Stuck on today’s word? A clear way to break it

Start by identifying the obstacle: a long shortlist, an empty shortlist after entering clues, or a spelling you cannot recall. These need different responses. Check your inputs when nothing fits, use word lists for recall, and compare feedback groups when several candidates remain. A probe is useful only if it answers an unresolved question and leaves you time to act on the result.

Step 1 — write down what you know

Before typing anything, name your three kinds of clue:

Locked letters — the ones sitting in the right spot. These stay put.
Floating letters — in the word, but not where you tried them. They must appear, just somewhere new.
Ruled-out letters — not in the word. Avoid them — but mind a repeat: a letter can be marked “not here” in one spot and still be correct in another, so a single grey tile does not always ban the letter everywhere.

Step 2 — probe, don’t guess-and-hope

When several words fit, the slow way is to try them one at a time and let the turns run out. An alternative is a guess that tests the letters those words disagree on. Whether it saves a turn depends on how the possible feedback divides the list.

For a fictional example of a shared-ending trap, suppose you know the word ends in -IGHT: EIGHT, FIGHT, LIGHT, MIGHT, NIGHT, RIGHT, SIGHT and TIGHT are answer-pool possibilities before other clues are applied. Trying each initial separately can use up the available turns. Instead, spend one guess on a word that tests several of those front letters at once. FERNS checks F, R, N and S together, and its E also distinguishes EIGHT. A blank FERNS still leaves LIGHT, MIGHT and TIGHT in this fictional family. A probe can help without isolating the answer. The same trick tames -OUND words (BOUND, FOUND, HOUND, MOUND, POUND, ROUND, SOUND, WOUND): a word like HERBS probes H, R, B and S together, but a blank result would still leave FOUND, MOUND, POUND and WOUND if no other clues excluded them.

In normal play a probe is allowed even if it cannot be the answer — you are buying information. (If you follow a self-imposed hard-mode style where every guess must respect your clues, you give up some of this freedom in exchange for discipline.)

Step 3 — let the Solver do the bookkeeping

If you would rather not track it all in your head, hand it over: open the Word Solver, fix the letters you have placed, mark the floating ones as “in the word but not here”, and rule out the ones that are gone. It lists the accepted words fitting the supplied fields. If the results are truncated, the page reports how many are shown. Compare the suggestions with the rest of your board before picking a probe.

And if it still beats you?

Some patterns are genuinely brutal — a fistful of words that differ by one front letter, with fewer guesses left than options. Losing one now and then is part of the game, not a sign you played badly. Shake it off in Unlimited, or come back tomorrow for a fresh daily word. For more on openers and endgame, see the tips page.

Spelling prompts when you cannot recall a candidate

These counts use the 1,402-answer pool checked on October 17, 2026, counting each answer equally. They describe the full pool, not the frequencies among candidates left on your board. Use a position or ending as a memory prompt only while it remains compatible.

First letter: S in 254 answers; C in 117.
Last letter: E in 276 answers; Y in 171; S in 23.
Ending: ER in 88 answers; CH in 39.

S illustrates why position matters: it is a frequent initial but appears less often at the end. Adding S to every familiar four-letter stem can send you toward accepted guesses outside the answer pool. That does not make final S impossible; a matching clue still takes priority over a dictionary-wide tendency. Search for a spelling that fits the board instead of choosing a suffix solely because it makes a familiar plural.

If E has been ruled out, the frequency of ER is irrelevant. If C was misplaced in the fourth column, a CH ending contradicts that row. The word lists can supply spellings, but your accumulated feedback decides whether each one fits. Begin with the fragment you know, then check the uncertain positions individually; a familiar ending does not excuse a conflicting letter at the start.

If your shortlist is empty, audit the inputs

An empty shortlist can mean a bookkeeping mistake rather than an impossible puzzle. Start with the oldest row and copy exact matches into their original columns. For each misplaced letter, note the column it cannot occupy. Then inspect every gray tile beside another copy of that letter. A gray extra copy limits the count; it does not erase a positive match. The keyboard cannot display all these separate positional and count restrictions, so return to the rows themselves.

Check how much of that history you entered into the solver. Its form filters the accepted dictionary from the supplied fields; it does not automatically import your game. Enter positive copies as well as an unmatched extra copy. The solver uses the positive entries as a minimum count; adding that letter to the gray field caps it at that count. If you enter only gray, it excludes the letter. Compare suggestions with any additional position restrictions from your other rows. The rules examples show the difference between an absent letter and an unmatched extra copy.

If the list is long, spend the remaining turns carefully

Write a short reason beside each candidate: which letter distinguishes it, and which clue would eliminate it? Candidates that differ in several places may separate well with a direct answer attempt. A family that differs in just one place may need a probe. Do not choose a probe merely because it contains new letters; letters absent from every candidate cannot distinguish those candidates from one another.

With a final turn remaining, submit a possible answer rather than an information-only word. Earlier in the game, consider what a failed probe would leave you able to do. If several candidates would still share the same result, you have not bought certainty. This makes the choice easier to explain even when the puzzle remains unresolved. The guess-order guide describes this trade-off between gathering evidence and leaving a turn to use it.

If you take a break, return to the written clues rather than the word you were hoping would fit. A favourite candidate can distract you from a rejected position. Read it letter by letter against the rows and discard it if even one required condition fails. The aim of the pause is to reset attention; it does not supply new evidence about the answer.

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