diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 8f5a3ec..95dfbde 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -57,6 +57,50 @@ Admin auth:
 
 The app will be available at `http://localhost:4173`.
 
+## Optional local LLM (Ollama) for grounded rewrites
+
+You can keep deterministic retrieval as the source-of-truth and optionally rewrite responses with a local model.
+
+1. Install and run Ollama on your host.
+2. Pull a small model suited to older hardware, for example:
+
+```bash
+ollama pull qwen2.5:3b-instruct
+```
+
+3. Start the API with these environment variables:
+
+```bash
+CHATBOT_LLM_ENABLED=true
+CHATBOT_LLM_BASE_URL=http://127.0.0.1:11434
+CHATBOT_LLM_MODEL=qwen2.5:3b-instruct
+CHATBOT_LLM_TIMEOUT_MS=25000
+CHATBOT_LLM_NUM_CTX=2048
+```
+
+4. Call the rewrite endpoint from your existing chat flow:
+
+`POST /api/chatbot-grounded-rewrite`
+
+Request payload shape:
+
+```json
+{
+	"question": "Who was Titus?",
+	"draftAnswer": "Deterministic answer produced by current retrieval/synthesis.",
+	"sources": ["Episode 2 - Introduction to Titus"],
+	"contextChunks": [
+		{
+			"title": "Episode 2 - Introduction to Titus",
+			"sourceLabel": "Episode 2",
+			"content": "Titus was a Gentile..."
+		}
+	]
+}
+```
+
+If the endpoint fails or is disabled, keep your deterministic answer and existing fallback behavior.
+
 Persistent admin saves:
 
 - Admin updates are written to `data/admin-content.json`.
diff --git a/server.js b/server.js
index 021184e..b38955a 100644
--- a/server.js
+++ b/server.js
@@ -55,6 +55,15 @@ const BACKUP_RETENTION_DAYS = 30
 const BACKUP_INTERVAL_MS = 24 * 60 * 60 * 1000
 const ADMIN_SESSION_TTL_MS = 7 * 24 * 60 * 60 * 1000
 const ADMIN_PASSWORD = process.env.ADMIN_PASSWORD ?? 'change-me-admin-password'
+const CHATBOT_LLM_ENABLED = process.env.CHATBOT_LLM_ENABLED === 'true'
+const CHATBOT_LLM_BASE_URL = process.env.CHATBOT_LLM_BASE_URL ?? 'http://127.0.0.1:11434'
+const CHATBOT_LLM_MODEL = process.env.CHATBOT_LLM_MODEL ?? 'qwen2.5:3b-instruct'
+const CHATBOT_LLM_TIMEOUT_MS = Number(process.env.CHATBOT_LLM_TIMEOUT_MS) > 0
+  ? Number(process.env.CHATBOT_LLM_TIMEOUT_MS)
+  : 25000
+const CHATBOT_LLM_NUM_CTX = Number(process.env.CHATBOT_LLM_NUM_CTX) > 0
+  ? Number(process.env.CHATBOT_LLM_NUM_CTX)
+  : 2048
 
 const EMPTY_VISITOR_STATS = {
   totalVisits: 0,
@@ -784,12 +793,173 @@ async function refreshChatbotFromDiskIfChanged() {
   }
 }
 
+function normalizeChatbotLlmContext(chunks) {
+  if (!Array.isArray(chunks)) return []
+
+  return chunks
+    .filter(chunk => chunk && typeof chunk.content === 'string')
+    .slice(0, 4)
+    .map((chunk, index) => {
+      const title = typeof chunk.title === 'string' ? chunk.title.trim().slice(0, 160) : `Context ${index + 1}`
+      const sourceLabel = typeof chunk.sourceLabel === 'string' && chunk.sourceLabel.trim()
+        ? chunk.sourceLabel.trim().slice(0, 200)
+        : title
+      const content = chunk.content.trim().slice(0, 1400)
+
+      return {
+        title,
+        sourceLabel,
+        content,
+      }
+    })
+    .filter(chunk => chunk.content.length > 0)
+}
+
+function buildGroundedRewritePrompt({ question, draftAnswer, sources, contextChunks }) {
+  const sourceList = Array.isArray(sources) && sources.length > 0
+    ? sources.slice(0, 6).map(source => `- ${String(source).slice(0, 220)}`).join('\n')
+    : '- No explicit source labels provided'
+
+  const contextBlock = contextChunks.length > 0
+    ? contextChunks
+      .map((chunk, index) => (
+        `Context ${index + 1}: ${chunk.sourceLabel}\nTitle: ${chunk.title}\nExcerpt: ${chunk.content}`
+      ))
+      .join('\n\n')
+    : 'No context excerpts were provided.'
+
+  return [
+    'You are rewriting a Bible-study chatbot answer.',
+    'Hard rules:',
+    '1) Use ONLY facts in DRAFT ANSWER and CONTEXT EXCERPTS.',
+    '2) If DRAFT ANSWER is uncertain or says content is missing, keep that uncertainty and do not fill gaps.',
+    '3) Do not add verses, names, history, or claims not present in the provided text.',
+    '4) Keep a warm pastoral tone but concise.',
+    '5) Return plain text only. No markdown headers, no bullets unless needed for clarity.',
+    '',
+    `QUESTION:\n${question}`,
+    '',
+    `DRAFT ANSWER:\n${draftAnswer}`,
+    '',
+    `SOURCES:\n${sourceList}`,
+    '',
+    `CONTEXT EXCERPTS:\n${contextBlock}`,
+  ].join('\n')
+}
+
+async function rewriteWithChatbotLlm({ question, draftAnswer, sources, contextChunks }) {
+  const controller = new AbortController()
+  const timeout = setTimeout(() => controller.abort(), CHATBOT_LLM_TIMEOUT_MS)
+
+  try {
+    const prompt = buildGroundedRewritePrompt({
+      question,
+      draftAnswer,
+      sources,
+      contextChunks,
+    })
+
+    const response = await fetch(`${CHATBOT_LLM_BASE_URL.replace(/\/$/, '')}/api/chat`, {
+      method: 'POST',
+      headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
+      signal: controller.signal,
+      body: JSON.stringify({
+        model: CHATBOT_LLM_MODEL,
+        stream: false,
+        options: {
+          temperature: 0.2,
+          num_ctx: CHATBOT_LLM_NUM_CTX,
+        },
+        messages: [
+          {
+            role: 'system',
+            content: 'Rewrite grounded answers faithfully. Never add information not present in the provided draft/context.',
+          },
+          {
+            role: 'user',
+            content: prompt,
+          },
+        ],
+      }),
+    })
+
+    if (!response.ok) {
+      const text = await response.text()
+      throw new Error(`LLM request failed (${response.status}): ${text.slice(0, 220)}`)
+    }
+
+    const payload = await response.json()
+    const rewritten = typeof payload?.message?.content === 'string'
+      ? payload.message.content.trim()
+      : ''
+
+    if (!rewritten) {
+      throw new Error('LLM returned an empty response')
+    }
+
+    return rewritten.slice(0, 3500)
+  } finally {
+    clearTimeout(timeout)
+  }
+}
+
 // Public: return all chatbot entries for client-side matching
 app.get('/api/chatbot-content', async (req, res) => {
   await refreshChatbotFromDiskIfChanged()
   res.json(chatbotEntries)
 })
 
+// Optional: grounded rewrite endpoint for local Ollama usage.
+app.post('/api/chatbot-grounded-rewrite', async (req, res) => {
+  if (!CHATBOT_LLM_ENABLED) {
+    res.status(503).json({
+      ok: false,
+      message: 'Chatbot LLM is disabled. Set CHATBOT_LLM_ENABLED=true to enable.',
+    })
+    return
+  }
+
+  const question = typeof req.body?.question === 'string' ? req.body.question.trim() : ''
+  const draftAnswer = typeof req.body?.draftAnswer === 'string' ? req.body.draftAnswer.trim() : ''
+  const sources = Array.isArray(req.body?.sources)
+    ? req.body.sources.filter(source => typeof source === 'string').slice(0, 8)
+    : []
+  const contextChunks = normalizeChatbotLlmContext(req.body?.contextChunks)
+
+  if (!question) {
+    res.status(400).json({ ok: false, message: 'Missing required field: question' })
+    return
+  }
+
+  if (!draftAnswer) {
+    res.status(400).json({ ok: false, message: 'Missing required field: draftAnswer' })
+    return
+  }
+
+  try {
+    const rewrittenAnswer = await rewriteWithChatbotLlm({
+      question,
+      draftAnswer,
+      sources,
+      contextChunks,
+    })
+
+    res.json({
+      ok: true,
+      text: rewrittenAnswer,
+      model: CHATBOT_LLM_MODEL,
+      grounded: true,
+    })
+  } catch (err) {
+    console.error('[chatbot-llm] rewrite failed:', err)
+    res.status(502).json({
+      ok: false,
+      message: 'LLM rewrite failed. Returning deterministic draft is recommended.',
+      error: String(err),
+    })
+  }
+})
+
 // Admin: get all entries
 app.get('/api/admin/chatbot-content', async (req, res) => {
   if (!isValidAdminSession(req)) { res.status(401).json({ message: 'Not authenticated.' }); return }
diff --git a/src/App.tsx b/src/App.tsx
index 0358833..380d3db 100644
--- a/src/App.tsx
+++ b/src/App.tsx
@@ -295,6 +295,8 @@ interface IntentAnalysis {
   subject: string
   excludedSubject: string
   isCorrection: boolean
+  needsClarification: boolean
+  clarificationPrompt: string
   verseRefs: string[]
   episodeNumber: number | null
   isFollowUp: boolean
@@ -700,6 +702,25 @@ function buildConversationOnlyReply(cue: ConversationCue, context: ChatContextSt
   return null
 }
 
+function buildClarificationReply(analysis: IntentAnalysis, context: ChatContextState): ChatResponse {
+  const followupSuggestions = context.lastChunks.length > 0
+    ? buildSmartFollowUpPrompts(
+        context.lastChunks,
+        analyzeIntent(context.lastPrompt || 'go deeper', context),
+        context.lastChunks[0]?.content ?? '',
+      )
+    : [
+        { label: 'Who was Titus?', prompt: 'Who was Titus?' },
+        { label: 'Give me a summary of Titus 3:4-7', prompt: 'Give me a summary of Titus 3:4-7' },
+      ]
+
+  return {
+    text: `${analysis.clarificationPrompt}\n\nI want to answer from Nate's notes accurately, so one more detail will help me match the right content.`,
+    suggestions: followupSuggestions.slice(0, 3),
+    sources: context.lastChunks.length > 0 ? buildSourceCitations(context.lastChunks) : undefined,
+  }
+}
+
 function analyzeIntent(query: string, context: ChatContextState): IntentAnalysis {
   const rawQuery = query.trim()
   const normalized = rawQuery.toLowerCase()
@@ -711,12 +732,32 @@ function analyzeIntent(query: string, context: ChatContextState): IntentAnalysis
   const wantsDefinition = /\bmean\b|\bmeaning\b|\bdefine\b|\bwhat is\b|\bwhat does\b/.test(normalized)
   const wantsIdentity = /\bwho is\b|\bwho was\b|\btell me about\b/.test(normalized)
   const wantsPractice = /\bhow can i\b|\bhow do i\b|\bhow should i\b|\bpray\b|\bpractice\b/.test(normalized)
+  const wantsComparison = /\bdifference\b|\bcompare\b|\bvs\.?\b|\bversus\b/.test(normalized)
   const correctionSubjects = extractCorrectionSubjects(normalized)
   const isFollowUp = isContextualFollowUp(rawQuery) || correctionSubjects !== null
   const explicitSubject = extractIdentitySubject(normalized)
   const subject = correctionSubjects?.expected || explicitSubject || (isFollowUp ? context.lastSubject : '')
   const excludedSubject = correctionSubjects?.rejected ?? ''
   const isCorrection = correctionSubjects !== null
+  const tokenCount = tokenize(rawQuery).length
+  const hasStandalonePronoun = /\b(this|that|it|he|she|they|them|those|these|him|her)\b/.test(normalized)
+
+  let needsClarification = false
+  let clarificationPrompt = ''
+
+  if (!isFollowUp && hasStandalonePronoun && context.turnCount === 0) {
+    needsClarification = true
+    clarificationPrompt = 'Can you name the specific person, verse, or episode you mean?'
+  } else if (!isFollowUp && tokenCount < 2 && verseRefs.length === 0 && episodeNumber === null) {
+    needsClarification = true
+    clarificationPrompt = 'Can you make that a bit more specific so I can match Nate\'s notes?'
+  } else if (/\bwho\s+(is|was)\b/.test(normalized) && !subject) {
+    needsClarification = true
+    clarificationPrompt = 'Who would you like to ask about specifically?'
+  } else if (wantsComparison && !/\band\b|\bbetween\b/.test(normalized)) {
+    needsClarification = true
+    clarificationPrompt = 'What two things would you like me to compare?'
+  }
 
   let type: ChatIntent = 'general'
   if (wantsEpisode) type = 'episode-lookup'
@@ -727,6 +768,7 @@ function analyzeIntent(query: string, context: ChatContextState): IntentAnalysis
   else if (wantsPractice) type = 'practice'
   else if (wantsSummary) type = 'overview'
   else if (isFollowUp) type = 'follow-up'
+  else if (wantsComparison) type = 'overview'
 
   let searchQuery = rawQuery
   if (type === 'identity' && subject) {
@@ -757,6 +799,8 @@ function analyzeIntent(query: string, context: ChatContextState): IntentAnalysis
     subject,
     excludedSubject,
     isCorrection,
+    needsClarification,
+    clarificationPrompt,
     verseRefs,
     episodeNumber,
     isFollowUp,
@@ -969,15 +1013,23 @@ function buildLowConfidenceReply(scored: ScoredChunk[], analysis: IntentAnalysis
   const choices = getTopDistinctChunks(scored, 3)
   const topLabels = choices.slice(0, 2).map(chunk => chunk.sourceLabel)
   const text = topLabels.length === 2
-    ? `I want to be accurate, so I need one quick clarification. Did you mean "${topLabels[0]}" or "${topLabels[1]}"?`
-    : `I want to be accurate, and I don't have enough confidence to answer yet. Pick the closest direction and I'll continue.`
+    ? `I don't want to make up an answer. I couldn't find a confident match in Nate's notes yet. Did you mean "${topLabels[0]}" or "${topLabels[1]}"?`
+    : `I don't want to make up an answer. I couldn't find this clearly in Nate's current notes yet. You can submit this question directly to Nate below.`
+
+  const choiceSuggestions = choices.map(chunk => ({
+    label: chunk.sourceLabel,
+    prompt: buildPromptForChunk(chunk, analysis),
+  }))
 
   return {
     text,
-    suggestions: choices.map(chunk => ({
-      label: chunk.sourceLabel,
-      prompt: buildPromptForChunk(chunk, analysis),
-    })),
+    suggestions: [
+      ...choiceSuggestions,
+      {
+        label: 'How do I submit a question to Nate?',
+        prompt: 'How do I submit a question to Nate?',
+      },
+    ].slice(0, 3),
     sources: buildSourceCitations(choices),
   }
 }
@@ -1036,10 +1088,10 @@ function buildSmartFallbackReply(analysis: IntentAnalysis, context: ChatContextS
   if (context.lastVerseRefs[0]) suggestions.add(`How does ${formatVerseRef(context.lastVerseRefs[0])} connect to the rest of the chapter?`)
   suggestions.add('What does Titus 1 teach about church leadership?')
   suggestions.add('What does grace train us to do?')
-  suggestions.add('How should I apply this today?')
+  suggestions.add('How do I submit a question to Nate?')
 
   return {
-    text: `I don't have a strong enough match yet to answer that clearly. Try one of these more specific prompts and I'll narrow it down.`,
+    text: `I don't want to make up an answer. I couldn't find this in Nate's current notes. Please submit this question to Nate using the contact form below.`,
     suggestions: [...suggestions].slice(0, 3).map(prompt => ({ label: prompt, prompt })),
   }
 }
@@ -1280,6 +1332,41 @@ function ChatBot({ mode = 'embedded' }: { mode?: 'embedded' | 'standalone' }) {
     }
   }
 
+  const maybeRewriteWithLlm = async (
+    question: string,
+    draft: ChatResponse,
+    contextChunks: SearchChunk[],
+  ): Promise<ChatResponse> => {
+    try {
+      const response = await fetch('/api/chatbot-grounded-rewrite', {
+        method: 'POST',
+        headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
+        body: JSON.stringify({
+          question,
+          draftAnswer: draft.text,
+          sources: draft.sources ?? [],
+          contextChunks: contextChunks.slice(0, 4).map(chunk => ({
+            title: chunk.title,
+            sourceLabel: chunk.sourceLabel,
+            content: chunk.content,
+          })),
+        }),
+      })
+
+      if (!response.ok) return draft
+      const payload = await response.json()
+      const rewritten = typeof payload?.text === 'string' ? payload.text.trim() : ''
+      if (!rewritten) return draft
+
+      return {
+        ...draft,
+        text: rewritten,
+      }
+    } catch {
+      return draft
+    }
+  }
+
   const respond = async (query: string) => {
     const userMsg: ChatMessage = { role: 'user', text: query }
     setMessages(m => [...m, userMsg])
@@ -1293,6 +1380,7 @@ function ChatBot({ mode = 'embedded' }: { mode?: 'embedded' | 'standalone' }) {
     const contextualQuery = enrichQueryWithContext(trimmedQuery, activeContext)
 
     setTimeout(() => {
+      void (async () => {
       const cue = detectConversationCue(trimmedQuery)
       const cueReply = buildConversationOnlyReply(cue, activeContext, responseStyle)
       if (cueReply) {
@@ -1327,6 +1415,18 @@ function ChatBot({ mode = 'embedded' }: { mode?: 'embedded' | 'standalone' }) {
       }
 
       const analysis = analyzeIntent(contextualQuery, activeContext)
+      if (analysis.needsClarification) {
+        const clarificationReply = buildClarificationReply(analysis, activeContext)
+        setMessages(m => [...m, {
+          role: 'bot',
+          text: formatResponseText(clarificationReply),
+          suggestions: clarificationReply.suggestions,
+          sources: clarificationReply.sources,
+        }])
+        setLoading(false)
+        return
+      }
+
       const bibleVersionIntent = isBibleVersionQuery(analysis.searchQuery, analysis.queryTokens)
       const scored = latestChunks
         .map(chunk => {
@@ -1340,17 +1440,27 @@ function ChatBot({ mode = 'embedded' }: { mode?: 'embedded' | 'standalone' }) {
         .sort((a, b) => b.score - a.score)
 
       let botReply: ChatResponse
+      let topChunksForRewrite: SearchChunk[] = []
+      let shouldTryLlmRewrite = false
       if (scored.length > 0) {
+        const confidence = determineConfidence(scored, analysis)
+        topChunksForRewrite = getTopDistinctChunks(scored, 3)
         botReply = synthesizeSmartReply(scored, analysis, activeContext, responseStyle)
-        if (determineConfidence(scored, analysis) !== 'low') {
+        if (confidence !== 'low') {
+          shouldTryLlmRewrite = true
           chatContextRef.current = buildNextChatContext(contextualQuery, analysis, scored, activeContext)
         }
       } else {
         botReply = buildSmartFallbackReply(analyzeIntent(contextualQuery, activeContext), activeContext)
       }
 
+      if (shouldTryLlmRewrite) {
+        botReply = await maybeRewriteWithLlm(trimmedQuery, botReply, topChunksForRewrite)
+      }
+
       setMessages(m => [...m, { role: 'bot', text: formatResponseText(botReply), suggestions: botReply.suggestions, sources: botReply.sources }])
       setLoading(false)
+      })()
     }, 400)
   }