diff --git a/docs/tools/edit.md b/docs/tools/edit.md
index 061e45e26..7e02ca064 100644
--- a/docs/tools/edit.md
+++ b/docs/tools/edit.md
@@ -56,6 +56,7 @@ The canonical grammar is strict, but the hand parser accepts a few non-dangerous
 - Missing trailing colon on `SWAP` or `INS` — accepted.
 - `SWAP N-M:`, `SWAP N…M:`, `SWAP N M:`, and legacy `SWAP N..M:` — accepted as `SWAP N.=M:`.
 - Bare body rows with no `+` prefix are auto-prepended with `+` and a `BARE_BODY_AUTO_PIPED_WARNING` is appended.
+- Bare `-` body rows are judged once the whole hunk body is known: when every `-` row is Markdown-bullet-shaped (`- item`) and the body is either fully bare or contains an explicit `+- item` sibling, the rows are kept as literal content and `MINUS_BULLET_AUTO_PIPED_WARNING` is appended; otherwise they are rejected as unified-diff contamination (see Errors).
 - `*** Begin Patch` / `*** End Patch` envelopes are silently consumed. `*** Abort` terminates parsing silently — ops parsed before the marker still apply, no warning surfaced.
 - Some malformed bracketed headers are recovered after stripping apply-patch path noise such as `Update File:` / `Add File:` and extra `***`, but the recovered header still needs a valid four-hex tag for the patcher to apply it.
 - `*** Update File:` / `*** Add File:` / `*** Delete File:` / `*** Move to:` apply_patch sentinels inside the diff body throw an `apply_patch sentinel … is not valid in hashline` error.
@@ -63,7 +64,7 @@ The canonical grammar is strict, but the hand parser accepts a few non-dangerous
 - Bare `N` and bare `N M` / `N.=M` headers are rejected with guidance to write `SWAP` or `DEL`.
 - `DEL N.=M:` and any body rows under `DEL` / `DEL.BLK` are rejected.
 - Empty `INS` / `SWAP.BLK` hunks are rejected; an empty `SWAP N.=M:` (no body rows) is treated as `DEL N.=M`.
-- `-` body rows are rejected with `MINUS_ROW_REJECTED`.
+- `-` body rows are rejected with `MINUS_ROW_REJECTED` unless the hunk is unambiguously a Markdown bullet list (see Tolerated input shapes).
 - `SWAP.BLK N:` / `DEL.BLK N` / `INS.BLK.POST N:` require a wired tree-sitter resolver; `SWAP.BLK` and `INS.BLK.POST` additionally need at least one `+TEXT` body row, while `DEL.BLK` takes none. An unresolvable block (unsupported language, blank/closing-delimiter line, no node beginning on N, or a syntax error in the resolved block) rejects a `SWAP.BLK` / `DEL.BLK` on the apply/final-preview path (the streaming preview silently drops it instead). `INS.BLK.POST N:` is never rejected this way — it is lowered to plain `INS.POST N:` with a warning: a closing-delimiter-anchor warning when line N is a pure closer (inserting after that end is exactly what the plain form does), a generic unresolved-anchor warning otherwise.
 
 ## Outputs
@@ -164,7 +165,7 @@ DEL 20
   - `Missing hashline snapshot tag for <path>; use \`[<path>#tag]\` from your latest read/search output. To create a new file, use the write tool.`
 - Stray payload line:
   - `line N: payload line has no preceding hunk header. Use \`SWAP N.=M:\`, \`DEL N.=M\`, or \`INS.PRE|POST|HEAD|TAIL:\` above the body. Got "...".`
-- Minus row:
+- Minus row (unless auto-piped as an unambiguous Markdown bullet — see Tolerated input shapes):
   - ``line N: `-` rows are not valid; the range already names the lines being changed. For Markdown bullets or other literal `-` lines, prefix the literal row with `+`: `+- item`.``
 - Empty body-bearing hunk:
   - `line N: \`INS\` needs at least one \`+TEXT\` body row.`
@@ -195,4 +196,5 @@ DEL 20
 
 ## Warnings
 - `Auto-prefixed bare body row(s) with +. Body rows must be +TEXT literal lines …` (`BARE_BODY_AUTO_PIPED_WARNING`)
+- `Auto-prefixed bare `- ` bullet row(s) as literal content …` (`MINUS_BULLET_AUTO_PIPED_WARNING`)
 - Recovery banners: `RECOVERY_EXTERNAL_WARNING`, `RECOVERY_SESSION_CHAIN_WARNING`, `RECOVERY_SESSION_REPLAY_WARNING` (`packages/hashline/src/messages.ts`).
diff --git a/packages/ai/test/leaked-thinking-stream.test.ts b/packages/ai/test/leaked-thinking-stream.test.ts
index bec61e43f..769066aa4 100644
--- a/packages/ai/test/leaked-thinking-stream.test.ts
+++ b/packages/ai/test/leaked-thinking-stream.test.ts
@@ -330,7 +330,11 @@ describe("wrapLeakedThinkingStream", () => {
 			const withCall = msg({ content: [signedBlock, call] });
 			inner.push({ type: "toolcall_start", contentIndex: 1, partial: withCall });
 			inner.push({ type: "toolcall_end", contentIndex: 1, toolCall: call, partial: withCall });
-			inner.push({ type: "done", reason: "toolUse", message: msg({ content: [signedBlock, call], stopReason: "toolUse" }) });
+			inner.push({
+				type: "done",
+				reason: "toolUse",
+				message: msg({ content: [signedBlock, call], stopReason: "toolUse" }),
+			});
 		});
 
 		expect(result.content.map(b => b.type)).toEqual(["thinking", "toolCall"]);
@@ -350,9 +354,7 @@ describe("wrapLeakedThinkingStream", () => {
 			inner.push({ type: "done", reason: "stop", message: msg({ content: [block] }) });
 		});
 
-		expect(thinks(result).map(b => [b.thinking, b.thinkingSignature])).toEqual([
-			["recovered reasoning", signature],
-		]);
+		expect(thinks(result).map(b => [b.thinking, b.thinkingSignature])).toEqual([["recovered reasoning", signature]]);
 	});
 
 	it("preserves native tool-call ids and streamed partial JSON while healing", async () => {
diff --git a/packages/hashline/CHANGELOG.md b/packages/hashline/CHANGELOG.md
index 89aff6898..0cea5bb02 100644
--- a/packages/hashline/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/packages/hashline/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -2,6 +2,10 @@
 
 ## [Unreleased]
 
+### Changed
+
+- Bare `- ` bullet body rows are now auto-accepted as literal content with a warning when the hunk is unambiguously a Markdown bullet list (every `-` row bullet-shaped and no plain `+new` diff counterpart); ambiguous `-` rows still fail with the teaching error.
+
 ## [17.0.8] - 2026-07-22
 
 ### Changed
diff --git a/packages/hashline/src/messages.ts b/packages/hashline/src/messages.ts
index 458585143..7ee16c6ca 100644
--- a/packages/hashline/src/messages.ts
+++ b/packages/hashline/src/messages.ts
@@ -52,6 +52,14 @@ export const REPLACE_PAIR_COALESCED_WARNING = `Two hunks targeted the same range
 export const BARE_BODY_AUTO_PIPED_WARNING =
 	"Auto-prefixed bare body row(s) with `+`. Body rows must be `+TEXT` literal lines.";
 
+/**
+ * Bare `-` body rows accepted as literal Markdown bullets. Only emitted when
+ * the hunk is unambiguously a bullet list: every `-` row is bullet-shaped
+ * (`- item`) and the body has no unified-diff `+new` counterpart rows.
+ */
+export const MINUS_BULLET_AUTO_PIPED_WARNING =
+	"Auto-prefixed bare `- ` bullet row(s) as literal content. `-` rows never remove lines — the range does that; always prefix literal body rows with `+`: `+- item`.";
+
 /** Unified-diff-style `-` row in a hunk body. */
 export const MINUS_ROW_REJECTED =
 	"`-` rows are not valid; the range already names the lines being changed. For Markdown bullets or other literal `-` lines, prefix the literal row with `+`: `+- item`.";
diff --git a/packages/hashline/src/parser.ts b/packages/hashline/src/parser.ts
index 27ba9951d..59e9a6d5d 100644
--- a/packages/hashline/src/parser.ts
+++ b/packages/hashline/src/parser.ts
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@ import {
 	DELETE_TAKES_NO_BODY,
 	EMPTY_BLOCK,
 	EMPTY_INSERT,
+	MINUS_BULLET_AUTO_PIPED_WARNING,
 	MINUS_ROW_REJECTED,
 	MOVE_TAKES_NO_BODY,
 	REM_TAKES_NO_BODY,
@@ -43,6 +44,13 @@ function isSkippableCommentLine(line: string): boolean {
  */
 const BARE_LITERAL_VALUE_RE = /^\s*(?:"[^"]*"|'[^']*'|[-+]?\d+(?:\.\d+)?)\s*,?\s*$/;
 
+/**
+ * Markdown-bullet shape: optional indent, `-`, exactly one space, then
+ * content. Unified-diff `-` rows almost never match — code lines get the `-`
+ * glued on (`-old()`) and indented deletions carry multiple spaces (`-    x`).
+ */
+const MD_BULLET_ROW_RE = /^\s*- \S/;
+
 function detectApplyPatchContamination(text: string, _hasPending: boolean): string | null {
 	const trimmed = text.trimStart();
 	if (trimmed.length === 0) return null;
@@ -93,7 +101,7 @@ interface PendingComment {
 	text: string;
 }
 
-type PayloadRow = { kind: "literal"; text: string; lineNum: number; bare?: boolean };
+type PayloadRow = { kind: "literal"; text: string; lineNum: number; bare?: boolean; minus?: boolean };
 
 interface Pending {
 	target: BlockTarget;
@@ -284,8 +292,12 @@ export class Executor {
 			if (this.#pending.target.kind === "delete") throw new Error(`line ${lineNum}: ${DELETE_TAKES_NO_BODY}`);
 			if (this.#pending.target.kind === "delete_block")
 				throw new Error(`line ${lineNum}: ${DELETE_BLOCK_TAKES_NO_BODY}`);
-			if (text.trimStart().charCodeAt(0) === 45 /* - */) throw new Error(`line ${lineNum}: ${MINUS_ROW_REJECTED}`);
-			if (!this.#warnings.includes(BARE_BODY_AUTO_PIPED_WARNING)) this.#warnings.push(BARE_BODY_AUTO_PIPED_WARNING);
+			const row: PayloadRow = { kind: "literal", text, lineNum, bare: true };
+			// `-` rows are held and judged at flush time by #resolveMinusRows,
+			// once the whole body is visible.
+			if (text.trimStart().charCodeAt(0) === 45 /* - */) row.minus = true;
+			else if (!this.#warnings.includes(BARE_BODY_AUTO_PIPED_WARNING))
+				this.#warnings.push(BARE_BODY_AUTO_PIPED_WARNING);
 			this.#commitDeferredBlanks(this.#pending);
 			// Defer read-output line-number stripping to #flushPending: a bare
 			// "N:text" row is only a copy-paste artifact from snapshot output
@@ -294,7 +306,7 @@ export class Executor {
 			// with "digits:" (YAML ports "42:hello", timestamps "12:30") when it
 			// sits next to an unprefixed sibling. Rows with an explicit "+" go
 			// through #handleLiteralPayload and are never bare, never stripped.
-			this.#pending.payloads.push({ kind: "literal", text, lineNum, bare: true });
+			this.#pending.payloads.push(row);
 			return;
 		}
 		if (text.trim().length === 0) return;
@@ -326,6 +338,38 @@ export class Executor {
 		pending.deferredBlanks = [];
 	}
 
+	/**
+	 * Judge bare `-` body rows once the whole hunk body is known. They are
+	 * usually unified-diff contamination (`-old` next to `+new`) and inserting
+	 * them would corrupt the file, so they are rejected — EXCEPT when the body
+	 * is unambiguously a Markdown bullet list: every `-` row is bullet-shaped
+	 * (`- item`) and the body is either fully bare or already contains an
+	 * explicit `+- item` sibling. Those rows are kept as literal content with a
+	 * warning instead of failing the patch.
+	 */
+	#resolveMinusRows(payloads: readonly PayloadRow[]): void {
+		let firstMinus: PayloadRow | undefined;
+		let allBulletShaped = true;
+		let hasExplicit = false;
+		let hasExplicitBullet = false;
+		for (const row of payloads) {
+			if (row.minus) {
+				firstMinus ??= row;
+				allBulletShaped &&= MD_BULLET_ROW_RE.test(row.text);
+			} else if (!row.bare) {
+				hasExplicit = true;
+				hasExplicitBullet ||= MD_BULLET_ROW_RE.test(row.text);
+			}
+		}
+		if (firstMinus === undefined) return;
+		if (allBulletShaped && (!hasExplicit || hasExplicitBullet)) {
+			if (!this.#warnings.includes(MINUS_BULLET_AUTO_PIPED_WARNING))
+				this.#warnings.push(MINUS_BULLET_AUTO_PIPED_WARNING);
+			return;
+		}
+		throw new Error(`line ${firstMinus.lineNum}: ${MINUS_ROW_REJECTED}`);
+	}
+
 	/**
 	 * Strip a single read-output line-number prefix (`N:`) from every bare body
 	 * row, but only when *all* bare rows carry one. A uniform set of prefixes is
@@ -388,6 +432,7 @@ export class Executor {
 		const pending = this.#pending;
 		if (!pending) return;
 		const { target, lineNum, payloads } = pending;
+		this.#resolveMinusRows(payloads);
 		this.#stripBarePrefixesIfUniform(payloads);
 		this.#pending = undefined;
 		if (target.kind === "delete") {
diff --git a/packages/hashline/test/leniency.test.ts b/packages/hashline/test/leniency.test.ts
index 70af46634..2138a2ce9 100644
--- a/packages/hashline/test/leniency.test.ts
+++ b/packages/hashline/test/leniency.test.ts
@@ -171,6 +171,25 @@ describe("hashline body contracts", () => {
 			/Markdown bullets or other literal `-` lines.*`\+- item`/,
 		);
 	});
+	it("auto-pipes a fully bare Markdown bullet body with a warning", () => {
+		const result = parsePatch("SWAP 2.=2:\n- item\n  - nested");
+		expect(applyEdits(FILE, result.edits).text).toBe("a\n- item\n  - nested\nc\nd\ne");
+		expect(result.warnings.some(w => /bullet row/.test(w))).toBe(true);
+	});
+
+	it("auto-pipes a bare bullet row next to explicit `+- item` siblings", () => {
+		const result = parsePatch("SWAP 2.=2:\n+### Fixed\n+- one\n- two");
+		expect(applyEdits(FILE, result.edits).text).toBe("a\n### Fixed\n- one\n- two\nc\nd\ne");
+		expect(result.warnings.some(w => /bullet row/.test(w))).toBe(true);
+	});
+
+	it("still rejects non-bullet bare `-` rows even in a fully bare body", () => {
+		expect(() => parsePatch("SWAP 2.=2:\n-old()")).toThrow(/`-` rows are not valid/);
+	});
+
+	it("still rejects bullet-shaped `-` rows beside a plain `+new` row (diff paste)", () => {
+		expect(() => parsePatch("SWAP 2.=2:\n- x\n+new()")).toThrow(/`-` rows are not valid/);
+	});
 
 	it("allows literal Markdown bullets and plus-prefixed text when prefixed with `+`", () => {
 		expect(applyPatch(FILE, "SWAP 2.=2:\n+- item\n+  - nested\n++plus")).toBe(