Wordle has remarkably humble origins, considering its current global reach, being invented by New York based software developer Josh Wardle during coronavirus lockdown, simply because he wanted a game “for me and my partner to enjoy.”
After being released to the public, in October 2021, Wordle quickly developed into a viral sensation, attracting a dedicated fan base across the English speaking world. In January 2022, the game was purchased by The New York Times, for an undisclosed seven figure sum, though it remains free to play.
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During an interview with Newsweek, Erhan Aslan, an expert in applied linguistics at the University of Reading in the U.K., gave some advice for playing Wordle.
He said: “One thing that I think is important in this game is the starting word chosen. Starting off with words that include commonly used vowels, for example, e and a, consonants such as r and t, and sound sequences might be helpful. Choosing a word that starts with q, z, j, or x, for instance, may not be the best choice.
“As you get more feedback after a few guesses, users need to draw on some knowledge of phonics to narrow down or eliminate some words that they might be thinking. For example, if the second letter of the target word is l (indicated by green) and the player feels that the word starts with a consonant, they will need to know that there are only a few consonant cluster possibilities (such as bl, cl, fl, gl, pl, sl).”
The answer to today’s puzzle will be revealed at the end of this article, so scroll down with caution if you want to work it out for yourself.
‘Wordle’ #705, Clues for Thursday, May 25
Newsweek has put together five clues to help you solve today’s Wordle puzzle.
Hint #1: The answer contains two vowels.
Hint #2: There are no repeated letters.
Hint #3: Popular in New York.
Hint #4: The fourth letter is a vowel.
Hint #5: There is no “I” in team. The same applies to Thursday’s Wordle puzzle.
‘Wordle’ #705, Answer for Thursday, May 25
The answer to today’s Wordle is “Bagel.”
Did you get it? A relatively common word, containing two of the most frequently deployed vowels, this certainly wasn’t the toughest Wordle puzzle we’ve yet faced, but it was still a good brainteaser. Please don’t worry if you struggled though. One of the best things about Wordle is seeing if you can improve your performance over time, and Newsweek will be back on Friday with another round of tips and hints.
What Does ‘Bagel’ Mean?
The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines “bagel” as: “A firm doughnut-shaped roll traditionally made by boiling and then baking.”
For example: “Do you want a bagel with your breakfast?”