when they are relevant to your request.

Description​

Skills are packages of instructions and tools designed for specific engineering tasks, such as reviewing code or creating pull requests. Gemini CLI uses this tool to "activate" a skill, which provides it with detailed guidelines and specialized tools tailored to that task.

Arguments​

activate_skill takes one argument:

  • name (enum, required): The name of the skill to activate (for example, code-reviewer, pr-creator, or docs-writer).

Usage​

The activate_skill tool is used exclusively by the Gemini agent. You cannot invoke this tool manually.

When the agent identifies that a task matches a discovered skill, it requests to activate that skill. Once activated, the agent's behavior is guided by the skill's specific instructions until the task is complete.

Behavior​

The agent uses this tool to provide professional-grade assistance:

  • Specialized logic: Skills contain expert-level procedures for complex workflows.
  • Dynamic capability: Activating a skill can grant the agent access to new, task-specific tools.
  • Contextual awareness: Skills help the agent focus on the most relevant standards and conventions for a particular task.

Next steps​