diff --git a/tests/tui_gateway/test_protocol.py b/tests/tui_gateway/test_protocol.py
index 4477cd2ca893..de2e6c39b014 100644
--- a/tests/tui_gateway/test_protocol.py
+++ b/tests/tui_gateway/test_protocol.py
@@ -265,7 +265,10 @@ def test_block_and_respond(capture):
     assert result[0] == "my_answer"
 
 
-@pytest.mark.parametrize("event", ["secret.request", "sudo.request"])
+@pytest.mark.parametrize(
+    "event",
+    ["secret.request", "sudo.request", "clarify.request", "terminal.read.request"],
+)
 def test_sensitive_prompt_timeout_emits_expiry(capture, event):
     server, buf = capture
 
@@ -281,9 +284,17 @@ def test_sensitive_prompt_timeout_emits_expiry(capture, event):
 
 @pytest.mark.parametrize(
     ("method", "value_key"),
-    [("secret.respond", "value"), ("sudo.respond", "password")],
+    [
+        ("secret.respond", "value"),
+        ("sudo.respond", "password"),
+        ("clarify.respond", "answer"),
+        ("terminal.read.respond", "text"),
+    ],
 )
-def test_late_sensitive_prompt_response_is_idempotent(server, method, value_key):
+def test_late_prompt_response_is_idempotent(server, method, value_key):
+    """All four blocking bridges tolerate a late reply after their request has
+    expired — the `*.respond` returns a graceful `{"status": "expired"}` instead
+    of the raw 4009 protocol error a client would otherwise surface verbatim."""
     response = server.handle_request(
         {
             "id": "late-response",
@@ -295,18 +306,6 @@ def test_late_sensitive_prompt_response_is_idempotent(server, method, value_key)
     assert response["result"] == {"status": "expired"}
 
 
-def test_late_clarify_response_remains_protocol_error(server):
-    response = server.handle_request(
-        {
-            "id": "late-clarify",
-            "method": "clarify.respond",
-            "params": {"request_id": "expired-request", "answer": ""},
-        }
-    )
-
-    assert response["error"]["code"] == 4009
-
-
 def test_clear_pending(server):
     ev = threading.Event()
     # _pending values are (sid, Event) tuples
diff --git a/tui_gateway/server.py b/tui_gateway/server.py
index 7adbd8ba8c46..70a47d673e2f 100644
--- a/tui_gateway/server.py
+++ b/tui_gateway/server.py
@@ -2431,7 +2431,19 @@ def _block(event: str, sid: str, payload: dict, timeout: int = 300) -> str:
             answer_present = rid in _answers
             answer = _answers.pop(rid, "")
 
-    if not answered and not answer_present and event in {"secret.request", "sudo.request"}:
+    # Emit an `.expire` notification on timeout for every blocking request type
+    # whose `*.respond` handler tolerates a late reply (allow_expired=True).
+    # All four blocking bridges — secret, sudo, clarify, terminal.read — share
+    # the same lifecycle: the tool gives up on timeout and returns empty, but a
+    # slow renderer (or a reconnect that dropped tool.complete) can still answer
+    # afterward. Without this the late `*.respond` would hit the generic 4009
+    # "no pending request" error and clients would surface a raw JSON-RPC string.
+    if not answered and not answer_present and event in {
+        "secret.request",
+        "sudo.request",
+        "clarify.request",
+        "terminal.read.request",
+    }:
         _emit(
             f"{event.removesuffix('.request')}.expire",
             sid,
@@ -11745,13 +11757,20 @@ def _respond(rid, params, key, *, allow_expired=False):
 
 @method("clarify.respond")
 def _(rid, params: dict) -> dict:
-    return _respond(rid, params, "answer")
+    # allow_expired=True: a clarify can time out server-side (its entry is popped
+    # from _pending) while the card is still visible — common when a WebSocket
+    # reconnect during the wait drops tool.complete. A late answer must resolve
+    # gracefully instead of hitting the raw 4009 "no pending answer request".
+    return _respond(rid, params, "answer", allow_expired=True)
 
 
 @method("terminal.read.respond")
 def _(rid, params: dict) -> dict:
     # `text` is a JSON string of the serialized terminal buffer + line metadata.
-    return _respond(rid, params, "text")
+    # allow_expired=True: the read_terminal tool's _block() uses a short 30s
+    # timeout, so a slow renderer losing the race is the common case — a late
+    # response must not error after the tool already returned empty.
+    return _respond(rid, params, "text", allow_expired=True)
 
 
 @method("sudo.respond")