# "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:** 403
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2022, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8041 "2022-12-22T15:58:50Z")
Wordle 551 4/6\* ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜🟨⬜⬜ 🟩⬜⬜⬜🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 BRING ADEPT EVOKE EXCEL ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2022, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8042 "2022-12-22T16:50:17Z")
Well, I was overdue for a six. (Yeah, yeah, that’s it! Overdue!) Wordle 551 6/6\* ⬛⬛⬛⬛🟨 ⬛🟨🟨⬛⬛ ⬛🟨🟨⬛⬛ ⬛⬛⬛🟩🟩 🟩🟩⬛🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 IRATE FLESH BELOW KUGEL EXPEL EXCEL Not sure I could have made that any harder. Phew, indeed. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2022, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8043 "2022-12-22T17:33:17Z")
Wordle 551 5/6 ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ⬛🟦⬛⬛🟦 ⬛🟦🟦⬛⬛ ⬛⬛🟦🟧🟧 🟧🟧🟧🟧🟧 RADIO FLUTE BELLY WHEEL EXCEL > [@psychobunny](#): > > I guess I was getting too cocky. Truth. This game sure can keep one humble. I really thought that either the double L or the terminal Y would pay off. Nope. Then, while I was right about two E’s, I was wrong to put them together. I just kept thinking in the wrong direction here. Tough one. ---
**Author:** ![SunUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SunUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SunUp)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2022, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8044 "2022-12-22T20:06:36Z")
> **Wordle 551 4/6\* 12/22/2022** > > 🟨⬜⬜⬜⬜ > ⬜🟨⬜⬜⬜ > ⬜⬜🟨🟩⬜ > 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 > > _L_UNAR → Not much of a start. > S_L_OTH → Or a second. Three spots left for the L, eight other letters gone. > PI_L_ **E** D → Ends in -EL. Probably two Es. BEVEL, or… > **EXCEL** > > Though I should have also thought of BEZEL, in which case I would have ended up with a 5 for having to try one of the B- words first. So sometimes having an incomplete enumeration of possible guesses can help. ---
**Author:** ![Cugel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cugel/32/1199_2.png) [@Cugel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cugel)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2022, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8045 "2022-12-22T22:24:35Z")
Wordle 552 4/6\* ⬜🟨🟨🟨⬜ 🟨🟨🟨⬜🟨 ⬜🟨🟨🟨🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 STARE RATIO GROAT AORTA Was reluctant to use GROAT, too obscure. Turns out answer was even more obscure IMO ---
**Author:** ![Author\_Balk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Author\_Balk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Author_Balk)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2022, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8046 "2022-12-22T22:44:33Z")
Apparently you are ahead of a lot of people. It may be beneficial to let everyone know that you are on “tomorrow’s word” - Friday’s word. People may assume that the spoiler is for today’s word. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2022, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8047 "2022-12-22T23:17:27Z")
Seconding @Author_Balk. I clicked on the blur without even thinking about it. I’m going to try and forget what I saw between now and morning, but it ain’t easy. Maybe it should be suggested to the NYT that there should be a single time worldwide when each day’s new Wordle pops up. I really don’t care what time - nothing wrong with midnight GMT, for instance - but the real problem here is that different people around the world gain access to a given day’s Wordle at very different times. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2022, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8048 "2022-12-22T23:56:55Z")
Wordle 551 4/6 ⬜⬜🟨⬜⬜ ⬜⬜⬜🟨🟨 ⬜🟨⬜🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 STERN GUILE LEVEL EXCEL LEVEL, with two repeated letters, would often be a bad guess as it wouldn’t give as much information as would a five-different-letters word–but I got lucky here. ---
**Author:** ![psychobunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/54ee81/32.png) [@psychobunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychobunny)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2022, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8049 "2022-12-23T05:42:04Z")
Wordle 552 4/6 🟨🟨🟨⬜🟨 🟩🟨⬜🟨🟨 🟩⬜🟨🟨🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 RATIO ARGOT ABORT AORTA This was much harder than it should have been. I kept coming up with words I didn’t think were appropriate for Wordle. I was pretty sure GROAT and ABORT weren’t good guesses and it didn’t accept ASTRO, but I was blocked on the AO start. ---
**Author:** ![SeaSun](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seasun/32/14820_2.png) [@SeaSun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaSun)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2022, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8050 "2022-12-23T06:42:17Z")
**Wordle 551 4/6** ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨 ⬜🟨⬜🟨⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 FOAMY GRIPE BENCH EXCEL ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2022, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8051 "2022-12-23T06:57:58Z")
Wordle 552 4/6 ⬛🟨⬛⬛⬛ ⬛🟨🟨⬛🟨 ⬛⬛🟨🟨🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 CRISP LATER QUART AORTA Took a very long time to see aorta. So while I may now be on a 4 streak, at least I’m also on an only-yellow streak. (I don’t want to admit how long I stared at \_ORTA before thinking of putting a vowel in the front.) ---
**Author:** ![SeaSun](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seasun/32/14820_2.png) [@SeaSun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaSun)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2022, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8052 "2022-12-23T07:07:40Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > What did strike me is the realization that “trap” is a made-up term, possibly even unique to this thread, and that neither the host nor the editor had a word for traps I was thinking the same thing. I thought it was a known term, outside of this board, but apparently not. I like the term for those types of words, and like everyone else, I abhor them, though trap words _do_ provide a good challenge, as frustrating as they can be. @Author_Balk Thanks for providing the link to that interview, it was a good interview. One thing I caught during that interview that I found interesting (in a funny way)…one of the interviewers made reference to an astronaut, Al Worden, who was isolated orbiting the moon for three days by himself, and the next day’s word was LUNAR. I played that game before I listened to the interview, though I would not have thought of that, but I was thinking it was a bit of a “precognitive hint” for the answer to the next day’s Wordle. 😆 ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2022, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8053 "2022-12-23T08:19:20Z")
Wordle 552 3/6 🟨🟨🟨⬜⬜ ⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 TRANS LOUIE AORTA ---
**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:** [December 23, 2022, 8:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8054 "2022-12-23T08:30:30Z")
Wordle 552 2/6 ⬛🟨🟩🟩⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 EARTH AORTA Two woo-hoo!! ---
**Author:** ![QMatic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/aeb1de/32.png) [@QMatic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QMatic)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2022, 8:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8055 "2022-12-23T08:48:53Z")
Wordle 552 3/6\* ⬜⬜🟨⬜⬜ 🟩⬜🟩🟨⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 QUALM APRON AORTA I was thinking the O had to go at the end because really how many words start AO, except maybe AORTA - AORTA!!! ---
**Author:** ![Author\_Balk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Author\_Balk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Author_Balk)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2022, 9:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8056 "2022-12-23T09:51:51Z")
Wordle 552 3/6 ⬜🟨🟨⬜⬜ ⬜🟨🟩🟩⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Another 3. CRANE PARTY - RT in spots 3 and 4. And A at the beginning or end AORTA - or both beginning and end ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2022, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8057 "2022-12-23T13:06:08Z")
Wordle 552 ?/6 I saw the answer yesterday. Because I’m like that, I went ahead and tried to simulate how I would have played it if I hadn’t known the answer. I started the same as I would have done anyway: SL_A_N_T_ CH_OR_E So far, so good. There are fifty ways to ~~leave your lover~~ arrange those four letters and one blank without putting a letter in an excluded location. As best as I could tell, only three of them result in words that don’t use any of the six excluded letters: AORT\_ (first in alpha order, treating blanks as the 27th letter of the alphabet), RAT\_O a good ways later, and \_ATOR nearer to the end, yielding AORTA, RATIO, and GATOR. I mentally downweighted GATOR as slang, and literally flipped a coin between the other two. It came up AORTA’s way, so that’s how I played it on the NYT. Would I have done that if I hadn’t known the answer, or would I have gone with RATIO anyway because I like the word better? Can’t really say. Really wish I could have scored this as a 3.5. ---
**Author:** ![chiliwillybing](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chiliwillybing/32/12394_2.png) [@chiliwillybing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chiliwillybing)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2022, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8058 "2022-12-23T13:35:27Z")
Wordle 552 4/6 🟨🟨⬜⬜⬜ ⬜🟩🟨🟨⬜ ⬜🟩🟩🟨⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 RAISE BOARD MORAL AORTA ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2022, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8059 "2022-12-23T14:48:51Z")
Wordle 552 4/6\* ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜🟨🟨⬜ 🟨🟨🟨⬜🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 UNCLE SHARD RATIO AORTA ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2022, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/8060 "2022-12-23T15:00:02Z")
Wordle 552 4/6 ⬜⬜🟨🟨🟨 ⬜🟨🟩🟨⬜ 🟨🟨🟩⬜⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 HEART STRAP TARRY AORTA You’d think given my starting word it would have come to me sooner [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604.md?page=402) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604.md?page=404)