Archetypes

Archetypes are style presets defined within a lexicon. They combine tag activation, distribution overrides, and config adjustments into a named profile you can switch between at runtime.

Structure

{
  "archetypes": {
    "corporate": {
      "tags": ["register:formal", "domain:business"],
      "distributions": {
        "sentenceTypes": "sentenceTypes.corporate",
        "termSetBias": "termSetBias.domain:business"
      },
      "overrides": {
        "interjectionRate": 0.02,
        "subordinateClauseRate": 0.12,
        "questionRate": 0.01
      }
    }
  }
}

Fields

Field	Type	Description
tags	string[]	Tags to activate when this archetype is used
distributions	Record<string, string>	Named references to distribution tables
overrides	Record<string, number>	Config field overrides
outputTransforms	ArchetypeOutputTransforms	Transform pipeline overrides

How archetypes work

When you activate an archetype:

1. Tags are activated – The archetype’s tags bias word selection toward matching term sets. A tag like "domain:business" causes term sets tagged with "domain:business" to be preferred.

2. Distributions are applied – Named distribution tables override the default sentence type weights and term set biases.

3. Config overrides merge – Numeric config fields like rates and limits are adjusted.

4. Transform pipelines change – If the archetype defines outputTransforms, those override the lexicon defaults.

Activating an archetype

In code

const generator = new TextGenerator({
  fakerAdapter: new SimpleFakerAdapter(),
  lexicon,
});

generator.setArchetype('corporate');
console.log(generator.paragraph());

From the CLI

malarky paragraph --lexicon ./corp.json --archetype corporate

Override-able config fields

These fields can be overridden by an archetype’s overrides:

Field	Description
interjectionRate	Rate of interjection sentences (0-1)
subordinateClauseRate	Rate of subordinate clauses (0-1)
relativeClauseRate	Rate of relative clauses (0-1)
questionRate	Rate of question sentences (0-1)
compoundRate	Rate of compound sentences (0-1)
maxPPChain	Max prepositional phrase chains
avgSentenceLength	Target average sentence length

Full example: corporate archetype

This example from the included corporate lexicon shows all the pieces working together:

{
  "id": "lexicon.corporate.min",
  "language": "en",
  "termSets": {
    "noun.business": {
      "pos": "noun",
      "tags": ["domain:business", "register:formal"],
      "terms": [
        { "value": "strategy", "weight": 5 },
        { "value": "initiative", "weight": 4 },
        { "value": "stakeholder", "weight": 4 },
        { "value": "synergy", "weight": 3 }
      ]
    },
    "verb.business": {
      "pos": "verb",
      "tags": ["domain:business"],
      "terms": [
        { "value": "leverage", "weight": 4 },
        { "value": "optimize", "weight": 4 },
        { "value": "streamline", "weight": 3 }
      ]
    }
  },
  "distributions": {
    "sentenceTypes.corporate": [
      { "key": "simpleDeclarative", "weight": 50 },
      { "key": "compound", "weight": 20 },
      { "key": "introAdverbial", "weight": 15 },
      { "key": "subordinate", "weight": 12 },
      { "key": "interjection", "weight": 2 },
      { "key": "question", "weight": 1 }
    ]
  },
  "archetypes": {
    "corporate": {
      "tags": ["register:formal", "domain:business"],
      "distributions": {
        "sentenceTypes": "sentenceTypes.corporate"
      },
      "overrides": {
        "interjectionRate": 0.02,
        "subordinateClauseRate": 0.12,
        "questionRate": 0.01
      }
    }
  }
}

The corporate archetype:

• Activates register:formal and domain:business tags, biasing word selection toward business term sets
• Uses the sentenceTypes.corporate distribution, which heavily favors declarative sentences (50%) and rarely asks questions (1%)
• Lowers interjection and question rates while slightly reducing subordinate clause frequency

Per-archetype transforms

Archetypes can define their own transform pipelines that override the lexicon defaults:

{
  "archetypes": {
    "pirate-corp": {
      "tags": ["domain:business"],
      "outputTransforms": {
        "pipeline": [{ "id": "pirate" }, { "id": "bizJargon" }]
      }
    }
  }
}

The merge order is: base config -> lexicon defaults -> archetype transforms -> per-call overrides. See Output Transforms > Chaining & Configuration for details.