explain

explain is a command for Claude Code from TwinPeaksTownie/Claude-to-Speech. It costs 10 tokens per session (898 once invoked), scanned A, original, MIT.

A response mode that explains a problem and its solution in three sentences, with concise, action-focused wording.

In plain words
What is it for?
Use it when you need a brief explanation of a bug, decision, or completed change, especially while an agent is actively working.
Why use it?
It helps turn a complicated issue into a short explanation. Its interruption rules also define how to pause ongoing work before giving the explanation.

Command for Claude Code

Written for Claude Code: argument-hint in frontmatter.

Part of the claude-to-speech plugin — 7 commands, 1 hook shipped together

Good fit Use it when you need a brief explanation of a bug, decision, or completed change, especially while an agent is actively working.

Compare 6 commands from other repositories ↓
Install with agentmods
npx agentmods add commands/twinpeakstownie/claude-to-speech/explain
Install

Getting it into your agent

One page per mod, every tool's command on it. A separate URL per tool would split the same page into five that compete with each other.

Clone the repo
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/TwinPeaksTownie/Claude-to-Speech

Made for: Claude Code.

Or install claude-to-speech, the plugin that ships this one along with the rest of its 7 commands, 1 hook.

Wrote this? Show the measurements

A badge with what this costs and how it scanned, read live from this page, so it follows the numbers instead of freezing them. Markdown for a README, HTML for a documentation site or a project page.

agentmods badge for explain

README.md
[![agentmods](https://agentmods.dev/badge/commands/twinpeakstownie/claude-to-speech/explain/github.svg)](https://agentmods.dev/commands/twinpeakstownie/claude-to-speech/explain)
Your own site
<a href="https://agentmods.dev/commands/twinpeakstownie/claude-to-speech/explain"><img src="https://agentmods.dev/badge/commands/twinpeakstownie/claude-to-speech/explain/github.svg" alt="Measured on agentmods" height="20"></a>

Or the 80×15 button, for a site that already has a row of RSS and ATOM ones. Only the verdict fits; the numbers stay here.

agentmods 80×15 button for explain

Your own site · 80×15
<a href="https://agentmods.dev/commands/twinpeakstownie/claude-to-speech/explain"><img src="https://agentmods.dev/badge/commands/twinpeakstownie/claude-to-speech/explain.svg" alt="Reviewed on agentmods" width="80" height="20"></a>
Per session 10 Only the description is in the session, so the agent can decide to use it. The body loads when it is invoked.
When invoked 898 The whole file, excluding the scripts and references it only reads on demand.
Security scan A 0 findings. A grade says what 26 rules found in the file — not that it is safe.
Origin original No closer match found in the catalogue.
Token cost

What it costs to keep this loaded

Counted locally with the o200k_base tokenizer, which is exact for GPT models; Claude uses its own tokenizer and its counts differ. Treat this as one consistent yardstick across the catalogue rather than a bill. Prices are per million input tokens.

ModelPer sessionOnce invoked
Fable 5.1 $0.00010 $0.00898
Opus 5 $0.00005 $0.00449
Sonnet 5 $0.00002 $0.00180
Haiku 4.5 $0.00001 $0.00090

Measured 10d ago against content hash 572cb480530e, method: parsed. Prices are Anthropic first-party input rates as of 2026-09-09, from the pricing page.

Security

Grade A, and why

explain scanned grade A with 0 findings against 26 rules in 11 categories — prompt injection, anti-refusal, data exfiltration, privilege escalation, supply chain, agent snooping, system-prompt leakage, SSRF and excessive agency — measured 10d ago.

A static scan of the body, not an audit. Every finding is printed with the line that produced it so you can judge whether it matters here. A mod is markdown that instructs an agent; that is exactly why what it instructs is worth reading.

Nothing flagged

None of the 26 patterns this scan looks for appear in this file: no shell pipes, no recursive deletes, no credential paths, no hidden text, no instruction-override or anti-refusal phrasing, no agent-config snooping. That is not a guarantee, it is the absence of the things that are checkable.

commands/explain.md · 124 lines

How it starts

The opening of the file, as written. The whole thing — 124 lines — stays where its author put it; the contents beside it link to each section on GitHub.

You are now in explain mode - concise, action-oriented explanations.

When to Use Two-Response Protocol

ONLY use the two-response interruption protocol if you were actively working on something.

If Interrupted Mid-Work:

First Response: Acknowledgment (TTS-only, NO TOOLS)

<!-- TTS: "OK, I'm stopping. Is there something we need to change?" -->

or

<!-- TTS: "I just finished updating the auth handler but it looks like you want to talk, what's up?" -->

or

<!-- TTS: "I was running the build. Do we need to course correct?" -->

Second Response: Wait for user to tell you what to explain, then provide explanation.

If Already in Conversation (Not Mid-Work):

Just acknowledge the mode switch and wait:

<!-- TTS: "Switching to explain mode" -->

or just use <!-- TTS: SILENT --> and wait for the user to specify what to explain.

IMPORTANT: Acknowledgment responses must:

  • Contain ONLY a TTS marker (and minimal text if needed)
  • Use NO TOOLS whatsoever
  • The TTS hook only works on responses without tool calls

Response Format: 22-28 Words Total

Keep focus:

  • 2-3 sentences
  • Total word count: 22-28 words
  • Concise and action-oriented
  • Problem → Solution → Next step

Less than 22 words: Not thorough enough More than 28 words: Loses attention

TTS Alignment: 95% Match Required

The TTS marker must match the text (95% the same).

Do NOT create a glossed-over summary. Speak what you write.

Examples (all 22-28 words)

Example 1: Build Error (24 words)

TypeScript can't find axios types. Install @types/axios as dev dependency. Should I add it to package.json?

<!-- TTS: "TypeScript can't find axios types. Install @types/axios as dev dependency. Should I add it to package.json?" -->

Example 2: Runtime Error (26 words)

App crashes on startup - missing API_KEY variable. Add validation at startup to check required env vars. Want me to add that check?

<!-- TTS: "App crashes on startup - missing API_KEY variable. Add validation at startup to check required env vars. Want me to add that check?" -->

Read the full file on GitHub · 124 lines

Changes

What this file has done since we first saw it

Hashed on every crawl. A supply-chain change to an agent config is a question of when, not whether, so the history is kept rather than the latest state alone.

  1. 10d ago First seen · 124 lines · 10 tokens per session scan A 572cb480530e

Subscribe to this mod's changes

explain is a command published in the GitHub repository TwinPeaksTownie/Claude-to-Speech (19 stars, last pushed 5mo ago), licensed MIT. It adds 10 tokens to every session and 898 once invoked, about $0.0001 per session on Opus 5. A static security scan graded it A with 0 findings. No closer match exists in the catalogue, so it is treated as the original; first seen 2026-08-30.