diff --git a/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/implementation/EdgeKind.qll b/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/implementation/EdgeKind.qll
index 650c15f189a..3de1d4b6028 100644
--- a/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/implementation/EdgeKind.qll
+++ b/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/implementation/EdgeKind.qll
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ private newtype TEdgeKind =
  * `EdgeKind`.
  */
 abstract class EdgeKind extends TEdgeKind {
+  /** Gets a textual representation of this edge kind. */
   abstract string toString();
 }
 
@@ -28,6 +29,10 @@ class GotoEdge extends EdgeKind, TGotoEdge {
   final override string toString() { result = "Goto" }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Gets the single instance of `GotoEdge`, representing the unconditional successor of an
+ * `Instruction`
+ */
 GotoEdge gotoEdge() { result = TGotoEdge() }
 
 /**
@@ -38,6 +43,10 @@ class TrueEdge extends EdgeKind, TTrueEdge {
   final override string toString() { result = "True" }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Gets the single instance of `TrueEdge`, representing the successor of a conditional branch when
+ * the condition is non-zero.
+ */
 TrueEdge trueEdge() { result = TTrueEdge() }
 
 /**
@@ -48,6 +57,10 @@ class FalseEdge extends EdgeKind, TFalseEdge {
   final override string toString() { result = "False" }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Gets the single instance of `FalseEdge`, representing the successor of a conditional branch when
+ * the condition is zero.
+ */
 FalseEdge falseEdge() { result = TFalseEdge() }
 
 /**
@@ -58,6 +71,10 @@ class ExceptionEdge extends EdgeKind, TExceptionEdge {
   final override string toString() { result = "Exception" }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Gets the single instance of `ExceptionEdge`, representing the successor of an instruction when
+ * that instruction's evaluation throws an exception.
+ */
 ExceptionEdge exceptionEdge() { result = TExceptionEdge() }
 
 /**
@@ -68,6 +85,10 @@ class DefaultEdge extends EdgeKind, TDefaultEdge {
   final override string toString() { result = "Default" }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Gets the single instance of `DefaultEdge`, representing the successor of a `Switch` instruction
+ * when none of the case values matches the condition value.
+ */
 DefaultEdge defaultEdge() { result = TDefaultEdge() }
 
 /**
@@ -91,4 +112,8 @@ class CaseEdge extends EdgeKind, TCaseEdge {
   string getMaxValue() { result = maxValue }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Gets the `CaseEdge` representing the successor of a `Switch` instruction corresponding to the
+ * `case` label with the specified lower and upper bounds.
+ */
 CaseEdge caseEdge(string minValue, string maxValue) { result = TCaseEdge(minValue, maxValue) }
diff --git a/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/implementation/TempVariableTag.qll b/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/implementation/TempVariableTag.qll
index ec6de78cfa4..384c1849f2d 100644
--- a/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/implementation/TempVariableTag.qll
+++ b/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/implementation/TempVariableTag.qll
@@ -1,6 +1,15 @@
+/**
+ * Defines the public interface to temporary variable tags, which describe the reason a particular
+ * `IRTempVariable` was generated.
+ */
 private import internal.TempVariableTagInternal
 private import Imports::TempVariableTag
 
+/**
+ * Describes the reason that a particular IR temporary variable was generated. For example, it could
+ * be generated to hold the return value of a function, or to hold the result of a `?:` operator
+ * computed on each branch. The set of possible `TempVariableTag`s is language-dependent.
+ */
 class TempVariableTag extends TTempVariableTag {
   string toString() { result = getTempVariableTagId(this) }
 }
diff --git a/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/implementation/internal/OperandTag.qll b/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/implementation/internal/OperandTag.qll
index 227b1a34041..dd3a77d5229 100644
--- a/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/implementation/internal/OperandTag.qll
+++ b/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/implementation/internal/OperandTag.qll
@@ -1,3 +1,7 @@
+/**
+ * Defines the set of possible `OperandTag`s, which are used to identify the role each `Operand`
+ * plays in the evaluation of its `Instruction`.
+ */
 private import OperandTagInternal
 
 private newtype TOperandTag =
@@ -24,10 +28,18 @@ private newtype TOperandTag =
  * an `Instruction` is determined by the instruction's opcode.
  */
 abstract class OperandTag extends TOperandTag {
+  /** Gets a textual representation of this operand tag */
   abstract string toString();
 
+  /**
+   * Gets an integer representing the order in which this operand should appear in the operand list
+   * of an instruction when printing the IR.
+   */
   abstract int getSortOrder();
 
+  /**
+   * Gets a label that will appear before the operand when printing the IR.
+   */
   string getLabel() { result = "" }
 }
 
diff --git a/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/internal/CppType.qll b/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/internal/CppType.qll
index d297097abd9..c27701f6acd 100644
--- a/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/internal/CppType.qll
+++ b/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/internal/CppType.qll
@@ -203,6 +203,7 @@ private newtype TCppType =
  *   of a `VariableAddress` where the variable is of reference type)
  */
 class CppType extends TCppType {
+  /** Gets a textual representation of this type. */
   string toString() { none() }
 
   /** Gets a string used in IR dumps */
@@ -224,6 +225,10 @@ class CppType extends TCppType {
    */
   predicate hasType(Type type, boolean isGLValue) { none() }
 
+  /**
+   * Holds if this type represents the C++ type `type`. If `isGLValue` is `true`, then this type
+   * represents a glvalue of type `type`. Otherwise, it represents a prvalue of type `type`.
+   */
   final predicate hasUnspecifiedType(Type type, boolean isGLValue) {
     exists(Type specifiedType |
       hasType(specifiedType, isGLValue) and
@@ -540,6 +545,9 @@ string getOpaqueTagIdentityString(Type tag) {
 }
 
 module LanguageTypeSanity {
+  /**
+   * Sanity query to detect C++ `Type` objects which have no corresponding `CppType` object.
+   */
   query predicate missingCppType(Type type, string message) {
     not exists(getTypeForPRValue(type)) and
     exists(type.getSize()) and
diff --git a/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/internal/IntegerConstant.qll b/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/internal/IntegerConstant.qll
index 6034ebc5674..6d71ca9f798 100644
--- a/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/internal/IntegerConstant.qll
+++ b/cpp/ql/src/semmle/code/cpp/ir/internal/IntegerConstant.qll
@@ -1,3 +1,15 @@
+/**
+ * Provides predicates for manipulating integer constants tracked by constant folding and similar
+ * analyses.
+ */
+
+/**
+ * An alias used to represent the constant value of an integer, if one can be determined. If no
+ * single constant value can be determined, or if the constant value is out of the representable
+ * range, it will be represented as the special value `unknown()`. This allows `IntValue` to be used
+ * in contexts where there must always be a value for the `IntValue`, even if no constant value is
+ * known.
+ */
 class IntValue = int;
 
 /**
diff --git a/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/implementation/EdgeKind.qll b/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/implementation/EdgeKind.qll
index 650c15f189a..3de1d4b6028 100644
--- a/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/implementation/EdgeKind.qll
+++ b/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/implementation/EdgeKind.qll
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ private newtype TEdgeKind =
  * `EdgeKind`.
  */
 abstract class EdgeKind extends TEdgeKind {
+  /** Gets a textual representation of this edge kind. */
   abstract string toString();
 }
 
@@ -28,6 +29,10 @@ class GotoEdge extends EdgeKind, TGotoEdge {
   final override string toString() { result = "Goto" }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Gets the single instance of `GotoEdge`, representing the unconditional successor of an
+ * `Instruction`
+ */
 GotoEdge gotoEdge() { result = TGotoEdge() }
 
 /**
@@ -38,6 +43,10 @@ class TrueEdge extends EdgeKind, TTrueEdge {
   final override string toString() { result = "True" }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Gets the single instance of `TrueEdge`, representing the successor of a conditional branch when
+ * the condition is non-zero.
+ */
 TrueEdge trueEdge() { result = TTrueEdge() }
 
 /**
@@ -48,6 +57,10 @@ class FalseEdge extends EdgeKind, TFalseEdge {
   final override string toString() { result = "False" }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Gets the single instance of `FalseEdge`, representing the successor of a conditional branch when
+ * the condition is zero.
+ */
 FalseEdge falseEdge() { result = TFalseEdge() }
 
 /**
@@ -58,6 +71,10 @@ class ExceptionEdge extends EdgeKind, TExceptionEdge {
   final override string toString() { result = "Exception" }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Gets the single instance of `ExceptionEdge`, representing the successor of an instruction when
+ * that instruction's evaluation throws an exception.
+ */
 ExceptionEdge exceptionEdge() { result = TExceptionEdge() }
 
 /**
@@ -68,6 +85,10 @@ class DefaultEdge extends EdgeKind, TDefaultEdge {
   final override string toString() { result = "Default" }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Gets the single instance of `DefaultEdge`, representing the successor of a `Switch` instruction
+ * when none of the case values matches the condition value.
+ */
 DefaultEdge defaultEdge() { result = TDefaultEdge() }
 
 /**
@@ -91,4 +112,8 @@ class CaseEdge extends EdgeKind, TCaseEdge {
   string getMaxValue() { result = maxValue }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Gets the `CaseEdge` representing the successor of a `Switch` instruction corresponding to the
+ * `case` label with the specified lower and upper bounds.
+ */
 CaseEdge caseEdge(string minValue, string maxValue) { result = TCaseEdge(minValue, maxValue) }
diff --git a/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/implementation/TempVariableTag.qll b/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/implementation/TempVariableTag.qll
index ec6de78cfa4..384c1849f2d 100644
--- a/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/implementation/TempVariableTag.qll
+++ b/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/implementation/TempVariableTag.qll
@@ -1,6 +1,15 @@
+/**
+ * Defines the public interface to temporary variable tags, which describe the reason a particular
+ * `IRTempVariable` was generated.
+ */
 private import internal.TempVariableTagInternal
 private import Imports::TempVariableTag
 
+/**
+ * Describes the reason that a particular IR temporary variable was generated. For example, it could
+ * be generated to hold the return value of a function, or to hold the result of a `?:` operator
+ * computed on each branch. The set of possible `TempVariableTag`s is language-dependent.
+ */
 class TempVariableTag extends TTempVariableTag {
   string toString() { result = getTempVariableTagId(this) }
 }
diff --git a/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/implementation/internal/OperandTag.qll b/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/implementation/internal/OperandTag.qll
index 227b1a34041..dd3a77d5229 100644
--- a/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/implementation/internal/OperandTag.qll
+++ b/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/implementation/internal/OperandTag.qll
@@ -1,3 +1,7 @@
+/**
+ * Defines the set of possible `OperandTag`s, which are used to identify the role each `Operand`
+ * plays in the evaluation of its `Instruction`.
+ */
 private import OperandTagInternal
 
 private newtype TOperandTag =
@@ -24,10 +28,18 @@ private newtype TOperandTag =
  * an `Instruction` is determined by the instruction's opcode.
  */
 abstract class OperandTag extends TOperandTag {
+  /** Gets a textual representation of this operand tag */
   abstract string toString();
 
+  /**
+   * Gets an integer representing the order in which this operand should appear in the operand list
+   * of an instruction when printing the IR.
+   */
   abstract int getSortOrder();
 
+  /**
+   * Gets a label that will appear before the operand when printing the IR.
+   */
   string getLabel() { result = "" }
 }
 
diff --git a/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/internal/IntegerConstant.qll b/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/internal/IntegerConstant.qll
index 6034ebc5674..6d71ca9f798 100644
--- a/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/internal/IntegerConstant.qll
+++ b/csharp/ql/src/semmle/code/csharp/ir/internal/IntegerConstant.qll
@@ -1,3 +1,15 @@
+/**
+ * Provides predicates for manipulating integer constants tracked by constant folding and similar
+ * analyses.
+ */
+
+/**
+ * An alias used to represent the constant value of an integer, if one can be determined. If no
+ * single constant value can be determined, or if the constant value is out of the representable
+ * range, it will be represented as the special value `unknown()`. This allows `IntValue` to be used
+ * in contexts where there must always be a value for the `IntValue`, even if no constant value is
+ * known.
+ */
 class IntValue = int;
 
 /**