# "Wordle," a strangely compelling word game (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** board-card-word-game\ **Created:** [December 24, 2021, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604 "2021-12-24T21:12:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 24
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/461 "2022-01-12T15:15:13Z")
Ah ha! Now I remember where I’ve seen this idea before (OK, I read it in the comments, but it jogged my memory). There was that gameshow Lingo, which was (almost) exactly Wordle. (Part of Wordle’s charm is the one-puzzle-a-day and social nature of it.) ETA: I see Lingo has been mentioned in these comments. I guess the difference is that Wordle isn’t monetized, so that’s why people are getting ticked off at it. Can the idea and gameplay of Lingo be copyrighted? Like if the original Wordle developer decided to monetize it, would that be problematic? ---
**Author:** ![Ponderoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponderoid/32/19221_2.png) [@Ponderoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponderoid)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/462 "2022-01-12T15:24:52Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > Not sure why I wasn’t trying harder to work the rest of the vowels into the guesses; Once you have two vowels of a 5-letter word the chances of there being any other vowels are extremely slim, so you were right to concentrate on consonants. You had also already eliminated the U, so further vowels were even less likely. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/463 "2022-01-12T19:00:01Z")
> [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](#): > > This being a US spelling not used by many English speaking countries almost threw me, normally I would spell it as “favour” Well, sure, but they had to fit as many five letter words into the program as they could. ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/464 "2022-01-12T19:25:52Z")
I’ll check if _aeons_ or _baulk_ are in there next time I play ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/465 "2022-01-12T19:33:15Z")
They are. ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/466 "2022-01-12T19:39:51Z")
If so then aeons is a good one for checking vowels and the s 💪 Gonna start with that next time… ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/467 "2022-01-12T19:47:42Z")
I avoid trying S at the end of the word because I have a theory that the solution will never be a plural ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/468 "2022-01-12T19:48:40Z")
My gut is that aeons doesn’t put the letters in their likely positions though. I’m sure there’s a number of words starting with A but E, O and S probably aren’t in common positions. Assuming that the word list doesn’t include a lot of plurals that is. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/469 "2022-01-12T20:51:24Z")
No clues. I accidentally did a good job of eliminating letters, as you can see by my first guess. Wordle 208 4/6 ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜🟨⬜⬜ ⬜🟨⬜🟩⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/470 "2022-01-12T21:00:09Z")
Wordle 207 4/6 ⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜ ⬜🟩⬜⬜🟩 🟨🟩⬜🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/471 "2022-01-12T21:18:13Z")
> [@Manduck](#): > > I avoid trying S at the end of the word because I have a theory that the solution will never be a plural Well it could be VIRUS. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/472 "2022-01-12T21:19:35Z")
So earlier today I said to my son, he’s 37, Hey I’ve got a fun game for you. His reply: Are you playing Wordle? Everybody is playing Wordle! ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/473 "2022-01-12T21:19:56Z")
I thought I saw a plural once but I freely admit I might have imagined it. I’m starting with AEONS tomorrow and nobody can stop me! (Except if the site doesn’t allow that spelling after all) ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2022, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/474 "2022-01-12T21:22:16Z")
I tried a word that I didn’t think was a word. But it turns out that it is! ABORD Who knows this word? I sure didn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2022, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/475 "2022-01-13T00:03:26Z")
It accepted TRONK when I tried it one time. I don’t know what it means. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2022, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/476 "2022-01-13T00:14:50Z")
Wordle 208 4/6\* ⬜⬜🟨⬜🟨 ⬜🟨⬜🟨⬜ 🟨⬜⬜⬜🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Dang, that was a stumper. All those yellows are the same two letters. I am thrilled to bits to have figured that one out. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2022, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/477 "2022-01-13T00:32:39Z")
If you’re desperate for more, try [Absurdle](https://qntm.org/files/wordle/index.html): it’s like Wordle, only it makes things as difficult as possible for you. It compares each guess to its word bank (the same bank as Worldle), and figures out what clue it can give you that eliminates the fewest number of words. You have to corner it. It’s deterministic: the same guesses will always lead to the same word. But start with different words, and it’s pretty fun. Example play: Absurdle 5/∞ ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 | D | R | A | B | S | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | F | L | O | W | N | | P | I | T | C | H | | J | U | D | G | Y | | Q | U | E | U | E | ---
**Author:** ![Ponderoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponderoid/32/19221_2.png) [@Ponderoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponderoid)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2022, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/478 "2022-01-13T05:18:46Z")
Wordle 208 4/6\* Jan 13th ⬛🟨⬛⬛⬛ ⬛⬛🟨⬛⬛ 🟩⬛⬛🟩⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 R_A_TIO SL_A_NG **A** CH **E** D **ABBEY** Pretty straightforward for me today. On Guess #3 I was thinking “really? I haven’t tried E yet?” Then that left me with only one non-obscure word that fit for guess #4. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2022, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/479 "2022-01-13T06:05:38Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > But start with different words, and it’s pretty fun. You have a strange idea of what constitutes “fun”. ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2022, 6:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/480 "2022-01-13T06:48:06Z")
Today’s was a killer. STAIN ALDER ABBEY I got it in 3, but it took me over half an hour to think of any word at all that would possibly work for the third guess. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604.md?page=23) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604.md?page=25)