Definition
Plain language
A way of doing something that looks like a solution but is known to cause trouble.
As stated in the literature
A recurring design or implementation pattern that is locally convenient but produces known failure modes; named anti-patterns are common in code review and security checklists.
Also called: anti-patterns, antipattern
Why it matters: Naming an anti-pattern gives reviewers a quick shared label for "this works today and will hurt you later," so bad habits get caught before they spread.
For example, wrapping every risky operation in a catch-all that silently ignores errors makes the program stop crashing, but it also hides the bugs you needed to see.
Heard on the show
“Those are the anti-patterns, the "don't do this again" notes.”Episode 186 — How a Frozen Model Went From 2% to 77% on Physics Puzzles — Without Retraining