Photo courtesy of The New York Times
Toby Russell, Editor
March 22, 2022
Wordle has taken the world(le) by storm over the past several weeks. Every morning, students open their laptops and phones and try their hand at the daily vocabulary puzzle. Players try to guess one of more than 2,000 five-letter solution words. Words range from simple- “chant”- to near impossible- “cynic.” Part of the game’s appeal is the competitive aspect, as the game encourages you to share how many guesses it took for you to finally guess “query”. “Wordle in three” has become a common boast for many players. Personally, I love the Wordle and typically do fairly decently on it (at least until recently). Thus, I believe that I am qualified to judge you based on how you did.
Wordle in One
You cheated. Unless the wordle for that day was “adieu”, “alert”, “later”, or “soare” there is no way that you got the Wordle in one. Maybe you are one of those who hacked the game code to find all the answers. Maybe a friend spoiled it for you. Maybe you redid it just to feel like you accomplished something after getting it wrong. Regardless, nobody gets it in one try, if you claim that you did you are a dirty liar. There is no honor for cheaters.
Update: Local Chamblee student Nash Booth claimed to get “bloke” in one guess. I cannot verify whether or not he cheated. I have my suspicions.
Wordle in Two
Where is the four-leaf clover? If you got the Wordle in two it means that you are extremely lucky. I’ve done it maybe a handful of times in my entire Wordle career, illustrious as it may be. Nowadays, every time I think I’m about to get it in two I end up realizing that just because you have two letters doesn’t mean that the first thing that comes to mind is the correct word. It’s easy to fall into the trap of risking a higher word count to try and guess it with limited information.
Wordle in Three
If you can consistently get Wordle in three guesses, you are pretty darn good. A score of three is solidly above average, and it is certainly nothing to frown at. Especially with harder words such as “cynic,” “vivid,” or “swill,” getting it in three is very good. Three takes skill, finesse, and intellect. Only true Wordlers will be able to keep their streak of three and below. Knowing when to use previously gathered information is integral to maximizing your guesses. Additionally, a lucky guess or starter word always helps to put you on the right track. In the end, Wordle is also a word game, so if you have a broader vocabulary you may find it easier to come up with likely guesses.
Wordle in Four
Wordle in four is the last respectable score. If this was “Lord of the Rings,” a score of four would be Minas Tirath, the last stop on the way to fiery Mordor, and a score of five. Most people should, on average, get it in at least 4, even on days where it is harder. Especially if you aren’t making risky moves, four guesses should supply you with enough information to make a correct guess. I will admit, I have not always got it in under 4, largely because of my tendency to risk it for a lower score. No matter the cause, four is a decent score, and nothing to be ashamed of.
Wordle in Five
Five is simply unfortunate. By the time that I am on my fifth guess, I’ve likely had one or two bad guesses that yielded little to no information. Alternatively, I might’ve spent three attempts on guessing ”chain”, ”cheer”, or ”chose”, before finally landing on “chant”. No matter the cause, I would personally consider a score of five a failure. However, this doesn’t mean that we don’t benefit from the experience. Like all games, you can improve at Wordle by gaining knowledge and experience along the way. For example, we usually think in words starting with consonants, which can make it hard for us to guess even commonplace words like “other.” I’ve seen this happen to me and others many times, and it helps to put you into a mindset of an expanded vocabulary for guessing. Just like any game or puzzle, mindset is of utmost importance.
Wordle in Six
I am weaker than some. By the time that I’m on my sixth guess, I’ve likely already given up. What’s the point in even continuing, if all you have to show for it is a measly six? If you got the Wordle in six, you are probably not very good at word games, and simply bought into the hype. Or, perhaps you were very unlucky and didn’t realize that “rebus” was a real word that real people really said (ironically, a rebus is a type of puzzle). Regardless, everyone agrees that six is certainly a subpar score.
Wordle in X
Like six, except you actually failed. Maybe you gave up and just wanted to see the answer. Maybe you don’t care about it. Either way, you definitely aren’t going to want to share this score with the world. It’s a bad look.
Conclusion
Every day, the Wordle is different; that’s part of the simple beauty that the game has. However, it makes it hard to define what might be a “good” score on any given day. These are all (obviously) generalizations, but if you aren’t too much of a “cynic” you will “humor” my “trove” of knowledge and “pause” to admire the advanced “skill.”
