Wordle was first developed during the coronavirus lockdown by Josh Wardle, a New York-based software engineer who simply wanted a game “for me and my partner to enjoy.”
Despite these humble origins, Wordle quickly became a global sensation after being released to the public in October 2021, with a hardcore of players sharing their scores and tips each day on social media. In January 2022, Wardle sold Wordle to The New York Times for an undisclosed low seven-figure sum, though no charge was introduced for players.
In an interview with Newsweek, Erhan Aslan, an expert in applied linguistics at the University of Reading in the U.K., gave some advice for Wordle players. 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.
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“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,” Aslan added. “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’ #903, Clues for Saturday, December 9
Newsweek has put together five clues to help you solve today’s Wordle puzzle.
Hint #1: There are no repeated letters.
Hint #2: The answer contains one vowel.
Hint #3: Synonyms include “change,” “deviation” and “alteration.”
Hint #4: The third letter is a vowel.
Hint #5: None of the first three letters in the alphabet features.
Wordle #903, Answer for Saturday, December 9
The answer to today’s Wordle puzzle is “shift.”
Well, that was a fun one! With only one vowel, it may have challenged even experienced Wordle players, though being a relatively common word certainly did help. Did you figure it out? Congratulations if so, but please don’t be put off if not. One of the best things about Wordle is seeing if you can improve your performance over time, and Newsweek will be back with another round of hints and tips on Sunday.
What Does ‘Shift’ Mean?
The Cambridge Dictionary defines “shift” as “to (cause something or someone to) move or change from one position or direction to another, especially slightly.”
For example: “The wind is expected to shift to the east tomorrow.”
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.