# "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:** 474
**Author:** ![SunUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SunUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SunUp)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2023, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9462 "2023-03-03T22:17:28Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > For example, the \_OWER (CLMPRST) trap has 7 solutions, Ummm… BOWER (long O sound, like POWER)? I really like your analytical posts, even though I’m more of a shoot-from-the-hip player; it’s nice to see the thought I should have put into it when I’m staring down a 50-50 trap on the final guess. Oh, and I assume these are single-letter traps? Because sometimes it’s the ones with two blanks that give me the most fits. ---
**Author:** ![Newtosite](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/newtosite/32/8623_2.png) [@Newtosite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Newtosite)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2023, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9463 "2023-03-03T23:44:19Z")
Wordle 622 3/6 🟩⬜🟨⬜🟩 🟩⬜⬜🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 ---
**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:** [March 4, 2023, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9464 "2023-03-04T00:01:12Z")
Bower is probably a valid guess but it’s not in the answer list. I actually chose that one specifically just to give a subtle heads up to people that for some reason “sower” _is_ in the answer list. Or at least it was. Hopefully the editor pruned it. And yes, exactly, only single letter traps. My original intent was to do two letter traps as well, but that got very confusing very quickly so I bailed. (Power has a short o sound, no?) ---
**Author:** ![SunUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SunUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SunUp)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2023, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9465 "2023-03-04T00:20:19Z")
Good question, my terminology for pronunciation may be nonstandard: Sounds like: OH - short O sound OW - long O sound? Or should this be “some other O sound?” OO - Not sure what I’d call this. Is this the “long O” sound? ---
**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:** [March 4, 2023, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9466 "2023-03-04T00:32:50Z")
Those are reversed. Long O sounds like how you pronounce the letter: Oh, home, toad, etc… Short O is how you say cop rock. (I think “long sounds like how you pronounce the letter” is true for all vowels.) I had to Google the answer for oo, as I did not know the answer offhand. Apparently that has its own individual short and long versions: short oo sounds like wood, long oo sounds like mood. ---
**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:** [March 4, 2023, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9467 "2023-03-04T00:45:07Z")
Wordle 622 3/6 🟩🟨🟨⬜⬜ 🟩🟨⬜🟨⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 STARE SALTY SQUAT Took a long time. @EllisDee - many thanks for posting the statistical information–fascinating! ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2023, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9468 "2023-03-04T00:50:00Z")
Since today was my 400th game, it’s stats time. Here’s where things stood after game #300: > [@RTFirefly](#): > > First 100 games: 417 guesses, average 4.17 guesses per game > Second 100 games: 385 guesses, average 3.85 > In the third 100 games, my 32nd game was PARER, my only loss. > To avoid the question of how to average that in, I’m just doing pre- and post-PARER. > First 31 games of third 100: 114 guesses, average 3.68 > Last 68 games of third 100: 241 guesses, average 3.54 Over the fourth 100 games, I’ve had five 2’s, 45 3’s, 40 4’s, eight 5’s, and two 6’s for a total of 357 guesses, so an average of 3.57. Overall, I’ve had 15 2’s, 133 3’s, 183 4’s, 55 5’s, 13 6’s, and the one loss. I obviously used up 6 guesses on PARER, and there would have been a seventh if the limit wasn’t six, so I’m going to assume I’d have gotten it in 7. That would have been 1521 guesses in 400 games for a 3.80 average. Counting it that way would have given me a 3.62 average for my third hundred. So 4.17, 3.85, 3.62, 3.57… looks like improvement still, but that asymptote at just over 3.42 is having its effect. My current streak is the 168 games since PARER. It’s also the longest number of consecutive games I’ve played, so it’s my longest streak. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2023, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9469 "2023-03-04T01:04:21Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > Bower is probably a valid guess but it’s not in the answer list. I actually chose that one specifically just to give a subtle heads up to people that for some reason “sower” _is_ in the answer list. Or at least it was. Hopefully the editor pruned it. Well, boo to them for leaving ‘bower’ off the answer list! _The moon, like a flower In heaven’s high bower With silent delight Sits and smiles on the night._ -William Blake And double boo if they remove ‘sower.’ The parable of the sower, chapter 4 of Mark if you’re keeping score at home, is one of the better-known of Jesus’ parables. ---
**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:** [March 4, 2023, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9470 "2023-03-04T04:36:17Z")
**Wordle 622 2/6** ⬜⬜⬜🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 CHEAT SQUAT I saw Bloat, Stoat (cute little critters!), Splat, and Squat…thought I’d take a risk and go for the Q, and happy to see all greens. 🙂 * * * * * * This may be a dumb question, but can anyone explain how to do the formula for the average of your guesses in an Excel spreadsheet? Thanks! ---
**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:** [March 4, 2023, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9471 "2023-03-04T05:11:36Z")
**Saturday, March 4th** Wordle 623 3/6 ⬛⬛⬛🟩🟨 🟩🟩⬛🟩🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 PLANT TRONE TREND No idea what a trone is, though Google voice recognizes it. It just happened to be all the letters I wanted to check and I gave it a shot. Score! Feels like a very long time since I’ve gotten a 3, much less a 3 where there was only one option left after 2. Feels good. ---
**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:** [March 4, 2023, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9472 "2023-03-04T05:23:22Z")
> [@SeaSun](#): > > can anyone explain how to do the formula for the average of your guesses in an Excel spreadsheet? Thanks! You’re counting guesses, so multiply each total by the number of guesses for that total. Specifically: 1s + (2s \* 2) + (3s \* 3) + (4s \* 4) + (5s \* 5) + (6s \* 6) Once you have the total number of guesses, divide by the number of games won. Don’t count losses. For a quick example, let’s say I’ve played 20 games and have six 3s, seven 4s and seven 5s: (6 \* 3) + (7 \* 4) + (7 \* 5) = 18 + 28 + 35 = 81 total guesses. 81 / 20 = 4.05 average. I typically just do it with a calculator instead of a spreadsheet. ---
**Author:** ![psychobunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/54ee81/32.png) [@psychobunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychobunny)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2023, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9473 "2023-03-04T06:40:37Z")
Wordle 623 4/6 🟨⬜🟨⬜⬜ 🟩🟩⬜⬜⬜ 🟩🟩🟩⬜🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 RATIO TRULY TREED TREND If I had actually thought for half a second, it should have been a three. ---
**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:** [March 4, 2023, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9474 "2023-03-04T06:59:09Z")
Thank you! Easy enough to do with a calculator. 🙂 The trap stats you posted are interesting…thanks for sharing that. I’ll be interested to see how your new strategy works out for you. ---
**Author:** ![QMatic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/aeb1de/32.png) [@QMatic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QMatic)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2023, 8:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9475 "2023-03-04T08:06:03Z")
Wordle 623 3/6\* ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨 🟩🟩⬜⬜🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 PILOT TRACE TREND ---
**Author:** ![QMatic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/aeb1de/32.png) [@QMatic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QMatic)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2023, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9476 "2023-03-04T08:11:27Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > Feels like a very long time since I’ve gotten a 3, much less a 3 where there was only one option left after 2. Feels good. Maybe it’s the start of a - something 😃 ---
**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:** [March 4, 2023, 9:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9477 "2023-03-04T09:26:56Z")
Wordle 623 3/6 ⬛⬛⬛⬛🟨 ⬛🟩⬛🟩🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 AISLE FRONT TREND ---
**Author:** ![eschrodinger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschrodinger/32/122_2.png) [@eschrodinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschrodinger)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2023, 9:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9478 "2023-03-04T09:29:13Z")
Wordle 623 2/6 🟨⬜🟨🟨⬜ EARTH 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 TREND Yes! [Wordle Analyzer](https://wordle-analyzer.com/?seed=9&guesses=wbzsnvdnpm&hm=1) ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2023, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9479 "2023-03-04T10:43:55Z")
Wordle 623 3/6\* ⬛⬛⬛🟧🟦 ⬛⬛🟧🟧🟦 🟧🟧🟧🟧🟧 ALONE SHENT TREND No, I didn’t know that was a word. ---
**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:** [March 4, 2023, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9480 "2023-03-04T11:44:43Z")
Wordle 623 2/6 ⬜🟩⬜🟩🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 CRANE TREND - Looks like the only possible word ---
**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:** [March 4, 2023, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604/9481 "2023-03-04T12:44:07Z")
Wordle 623 3/6 🟨⬜⬜⬜🟨 ⬜⬜🟩🟩🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 NOISE EVENT TREND [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604.md?page=473) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wordle-a-strangely-compelling-word-game-part-1/956604.md?page=475)