Wordle

The new word game that everyone is playing—Wordle—was created by Josh Wardle, originally for his wife. Players are given six guesses each day to guess a five letter word. People share their Wordle scores all over social media, hiding their letter choices with emojis.


Here’s my Wordle from January 20th:

🟩 🟩 ⬜ 🟨 ⬜

🟩 🟩 🟨 ⬜ ⬜

🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩


But how do you actually play? Say the word is “whack,” and you start with “ducks.” Once you hit enter, the “c” and “k” will turn yellow while the rest turn a dark gray. The yellow means that the two letters are in the word, but they’re in the wrong spot, and the gray means that the letter isn’t in the word. Say for the next word you try “knock.” Now, the “c” and “k” will turn green because they’re in the right spot. You’ll keep going until you have enough information to figure out that the word is “whack” before your six tries are up.


There are tons of strategies and suggested starting words out there to ensure you can guess the word by your sixth attempt; but according to programmer and video game designer, Tyler Glaiel, the best first word is “roate.” However, if you plan on getting it in one go, he suggests you start with “raise.” I’ve been using “roate” as a starting word since I started playing, as I did my research prior. It’s definitely paid off. For proof, my average number of guesses is three.


One problem, however, is peers who might spoil the day’s word. I cannot tell you how many times I’ve had to physically plug my ears because people like spoiling things for others. An accidental spoiler live around 5am had Greg Kretschmar from Greg & the Morning Buzz issuing an apology after receiving a wide range of threats. If you’re going to cheat or talk about it, please do it quietly! Don’t ruin it for everybody else.


If Wordle doesn’t appeal to you, try one of the following games:


What’re you waiting for? Go give it a try!