The word puzzle has fans waiting with bated breath for it daily, sharing their scores (and sometimes their frustrations) with friends and followers on social media. Even Google got in on the Wordle action—search for “Wordle” and check out the upper lefthand corner of the window. Cute! If you, like more and more people every day, are obsessed with Wordle, you may have a strategy on your mind. These Wordle tips and tricks from programmers may help you guess all five letters in fewer tries. (Don’t worry, we won’t tell your pals that you got some help!)
What is the best Wordle starting word?
A good rule of thumb to choose a good Wordle starting word is to examine the frequency of letters in English language words, Loren Shure recommended in MathWorks. According to one study of an edition of the Concise Oxford English Dictionary, the most frequently used letters in English words are E, A, R, I, O, T, N, S, L, C, U, and D. As such, good starting words will include some or all of those letters. Examples of good Wordle starting words with these letters include“STARE,” “TEARS,” “TARES,” “RATES,” “NOTES,” “RESIN,” “STORE,” “RIOTS,” “STAIN,” “RANTS,” and “SNORE.” Other commonly used letters include H, W, and Y, so combined with the prior letters, some good choices for starting words include “CHAIR,” “REACH,” ACHES," “STORY,” “TEARY,” “EARTH,” “HEART,” “HEARS,” “SHEAR,” “CRANE,” “SCONE,” “TACKY,” “STACK,” “STICK,” “STOCK,” “STAIR,” “WHACK,” “WICKS,” “SHACK,” “WARDS,” “SWORD,” “SHARD,” and “ASHEN.”
What are 5-letter words with lots of vowels?
A good Wordle play is to use five-letter words with three or more vowels (and “Y”) as your starting word. The following five-letter words have plenty of vowels—without repeating any of them.
ABOUTABUSEADIEUAISLEALOESALONEARGUEARISEAROSEAUDIOAULOIAUREIHOUSEJUICEJUICYLOUIELOUSEMAYBEMEDIAMOVIEMOUSENAIVEOCEANOUIJAOURIEPIANOQUAILQUIETQUITEQUOTERADIORAISEREAISROATESAUCESAUCYSOAREUNIONURAEIVIDEO
What is the mathematically best Wordle starting word?
According to programmer and game designer Tyler Glaiel, the best Wordle starting word is one you probably have never heard of before: “ROATE,” though he also says “SOARE” and “RAISE” are generally good choices as well. You can find his explanation for the terms here.
Wordle Tip: Use the “How to Always Win at Wordle” Algorithm
Andrew Taylor developed an algorithm of Wordle starting words that almost guarantee success. His favorites are “REAIS,” “BLAHS,” “CENTU,” and, oddly enough, “DOGGO.” See him explain his system below.
Wordle Trick: If you’re stumped, try the Wordle Solver tool.
Tom Neil developed a Wordle Solver, which bases its algorithms on eliminating possible letters and combinations. Neil advises using words with the most unique letters as your Wordle starting words, as opposed to words with the most vowels. Using his algorithm, Neil recommends “RAISE” as a good Wordle starting word.
If you’re having trouble after your starting word on Wordle, try out the Unwordle tool.
We see you, cheaters! If you’re stumped on a particular Wordle puzzle, try the Unwordle tool, which uses algorithms to help you guess based on what letters you guessed in your starting word. Next, Wordle answer for today!
