Metaphors in your prompt silently steer the model toward slower algorithms

arXiv 2607.28683·medium signalXBlueskyLinkedInCopy link

Metaphorical instructions trigger analogical transfer of procedural mechanisms from the source domain into generated code, pushing models toward exhaustive search, full scans, or repeated reconstruction without ever naming an algorithm. The MASC framework iteratively metaphorizes and refines benign skills to elicit low-efficiency code while staying benign and task-relevant, and the authors trace the effect to a hidden-state shift toward lower-efficiency procedural prototypes — mechanistic, not a surface linguistic artifact. Practical consequence: colorful framing like "sweep through" or "comb the list" in a prompt or a skill file is not stylistic, it is an algorithmic hint, so state complexity requirements explicitly.