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A few weeks ago, several of my friends started posting strange tweets that featured a grid of randomly colored blocks. Across the top of the tweet, it always said “Wordle” followed by several numbers. Eventually, curiosity got the best of me, and that’s how I discovered Wordle—the daily word puzzle that’s skyrocketed into popularity over the last few months.
If you’re not familiar with it, the concept is simple: You get six chances to guess the day’s five-letter word. After every guess, each letter you input is highlighted in a certain color. Gray means the letter isn’t in the puzzle word, yellow means the color is in the word but not in that spotand green means you put the right letter in the right spot. There’s a new puzzle available every day, and while the idea is basic, the game is strangely addicting.
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The only real downside of Wordle is that you can only play once per day, so if you’re craving more brain-busting word puzzles, here are 10 similar word games that will hold you over until tomorrow, including IRL games like Boggle and Bananagrams.
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1. Byrdle
If you thought to yourself, “Hm, Byrdle sounds just like Wordle,” that’s because it’s the exact same game. Yup, this self-proclaimed parody works exactly the same way as the original, giving you six attempts to guess the five-letter word of the day.
There are several other Wordle knock-offs, as well. For instance, there’s also Hello Wordl, which has the same concept but lets you choose how many letters the word has, ranging from four to 11. Additionally, you can play Hello Wordl as much as you want—there’s no daily limit.
2. Bananagrams
If you enjoy Scrabble but wish it was a little bit faster, Bananagrams is the perfect alternative. In this award-winning game, each person races to create their own word grid using all their tiles. Once someone uses all their letters, they shout out “Peel!” and everyone is forced to take a new tile. The game continues like this until there are no tiles left, and the person who uses all their letters successfully is the winner. Bananagrams can be played with one to eight players, and it’s incredibly entertaining for all ages.
Get Bananagrams from Amazon for $14.99
3. Typeshift
As you become an anagram expert, be sure to try your hand Typeshift, a free word puzzle app. The concept is fairly unique: There are several columns of letters that you can shift up and down to create words in the central row. The goal is to use every letter in every column at least once, and there’s one puzzle available each day. Plus, the puzzles get progressively harder throughout the week.
Download Typeshift from the App Store
4. Boggle
This one is a major throwback from my childhood—my brother and I used to play Boggle at our grandparent’s house. It’s a classic word search game that you can play alone or with a group. Basically, there are 16 letter cubes inside the base, and after shaking it up, you have 90 seconds to create as many words as you can using face-up letters on the grid. At the end of the round, you tally up your scores, but watch out—if two or more players find the same word, that word doesn't count.
There are a few variations of Boggle available, as well, including Big Boggle and Super Big Boggle, both of which feature more letter cubes.
Get Boggle from Amazon for $11.97
5. Wordscapes
There are plenty of apps that offer word games to play on your phone, and Wordscapes is a popular one. It’s essentially a hybrid between a crossword puzzle and an anagram—you get a number of random letters, and you have to create words to fill in the crossword puzzle spaces. Wordscapes is free to play, and there are more than 6,000 puzzles to work through, so it’s sure to keep you busy for a while.
Download Wordscapes from the App Store
6. Play Four
Play Four is like a mini crossword puzzle that you complete in a four-by-four grid. There are eight different words you have to guess—four horizontal and four vertical—and you’re given a clue for each word. You’re scored on how many moves and how much time it takes you to finish the puzzle, and there are both regular and expert modes (the former highlights wrong letters on your grid). Similar to Wordle, there’s only one Play Four puzzle available per day.
Play Play Four at Merriam-Webster
7. Dabble
Dabble is a fun spelling game that you can play with the whole family—it supports two to four players ages 8 and up. Each player gets 20 tiles, and it’s a race to create five words using your letters. However, you have to make one two-letter word, one three-letter word, one four-letter word, one five-letter word and one six-letter word. If no one uses up all their letters in five minutes, players are allowed to swap tiles for new ones, and scoring works similarly to Scrabble, with each letter earning certain points.
Get Dabble from Amazon for $29.95
8. Kitty Letter
Kitty Letter, which comes from the creators of the popular card game Exploding Kittens, provides a competitive twist on a classic anagram game. In the free app, you go head to head with another player, trying to create words using your letters. Each word you make unleashes an army of cats to battle your opponent—bigger words give you more cats—and the first person to destroy the opposing player’s house wins.
Download Kitty Letter from the App Store
9. Word Spin
You can keep your family busy on the go with Word Spin, a classic game that’s over 25 years old. It comes with eight magnetic wheels, each of which has 10 letters on it, and the goal is to spin, switch and re-arrange your wheels to create words—the longer and more complex, the better! It can be played by one or two people, and it’s compact enough to play on a carbus, or plane.
Get Word Spin from Amazon for $17.99
10. The New York Times Spelling Bee
Spelling Bee is another word game that you can play right in your web browser. Each puzzle contains seven letters arranged in a honeycomb shape, and you have to make words using them. It’s not that simple, though—each word has to have at least four letters and must include the center letter, which is highlighted in yellow. You can use letters more than once, and you get points for each word you find, earning you a rank somewhere between “beginner” and “genius.”
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FAQs
What is the Wordle app everyone is obsessed with? ›
Wordle is a daily word game created by Josh Wardle, a Brooklyn-based software engineer who has developed something of a reputation as a crafter of interesting social experiments. Every day, the people of the internet are greeted with a fresh word puzzle that can only be solved — or not!
Are there any games similar to Wordle? ›If you love Wordle and want a puzzle game that takes more brain power, you'll want to check out Quordle, Octordle, Dordle and Sedecordle. Each of these four word games look very similar to Wordle, but add more rows, columns and words to solve. Dordle requires you to solve two words at once. Quordle, four at once.
How do you win a game of Wordle every time? ›- Start with a word that has 3, 4, or 5 vowels.
- Use your second try to confirm as many letters as possible.
- Try our cheat sheet of the best Wordle words.
- Learn the most common letters and their positions.
- Consider common letter pairings.
Quordle is Wordle with four words at once and it's terribly awesome - Upworthy.
Is Wordle good for your brain? ›Wordle is only the latest brain game to gain so much popularity. (Remember Sudoku or the craze over crossword puzzles?) But studies suggest that Wordle isn't just a fun challenge, it can actually benefit your brain, too.
Why are people addicted to Wordle? ›Wordle uses Scarcity to stand out
The time between games gives people a chance to pause. Players chat about that day's game with family and friends, research first word strategies, or commiserate on the difficulty of today's puzzle. And this pause makes people start to crave the game.
Crosswordle is the best of both worlds, or should we say the best of both wordles. The game is like a mini crossword puzzle, set up with two intersecting five-letter words. Your tiles will turn green, yellow, or gray based on your guesses, and just like Wordle, there is only one puzzle released each day.
What is the best Wordle like game? ›Quordle. Wordle gives you six tries to guess a single word, but Quordle (opens in new tab) gives you nine tries to guess four words. Each guess you make appears in all four puzzles, so focusing on a single word means you're still burning through your guesses in the other puzzles.
Which Wordle guess is best? ›The reason SALET is a more optimal guess than fan favorites like ADIEU and AUDIO is because, on average, it helps narrow down the possible answers in Wordle's word bank the fastest. On average, the algorithm solved Wordle's puzzles in 3.421 guesses when starting with SALET.
What are the 3 best words to start with in Wordle? ›So RATIO first, then MENDS, then LUCKY. That's it. With those three choices, you'll have slimmed down the list of possible letters to the point that figuring out the solution with your final guesses becomes significantly easier.
What are the 2 best words to start Wordle? ›
- Slice. Slice is the best starting word according to this research, and it's easy to see why. ...
- Tried. Just like in the example above, 'tried' lets you leap closer to the solution by finding or cutting out some extremely common letters. ...
- Crane. ...
- Bakes. ...
- Reach. ...
- Roast.
“Wordle” players are quite good at the game — or at least that's what they say. Seventy-four percent of players said they successfully solve the puzzle either “always” or “sometimes.” Meanwhile, 17 percent said they solve it “rarely” and only 9 percent said they “never” complete the puzzle.
What is the 4 23 Wordle? ›Answer for Wordle 308 for April 23, 2022
The answer to Wordle puzzle 308 is OLIVE.
Octordle. The not-so-helpful computer has chosen starter words for you. Can you rescue the game and win? Themed octordles.
What 4 words can you use in Wordle? ›- SNARE.
- YUPPY.
- TEARS.
- QUEST.
- PIANO.
- CREAM.
- ROATE.
- TRAIN.
But does being good at Wordle mean you're smarter than the average person, or even a fellow puzzler? “No,” said memory and learning researcher Aaron Seitz, a professor of psychology at the University of California, Riverside, who founded the university's Brain Game Center.
What is the average Wordle score? ›Wordle in Four
Most people should, on average, get it in at least 4, even on days where it is harder. Especially if you aren't making risky moves, four guesses should supply you with enough information to make a correct guess.
There is only one Wordle game released per day — at midnight — and most Americans who still play (57%) say they attempt to complete the puzzle every day. Another one-quarter (25%) are playing Wordle most days, and 18% say they play less frequently.
Is Wordle an addiction? ›Psychology of Wordle: Why are people addicted to this viral word game? Wordle activates both the language and logic parts of our brain and give us a nice boost of dopamine, whether we win or lose. Wordle is the latest fad in a long list of gaming obsessions, going from obscurity to fame in only a few months.
What percentage of people get Wordle in one try? ›Let's say you're guessing from the 2,315 common words used in Wordle. The chances of landing on the right word on the first try would be 1 out of 2,315. That's just 0.0431965443%! In other words, the chances of getting it right the first time is just a fraction of one percent.
Do people ever lose at Wordle? ›
It's not unheard of, and in fact it's very possible, to win at Wordle every day. It becomes routine, expected. And it looks like everyone around you is winning every day too—so much so that it surprises some people that losing is even a possibility.
Are there two different Wordle games? ›New changes in Wordle
Users who refresh or open a new browser are automatically redirected to The New York Times' version. This is why two versions of the game can simultaneously exist.
- MIAOU. ...
- ADIEU. ...
- AUDIO. ...
- AULOI. ...
- LOUIE. ...
- AUREI. ...
- OURIE. ...
- URAEI.
You could call it the MegaWordle, the Grand Slam, the Voltrordle. You basically cannot get more Wordle than this.
Which 5 letter word has no vowels? ›Crwth and cwtch are Welsh words that English has adopted. Grrrl and grrls are slang words, and phpht is a commonly accepted onomatopoeic word.
What is the best 5 letter word to start Wordle with? ›According to one analysis, the letter E appears most frequently in English-language words featured in a condensed version of the Oxford Dictionary, followed by A, R, I, O, T, N, and S. So starting words like “ratio,” “irate,” “stain,” or “stare” that include those commonly used letters are great options.
What is the #1 Wordle starting word? ›What is the best Wordle starting word? The New York Times' Wordlebot originally recommended Wordle users on regular mode start with the word CRANE. But, as of August 2022, Wordlebot now recommends the word SLATE.
What is the best 6 letter word to start Wordle? ›The next most common letters were: “a” (39 percent), “r” (34 percent), “o” (29 percent), and “i” and “s” tied for fifth (28 percent). Out of these six letters, one word immediately “arose” as the best option!
What are the 10 best starting words for Wordle? ›- CRATE.
- SLANT.
- TRACE.
- LANCE.
- CARTE.
- LEAST.
- TRICE.
- ROAST.
Your Wordle score is actually a measure of two separate and yet equally important components that contribute to your overall intellect: your vocabulary, or fund of knowledge, and your ability to recognize patterns.
Has anyone got the Wordle on first try? ›
With that in mind, it's highly unlikely that 1% of all players are guessing correctly on the first try — and much more likely that some folks are cheating.
Is it good to get Wordle in 3? ›Or, at least, that's how some Wordle players view the matter, judging from observations also posted on social media. If you consistently get Wordle in 3 or less, you are cheating.
What is the Wordle 6 23? ›Answer for Wordle 369 for June 23, 2022
The answer to Wordle puzzle 369 is BRINK.
The answer to Wordle 314 is 'TRASH'.
What is the 4 22 Wordle? ›The answer to today's Wordle puzzle, April 22 (Wordle 307)
The answer is: PLANT.
The answer is: CARGO.
What was Wordle 318? ›The answer to Wordle 318 is 'HAIRY'.
What is the Wordle word 275? ›The answer for WORDLE 275 is "THEIR."
What word has all 5 vowels in it? ›EUNOIA is the shortest word in English which has all five vowels.
What 5 letter word has all vowels? ›Unfortunately, there are no words in English that are made up entirely of vowels, so we will have to settle for the next best thing: a five-letter word containing four of them.
Which is the genuine Wordle app? ›
Now, you can finally play the daily Wordle in an app. This isn't a dedicated Wordle app, though, so don't head straight to the Google Play Store to grab every app titled Wordle, as those will remain copycats. Instead, you'll find it as part of The New York Times Crossword app that is available for both Android and iOS.
What is the best Wordle app? ›Wordscapes has over 10 million players and over 6,000 puzzles, and it's one of the best alternatives to Wordle you'll find on Android.
What is the Wordle Daily app? ›Wordle is a new, fun, and engaging app that comes with a puzzle daily to guess a five-letter word in 6 chances. It comes with words daily, and people are taking it as competition with their winning streaks.
Where can I find Wordle app? ›- First, go to the official Wordle website in the Chrome app.
- New, tap the three-dot menu in the top-right corner.
- Finally, hit the download icon (arrow pointing down at a line) to download the Wordle webpage.
If you can consistently get Wordle in three guesses, you are pretty darn good. A score of three is solidly above average, and it is certainly nothing to frown at. Especially with harder words such as “cynic,” “vivid,” or “swill,” getting it in three is very good.
How do I get the real Wordle on my iPhone? ›...
Wordle: How to save the web game as an app
- Tap the Share button, which is the rectangle with the arrow pointing upward.
- On the Share screen, look for Add to Home Screen and tap it.
- Tap Add and the Wordle icon will appear on your Home Screen.
Sorry Bill Gates, but AUDIO isn't the best word to start with when you're playing Wordle. A pair of MIT researchers recently set out to find the optimal starting word for the popular online puzzle, discovering that the statistically superior first guess is SALET, which is a 15th century helmet.
What is the best Wordle streak ever? ›So far Wordler 1.0's longest winning streak is 233 straight games with a 36.8 per cent chance of getting the correct answer on the third guess and a 39.9 per cent on the fourth.
What is the best free Wordle game? ›Crosswordle is the best of both worlds, or should we say the best of both wordles. The game is like a mini crossword puzzle, set up with two intersecting five-letter words. Your tiles will turn green, yellow, or gray based on your guesses, and just like Wordle, there is only one puzzle released each day.
Does Wordle use plurals? ›In addition, the Times announced some rule changes to the game. No longer will the answer be a plural of a three- or four-letter word, with “S” or “ES” added to the end. Plurals, on the whole, are not being done away with, the paper added.
What was the easiest Wordle? ›
The answer for Wordle 260 is “cloth”, which one Twitter user said was the “easiest one yet”.
How many people do Wordle each day? ›So it's a word game? Big deal... Yeah, it's just a word game. But it's super popular: Over 300,000 people were playing it daily by January, according to The New York Times.
How do I get Wordle on my home screen? ›- Open Google Chrome.
- Tap on the overflow menu (three dots) in the upper-right corner.
- Select Add to Home screen.
- Tap Add.
- Go to Wordle on the New York Times website using Chrome browser.
- Tap on the three-dot settings menu icon.
- Tap on download (downward facing arrow) to download the Wordle web page.
- Go to Chrome downloads from the settings menu.
- You will see the Wordle page listed.
Log in or create a free NYT account to link your stats. A new puzzle is released daily at midnight. If you haven't already, you can sign up for our daily reminder email.