Looking for the Wordle answer for May 5, 2025? This post will provide clues, strategies, and ultimately reveal the answer. The challenge for today is of medium difficulty; it took four attempts to solve. Warning: spoilers ahead for Wordle #1,416! Continue reading for hints (and the answer) to today’s puzzle.

Playing Wordle: A Quick Guide

Engage with Wordle here on the New York Times. Every day at midnight in your local time zone, a new puzzle becomes available.

Your first task is to guess a word consisting of five letters. Each letter will change color based on its correctness: green denotes the right letter in the right spot, yellow indicates the correct letter but in the wrong position, and gray signifies the letter is not in the secret word. For in-depth strategies, refer to this comprehensive guide, and this advanced strategy guide located near the end of this article.

Ready to dive into the hints? Let’s proceed!

Does Today’s Wordle Feature Any Uncommon Letters?

We define common letters based on the typesetters’ mnemonic, known as ETAOIN SHRDLU—a great phrase to memorize!

These are all familiar letters from today’s challenge.

Need a Hint for Today’s Wordle?

Whispered in a library.

Any Double or Repeated Letters Today?

There are two letters that appear more than once in today’s word.

Count of Vowels in Today’s Wordle?

Today’s word has one vowel.

Starting Letter of Today’s Wordle?

The word initiates with the letter S.

Ending Letter of Today’s Wordle?

The last letter of today’s word is H.

Solution for Today’s Wordle?

Drumroll, please! The answer is SHUSH.

My Approach to Solving Today’s Wordle

The first guess was RAISE, followed by TOUCH, and lastly BLIMP, which helped in narrowing down the consonants, leading to the conclusion that SHUSH was the best fit.

Wordle 1,416 4/6

⬛⬛⬛🟩⬛
⬛⬛🟩⬛🟩
⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

Answer to Yesterday’s Wordle

The previous day’s Wordle posed a medium challenge. The clue was “caught with a line,” and it consisted of five common letters.

The answer to yesterday’s puzzle was TROUT.

Understanding Wordle Basics

The goal of Wordle is to guess the secret word of the day. Upon entering the game, you’ll be greeted by an empty grid. Your task is to type in any five-letter word as your opening guess.

The colors that appear will assist in forming subsequent guesses: Green indicates a letter is correct and in the proper position (e.g., PARTY vs. PURSE shows P and R in green).

• Yellow signifies the letter is in the word, albeit in the wrong spot (e.g., PARTY vs. ROAST shows R, A, and T in yellow).
• Gray means the letter isn’t part of the solution at all (e.g., PARTY yielding gray letters indicates it cannot be PURSE or ROAST).

Armed with this knowledge, make your next guess, strategically aiming to identify the correct word within six attempts. If you exceed that, it’s game over.

Optimal Starter Words for Wordle

What should you use for your initial guess? The most effective starter words typically contain prevalent letters, enhancing your chances to reveal greens and yellows for your next guesses. While no singular “best” word exists, analysis from the New York Times suggests trying one of the following:

• CRANE

• TRACE

• SLANT

• CRATE

• CARTE

In addition, an analysis by MIT identified these as effective starters for maximizing potential elimination of choices:

• SALET

• REAST

• TRACE

• CRATE

• SLATE

Words such as ARISE or ROUND are also good options. While ADIEU and AUDIO focus on vowels, starting with consonants might yield more fruitful results with words like RENTS or CLAMP. Choose the approach that resonates with your gameplay style.

Winning Strategies for Wordle

A variety of guides on Wordle strategies exist for enthusiasts looking to elevate their game. One resource discusses leveraging consonants effectively, while another emphasizes frequency of common letters. An advanced guide provides a three-pronged approach focusing on gathering hints while optimizing win probability.

A key differentiator between successful players and others is that winners leverage their guesses to learn about the letters that make up the word. For example, if the word ends in -OUND, it’s wise not to exhaust guesses on MOUND, ROUND, SOUND, and HOUND. Instead, think creatively and guess a word like MARSH; if H lights up in yellow, you’re one step closer to the answer.

Additionally, the original Wordle featured a specific list of approximately 2,300 solution words. Post-acquisition by the NYT, the game now features curated words, which may include more challenging or themed terms, so stay adaptable.

Exploring Wordle Alternatives

If the thrill of five-letter puzzles captivates you, consider trying out some alternative games ranked by challenge level:

• Wheeldle: offers a continual puzzle experience.

• Dordle and Quordle: require simultaneous guesses for two or four puzzles. There’s also Octordle with eight puzzles and Sedecordle, featuring 16.

• Waffle: presents scrambled five-letter words in a grid format for rearranging until solved.

• Absurdle: which modifies the solution with each guess while staying consistent with prior feedback, requiring a strategic approach to narrow down to the last possible word.

• Squabble: allows you to compete against others in a timed Wordle.

• Antiwordle: challenges you to avoid guessing the daily solution, compelling you to reuse letters guessed correctly, as longer attempts inevitably lead to better scores.