codeflash-agent/.tessl/tiles/tessl/pypi-anthropic/docs/quick-reference/tools.md

Tools API - Quick Reference

Compact API signatures for tool use (function calling). For examples, see Tools API Reference.

Decorators

def beta_tool(func: Callable) -> BetaFunctionTool:
    """
    Convert sync function to tool with auto-generated schema.
    Function must have type hints and docstring.
    """
    ...

def beta_async_tool(func: Callable) -> BetaAsyncFunctionTool:
    """
    Convert async function to tool with auto-generated schema.
    Function must have type hints and docstring.
    """
    ...

Tool Runner

def tool_runner(
    self,
    *,
    model: str,
    messages: list[MessageParam],
    max_tokens: int,
    tools: list[ToolParam | BetaFunctionTool],
    tool_choice: ToolChoice = NOT_GIVEN,
    **kwargs  # Additional messages.create() parameters
) -> Iterator[BetaMessage]:
    """
    Auto-execute tools in agentic loop.
    Yields message after each turn until stop_reason == "end_turn".
    """
    ...

Async: async def tool_runner(...) -> AsyncIterator[BetaMessage]

Tool Types

class ToolParam(TypedDict):
    name: str                              # Tool identifier
    description: str                       # Tool purpose (for Claude)
    input_schema: dict[str, Any]           # JSON Schema (draft 2020-12)
    cache_control: NotRequired[CacheControlEphemeral]

ToolChoice = Union[
    ToolChoiceAuto,      # Let Claude decide (default)
    ToolChoiceAny,       # Force Claude to use any tool
    ToolChoiceNone,      # Disable tools
    ToolChoiceTool,      # Force specific tool
]

class ToolChoiceAuto(TypedDict):
    type: Literal["auto"]
    disable_parallel_tool_use: NotRequired[bool]

class ToolChoiceAny(TypedDict):
    type: Literal["any"]
    disable_parallel_tool_use: NotRequired[bool]

class ToolChoiceTool(TypedDict):
    type: Literal["tool"]
    name: str  # Tool name to force
    disable_parallel_tool_use: NotRequired[bool]

Response Types

class ToolUseBlock(BaseModel):
    """Tool invocation in assistant response"""
    type: Literal["tool_use"]
    id: str                    # Use in tool_result
    name: str                  # Tool name
    input: dict[str, Any]      # Tool parameters

class ToolResultBlockParam(TypedDict):
    """Tool result in user message"""
    type: Literal["tool_result"]
    tool_use_id: str           # ID from ToolUseBlock
    content: NotRequired[str | list[TextBlockParam | ImageBlockParam]]
    is_error: NotRequired[bool]  # True if tool execution failed
    cache_control: NotRequired[CacheControlEphemeral]

Function Tool Classes

class BetaFunctionTool:
    name: str
    description: str
    input_schema: dict[str, Any]
    func: Callable

    def __call__(self, **kwargs) -> Any: ...
    def to_param(self) -> ToolParam: ...

class BetaAsyncFunctionTool:
    name: str
    description: str
    input_schema: dict[str, Any]
    func: Callable

    async def __call__(self, **kwargs) -> Any: ...
    def to_param(self) -> ToolParam: ...

Common Patterns

# Decorator usage
@beta_tool
def get_weather(location: str, unit: str = "fahrenheit") -> dict:
    """Get weather for location.

    Args:
        location: City and state
        unit: Temperature unit
    """
    return {"temp": 72, "unit": unit}

# Tool runner (auto-execution)
for message in client.beta.messages.tool_runner(
    model="claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929",
    max_tokens=1024,
    tools=[get_weather],
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "What's the weather in NYC?"}]
):
    if message.stop_reason == "end_turn":
        print(message.content[0].text)

# Manual tool handling
message = client.messages.create(
    model="claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929",
    max_tokens=1024,
    tools=[get_weather.to_param()],
    messages=[...]
)

# Extract tool use
for block in message.content:
    if block.type == "tool_use":
        result = get_weather(**block.input)
        # Send result back in next request

See Also

• Complete Tools Documentation - Full details and examples
• Tool Integration Tasks - Task-oriented guide
• Tool Usage Guide - Advanced patterns