# Separate facts, assumptions, opinions, and unknowns in a document

Sorts every important claim in a document, plan, or pitch into fact, assumption, opinion, or unknown, so you know what to trust and test.

- Topic: Thinking & Decisions
- Framework: Few-Shot
- Level: Standard
- Tags: Analyze, Fill-in Template
- Source: https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/prompts/separate-facts-assumptions-opinions-and-unknowns-in-a-document

## Prompt

```text
Analyze the material below and separate what is known from what is assumed or believed.

**Material:** [PASTE - e.g. business case, proposal, vendor pitch, report, email thread]
**What I'm using it for:** [e.g. "deciding whether to approve the budget"]

Classify every important statement:
- **Fact** - verifiable, with evidence or a source given in the material.
- **Assumption** - treated as true but not shown (e.g. forecasts, "customers will...", "this will save...").
- **Opinion** - a judgment, preference, or interpretation.
- **Unknown** - something important the material doesn't address or admits it doesn't know.

Return:
1. **Classification table:** | Statement (quoted or paraphrased) | Type | Evidence given | How it could be verified or tested | Importance to my decision (high / medium / low) |
2. **Riskiest assumptions** - the 3-5 assumptions that, if wrong, would most change the conclusion.
3. **Opinions dressed as facts** - statements written as certain that are really judgments.
4. **Critical unknowns** - what I should find out before relying on this, and who could tell me.
5. **Overall reliability** - a short, plain assessment of how much the conclusion rests on facts vs. assumptions.

Rules:
- Classify based on what the material shows, not whether you agree with it.
- Don't verify facts from memory as if checked; say "verify against [type of source]".
```

## What to fill in

- e.g. "deciding whether to approve the budget"
- type of source

Free to copy and use. From ThinkWithPrompt (https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/), a library of 2,663 curated AI prompts.