Sending Text Messages

The simplest and most common operation when building WhatsApp bots is sending text responses. Leaves Guardian provides dedicated helpers and full support for WhatsApp text formatting, user mentions, and quoted messages.

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The client.sendText() Helper

sendText() is the recommended high-level helper for quickly sending plain text to a user or group:

// Signature: client.sendText(jid, text, options)
await client.sendText('628123456789@s.whatsapp.net', 'Hello from Leaves Guardian!');

Basic Example: Echo Bot

client.on('message', async (msg) => {
  if (msg.sender.isMe) return;

  if (msg.text.startsWith('!echo ')) {
    const responseText = msg.text.slice(6);
    await client.sendText(msg.chat.id, responseText);
  }
});

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WhatsApp Text Formatting

Leaves Guardian passes standard WhatsApp markdown directly to the messaging layer:

Style	Syntax	Output Example
Bold	*text*	text
Italics	_text_	text
~Strikethrough~	~text~	~text~
Monospace	```text``` or `text`	text
> Quote Block	> text	Blockquote
• Bullet List	• item	Bullet item

Example with Formatting

const formattedMessage = `
🌟 *Server Status Report*
-------------------------
• *Uptime*: _99.98%_
• *Memory*: \`142 MB / 512 MB\`
• *Status*: ~DEGRADED~ *OPERATIONAL*

> Generated by Leaves Guardian
`.trim();

await client.sendText(msg.chat.id, formattedMessage);

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Quoting Messages (Replies)

To quote an incoming message in your response, pass the original message (or its raw key) in the options.quoted parameter:

client.on('message', async (msg) => {
  if (msg.sender.isMe) return;

  if (msg.text === '!ping') {
    // Reply directly quoting the user's message
    await client.sendText(msg.chat.id, '🏓 Pong!', {
      quoted: msg.raw || msg
    });
  }
});

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Mentioning Users

To mention one or more users in a group chat, include their JIDs in the mentions option and format @phone in the message text:

client.on('message', async (msg) => {
  if (!msg.chat.isGroup) return;

  if (msg.text === '!tagme') {
    const targetJid = msg.sender.id;
    const phone = targetJid.split('@')[0];

    await client.sendText(msg.chat.id, `👋 Hello @${phone}!`, {
      mentions: [targetJid]
    });
  }
});

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Related Documentation

• Message Dispatching: Learn about sendMessage and structured payloads.
• Normalized Message Schema: Explore the incoming Message structure.
• Deleting Messages: Learn how to revoke sent messages.