How to Engage with Wordle

You can find Wordle here on the New York Times website. Every day at midnight local time, a new puzzle is released.

Your first step is to guess a five-letter word. The feedback on your guess will be indicated by colors: green for correct letters in the right position, yellow for correct letters in the wrong spot, and gray for letters that don’t appear in the solution at all. For further insights, check out our comprehensive guide here and this advanced strategy guide for additional tips. More details are included towards the end of this post, following the hints and answer.

Ready for some hints? Let’s dive in!

Are There Any Uncommon Letters in Today’s Wordle?

Common letters can be defined by the old typesetter’s phrase ETAOIN SHRDLU. (Keep this in mind! Pronounce it as “Edwin Shirdloo,” as if he’s a familiar acquaintance.)

Most of the letters today fall within these common categories. Just one letter is unusual.

A Hint for Today’s Wordle

This word can relate to a type of weapon.

Are There Any Repeated Letters in Today’s Wordle?

Today’s word includes one letter that is repeated.

Count of Vowels in Today’s Wordle

Today’s solution contains two vowels.

First Letter of Today’s Wordle

The word begins with the letter A.

Last Letter of Today’s Wordle

The word concludes with the letter W.

Today’s Wordle Answer

Today’s solution is ARROW.

Methods for Solving Today’s Wordle

I began with the words RAISE and TOUCH before trying BLAND. My guess of AROMA led me to realize ARROW was the correct choice.

Wordle 1,391 4/6

🟨⬛⬛⬛⬛
🟩🟨🟨⬛⬛
🟩🟩⬛🟨🟨
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

Yesterday’s Wordle Solution

Yesterday presented a puzzle of moderate difficulty. The hint referred to “a type of engine,” and it contained four common letters alongside one that was fairly common.

The answer for yesterday’s Wordle was TURBO.

Basic Overview of Wordle

The aim of Wordle is to successfully guess the day’s secret word. Upon opening the Wordle game, an empty letter grid will greet you. Your initial step is to enter any five-letter word.

Observing the colors that appear afterward will offer clues: Green indicates a correctly guessed letter in its correct location, whereas Yellow signifies a correct letter placed incorrectly. Gray shows that the letter is not part of the solution. For instance, if the actual word is PURSE and you guess PARTY, the P and R will be green.

• Yellow means that the letter does exist within the word, just not in the guessed position (e.g., if PARTY is guessed and the actual word is ROAST, R, A, and T will show as yellow).
• Gray indicates that the letter isn’t found in the solution at all (if everything is gray, the word cannot be either PURSE or ROAST).

With this knowledge, continue making guesses to identify the correct word before your chances are exhausted. There are six guesses allowed before you either solve the puzzle or lose.

Optimal Starter Words for Wordle

What should be your first guess? The most effective starter words usually contain frequent letters to boost your chances of receiving yellow and green squares, giving valuable clues for subsequent guesses. While there isn’t a definitive “best” starting word, an analysis by the New York Times highlights some top choices:

• CRANE

• TRACE

• SLANT

• CRATE

• CARTE

Moreover, a study from MIT revealed that these words maximize eliminations in the first guess:

• SALET

• REAST

• TRACE

• CRATE

• SLATE

Good alternatives may also include ARISE or ROUND. While words like ADIEU and AUDIO introduce more vowels, starting with consonants via RENTS or CLAMP might yield better initial results. Experiment and find what works best.

Strategies for Success in Wordle

For those dedicated to mastering Wordle, a few guides are available that might offer useful insights. One discusses leveraging consonants, while another focuses on frequent letter usage. An advanced guide outlines a robust three-step methodology for generating hints while maximizing your winning chances.

The primary distinction between Wordle victors and those who struggle lies in the effective use of guesses to unearth the right letters present in the word. If it’s established that the word ends in -OUND, avoid wasting multiple guesses on MOUND, ROUND, SOUND, and HOUND. Instead, combine those consonants and try MARSH. If the H goes yellow, you gain essential insight.

Additionally, it’s important to note that the original version of Wordle consisted of approximately 2,300 solution words. Since the game’s acquisition by the NYT, an editor now selects the solutions, which may sometimes include slightly challenging or topical words. For instance, FEAST was the solution during one Thanksgiving. Hence, being aware of possible themes can be beneficial.

Alternatives to Wordle

If the thrill of five-letter guessing games entices you endlessly, check out some of the best Wordle alternatives, categorized by difficulty:

• Wheeldle, which lets you tackle continuous puzzles

• Dordle and Quordle, which challenge players to complete two (Dordle) or four (Quordle) puzzles concurrently, using the same guesses. Also available are Octordle, which requires solving eight puzzles, and Sedecordle, which has 16.

• Waffle, where players work with a scrambled grid of several five-letter words, relocating letters to solve the puzzle.

• Absurdle, which alters the solution after each guess but must stay consistent with prior feedback. The goal is to strategically narrow down options until only one word remains.

• Squabble, a competitive version where players face off under a timed challenge; taking too long will cost you damage, and the last one standing is crowned the winner.

• Antiwordle, where the challenge lies in avoiding guessing the day’s solution. Players must reuse letters they incorrectly guessed, leading to a game where the longer it takes, the better they perform.