Clarify
AI-powered code explanations, inline in your editor. Highlight any code, press Shift+E, and get a structured explanation generated by OpenAI or Claude — without leaving VS Code.
Features
Inline ghost text — a one-line summary appears at the end of your selection as the AI generates it, updating live as tokens stream in.
Rich hover card — hover over the highlighted code to see the full structured explanation:
- Summary
- Parameter descriptions (name, type, purpose)
- Return value
- Edge cases and gotchas
Insert as comment — click Insert as comment in the hover card, or right-click the selection and choose Clarify: Insert Explanation as Comment, to permanently add a language-appropriate block comment above the selection.
File context awareness — Clarify automatically includes the surrounding code (up to clarify.contextLines lines, default 50) when sending your selection to the AI. The model sees what comes before and after, so it can explain a function in terms of how it's actually called, what data flows through it, and what the broader module is doing — not just the snippet in isolation.
Multi-provider — use OpenAI (GPT-4o, GPT-4o Mini, GPT-4 Turbo, GPT-3.5 Turbo) or Anthropic (Claude Opus 4.8, Sonnet 4.6, Haiku 4.5). Switch providers at any time from settings.
Streaming responses — the ghost text updates character-by-character as the explanation is generated, so you see progress immediately and long explanations never time out.
Works in any language — Python, TypeScript, JavaScript, Java, C/C++, C#, Go, Rust, Ruby, SQL, Lua, Shell, and more. Comment style adapts automatically (JSDoc for JS/TS, # for Python, -- for SQL, etc.).
Requirements
An API key for your chosen provider:
Setup
- Open the Command Palette (
Ctrl+Shift+P / Cmd+Shift+P) and run Clarify: Open Settings.
- Set
clarify.provider to openai or claude.
- Paste your API key into
clarify.openaiApiKey or clarify.anthropicApiKey.
- Optionally pick a model and adjust
clarify.contextLines.
Usage
- Select at least one full line of code in the editor.
- Press Shift+E — the ghost text updates live as the explanation streams in.
- Hover over the selection to read the full explanation.
- Click Insert as comment in the hover to add it permanently above the selection.
To change the keybinding: open Keyboard Shortcuts (Ctrl+K Ctrl+S), search for Clarify: Explain Selected Code, and assign your preferred key.
Extension Settings
| Setting |
Default |
Description |
clarify.provider |
openai |
AI provider: openai or claude. |
clarify.openaiApiKey |
"" |
Your OpenAI API key. Stored as plain text in settings.json. |
clarify.model |
gpt-4o |
OpenAI model. Options: gpt-4o, gpt-4o-mini, gpt-4-turbo, gpt-3.5-turbo. |
clarify.anthropicApiKey |
"" |
Your Anthropic API key. Stored as plain text in settings.json. |
clarify.claudeModel |
claude-opus-4-8 |
Claude model. Options: claude-opus-4-8, claude-sonnet-4-6, claude-haiku-4-5-20251001. |
clarify.contextLines |
50 |
Lines of surrounding file content sent as context. Set to 0 to send only the selection. |
Commands
| Command |
Default keybinding |
| Clarify: Explain Selected Code |
Shift+E (when text is selected) |
| Clarify: Insert Explanation as Comment |
— (also in right-click menu) |
| Clarify: Open Settings |
— |
Known Issues
- The
Shift+E keybinding intercepts the normal behaviour of typing E to replace a selection. If this conflicts with your workflow, rebind the command to something like Alt+Shift+E.
- API keys are stored as plain text in VS Code's
settings.json. Avoid committing that file to source control if it contains your key.
