diff --git a/scripts/check-comment-citations.mjs b/scripts/check-comment-citations.mjs
index 260db990e5..51363a0327 100644
--- a/scripts/check-comment-citations.mjs
+++ b/scripts/check-comment-citations.mjs
@@ -882,6 +882,19 @@ export function checkComments(root, files, scope = { kind: "all" }) {
   return { failures: [...failures, ...blockFailures], warnings, examined };
 }
 
+export function generatedPaths(root, ref, paths) {
+  if (paths.length === 0) return new Set();
+  const attributes = execFileSync(
+    "git",
+    ["check-attr", `--source=${ref}`, "-z", "--stdin", "linguist-generated"],
+    { cwd: root, encoding: "utf8", input: `${paths.join("\0")}\0`, maxBuffer: 64e6 },
+  ).split("\0");
+  const generated = new Set();
+  for (let i = 0; i + 2 < attributes.length; i += 3)
+    if (["set", "true"].includes(attributes[i + 2])) generated.add(attributes[i]);
+  return generated;
+}
+
 function mergeBase(root, ref) {
   return execFileSync("git", ["merge-base", ref, "HEAD"], { cwd: root, encoding: "utf8" }).trim();
 }
@@ -994,8 +1007,10 @@ if (process.argv[1] && import.meta.url === `file://${process.argv[1]}`) {
   const base =
     explicit.length > 0 ? null : mergeBase(root, process.env.COMMENT_CHECK_BASE ?? "origin/main");
   // The probe is graded by the self-check only, or every PR that edits it would go red.
-  const files =
+  const candidates =
     base === null ? explicit : changedFiles(root, base).filter((file) => file !== PROBE);
+  const generated = base === null ? new Set() : generatedPaths(root, base, candidates);
+  const files = candidates.filter((file) => !generated.has(file));
   const scope = base === null ? { kind: "all" } : { kind: "lines", ...diffScope(root, base) };
   const { failures, warnings, examined } = checkComments(root, files, scope);
 
diff --git a/scripts/check-comment-citations.test.mjs b/scripts/check-comment-citations.test.mjs
index 20b66219b5..dd9695259a 100644
--- a/scripts/check-comment-citations.test.mjs
+++ b/scripts/check-comment-citations.test.mjs
@@ -653,6 +653,47 @@ function runCli(t, base, head, args = [], overrides = {}) {
 }
 
 const KIT = { "src/kit.ts": ["export const needsReview = 1;", ""].join("\n") };
+const GENERATED = "src/_gen/output.ts";
+const ATTRIBUTES = { ".gitattributes": "src/_gen/** linguist-generated=true\n" };
+
+for (const exists of [false, true])
+  test(`the CLI skips base-marked generated citations, existing ${exists}`, (t) => {
+    const base = { ...KIT, ...ATTRIBUTES, ...(exists ? { [GENERATED]: KIT["src/kit.ts"] } : {}) };
+    const head = {
+      ...base,
+      [GENERATED]: "// The `missing.ts` module owns this.\nexport const value = 1;\n",
+    };
+    const { status, output } = runCli(t, base, head);
+    assert.equal(status, 0, output);
+  });
+
+test("the CLI does not accept a citation exemption added by the change", (t) => {
+  const { status, output } = runCli(t, KIT, {
+    ...KIT,
+    ...ATTRIBUTES,
+    [GENERATED]: "// The `missing.ts` module owns this.\nexport const value = 1;\n",
+  });
+  assert.equal(status, 1, output);
+});
+
+for (const attribute of ["linguist-generated", "linguist-generated=false", "-linguist-generated"])
+  test(`the CLI respects the base attribute ${attribute}`, (t) => {
+    const base = { ...KIT, ".gitattributes": `src/_gen/** ${attribute}\n` };
+    const { status, output } = runCli(t, base, {
+      ...base,
+      [GENERATED]: "// The `missing.ts` module owns this.\nexport const value = 1;\n",
+    });
+    assert.equal(status, attribute === "linguist-generated" ? 0 : 1, output);
+  });
+
+test("generated source remains a valid citation target", (t) => {
+  const base = { ...KIT, ...ATTRIBUTES, [GENERATED]: "export const value = 1;\n" };
+  const { status, output } = runCli(t, base, {
+    ...base,
+    "src/subject.ts": "// The `src/_gen/output.ts` module owns this.\nexport const subject = 1;\n",
+  });
+  assert.equal(status, 0, output);
+});
 const explains = (symbol) =>
   oneLiner(
     `// The kit stops carrying \`${symbol}\`: the verdict map owns what a review row means.`,
diff --git a/scripts/comment-ratchet.mjs b/scripts/comment-ratchet.mjs
index c86717fcc4..40d06f33a1 100644
--- a/scripts/comment-ratchet.mjs
+++ b/scripts/comment-ratchet.mjs
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@
 import { execFileSync } from "node:child_process";
 import { readFileSync } from "node:fs";
 import { extname } from "node:path";
-import { commentBlocks } from "./check-comment-citations.mjs";
+import { commentBlocks, generatedPaths } from "./check-comment-citations.mjs";
 
 const MAX_BLOCK_LINES = 12;
 
@@ -100,10 +100,10 @@ function atBase(ref, file) {
 
 // The bar for a new file: its package's share over files that existed at the base, so new files
 // never set their own bar. A package that is new as a whole is held to every package's share.
-function packageTotal(dir, isNew) {
+function packageTotal(dir, isNew, generated) {
   return git(["ls-files", dir])
     .split("\n")
-    .filter((file) => isSource(file) && !isNew.has(file))
+    .filter((file) => isSource(file) && !isNew.has(file) && !generated.has(file))
     .reduce(
       (sum, file) => {
         const entry = measure(readFileSync(file, "utf8"), extname(file));
@@ -113,16 +113,21 @@ function packageTotal(dir, isNew) {
     );
 }
 
-function packageShare(pkg, isNew) {
-  const own = packageTotal(`${pkg}/src`, isNew);
-  return share(own.lines > 0 ? own : packageTotal("packages", isNew));
+function packageShare(pkg, isNew, generated) {
+  const own = packageTotal(`${pkg}/src`, isNew, generated);
+  return share(own.lines > 0 ? own : packageTotal("packages", isNew, generated));
 }
 
 if (process.argv[1] && import.meta.url === `file://${process.argv[1]}`) {
   const ref = git(["merge-base", process.env.COMMENT_CHECK_BASE ?? "origin/main", "HEAD"]).trim();
+  const generated = generatedPaths(
+    process.cwd(),
+    ref,
+    git(["ls-files", "packages"]).split("\n").filter(Boolean),
+  );
   // Against the working tree, where contents are read from; in CI that is HEAD.
   const changed = changedPaths(git(["diff", "--name-status", "-M", ref, "--", "packages"]))
-    .filter(({ status, to }) => status !== "D" && isSource(to))
+    .filter(({ status, to }) => status !== "D" && isSource(to) && !generated.has(to))
     .sort((a, b) => a.to.localeCompare(b.to));
 
   const graded = changed.map(({ from, to }) => ({ to, onBase: atBase(ref, from) }));
@@ -132,7 +137,7 @@ if (process.argv[1] && import.meta.url === `file://${process.argv[1]}`) {
   for (const { to, onBase } of graded) {
     const head = measure(readFileSync(to, "utf8"), extname(to));
     const pkg = packageOf(to);
-    if (onBase === null && !shares.has(pkg)) shares.set(pkg, packageShare(pkg, isNew));
+    if (onBase === null && !shares.has(pkg)) shares.set(pkg, packageShare(pkg, isNew, generated));
     const base = onBase === null ? null : measure(onBase, extname(to));
     problems.push(...judge(to, head, base, shares.get(pkg) ?? 0));
   }
diff --git a/scripts/comment-ratchet.test.mjs b/scripts/comment-ratchet.test.mjs
index 3cbc632287..ff78da3115 100644
--- a/scripts/comment-ratchet.test.mjs
+++ b/scripts/comment-ratchet.test.mjs
@@ -209,6 +209,36 @@ function runCli(t, base, head) {
 
 const FILE = "packages/web/src/a.ts";
 const code = "export const a = 1;\nexport const b = 2;\nexport const c = 3;\n";
+const GENERATED = "packages/web/src/_gen/output.ts";
+const ATTRIBUTES = { ".gitattributes": "packages/web/src/_gen/** linguist-generated=true\n" };
+
+for (const exists of [false, true])
+  test(`the CLI skips base-marked generated output, existing ${exists}`, (t) => {
+    const base = { ...ATTRIBUTES, [FILE]: code, ...(exists ? { [GENERATED]: code } : {}) };
+    const { status, output } = runCli(t, base, {
+      ...base,
+      [GENERATED]: `// generated docs\n${code}`,
+    });
+    assert.equal(status, 0, output);
+  });
+
+test("the CLI does not accept a generated exemption added by the change", (t) => {
+  const base = { [FILE]: code, [GENERATED]: code };
+  const { status, output } = runCli(t, base, {
+    ...base,
+    ...ATTRIBUTES,
+    [GENERATED]: `// authored docs\n${code}`,
+  });
+  assert.equal(status, 1, output);
+});
+
+test("generated comments do not raise the bar for new authored source", (t) => {
+  const base = { ...ATTRIBUTES, [FILE]: code, [GENERATED]: `${wall(30)}\n${code}` };
+  const fresh = "packages/web/src/new.ts";
+  const { status, output } = runCli(t, base, { ...base, [fresh]: `// authored docs\n${code}` });
+  assert.equal(status, 1, output);
+  assert.match(output, /NEW file over its package's comment share/);
+});
 
 test("the CLI fails a diff that adds comment lines to a package source file", (t) => {
   const { status, output } = runCli(t, { [FILE]: code }, { [FILE]: `// why b is two\n${code}` });