How to play
You get a start word and an end word. Build a chain between them, changing one letter at a time, with every step a real word. For example, COLD can become WARM in four steps: COLD, CORD, CARD, WARD, WARM.
What counts as a move
A word goes on your ladder only if all of these are true:
- It has the same number of letters as the puzzle.
- It differs from the word above it in exactly one position. You cannot rearrange letters, add them or remove them.
- It is in the game's word list.
- It is not already on your ladder, and that includes the start word.
A rejected word costs nothing. The game tells you why it was refused and clears the row so you can try again.
Controls
Type with the on-screen keyboard or a physical one. Enter submits and Del or Backspace removes a letter. In each finished row the changed letter is highlighted, so you can see the path you took.
Undo takes back your last word, as often as you need, and does not count against you. Hint is explained below.
Par and scoring
Par is the fewest steps possible for that puzzle, worked out from the full word list. You cannot beat it, so matching par is a perfect solve. Finish in more and the result tells you how many steps over par you went. There is no timer and no way to lose: you can keep climbing until you get there.
Hints
Hint puts a word in your draft row that is on a shortest route from where you are now, and you press Enter to accept it. Hints favor everyday words. Each word on your ladder can cost one hint at most, so pressing Hint again at the same word adds nothing to the count. Hints do not block a win, but they appear in your result, and only hint-free dailies add to that stat.
Modes
Daily
One puzzle per date, changing at midnight where you are. Monday to Friday puzzles use 4-letter words and weekend puzzles use 5. Each has a theme, and the end word belongs to it: a day themed Fruit bowl might end on PLUM. Unfinished dailies are saved, so you can leave and come back the same day. Past dailies cannot be replayed.
Practice
Unlimited random puzzles at 3, 4 or 5 letters, chosen with the number buttons. New puzzle gives you another. Practice puzzles are not kept once you reload the page, though your practice wins are.
Tips
- Check the target letters first. Letters that already match the end word in the same position are often worth keeping, and each unmatched letter needs at least one step.
- Be ready to step sideways. Sometimes a letter has to change to something that is not in the end word, purely to make the next step possible.
- Work backwards. List the words one letter away from the end word. If you can reach any of them, you are nearly done.
- Vowels are the hinges. If you are stuck, try every vowel in the middle of the word before changing a consonant.
- Undo is free. If you are drifting, go back to a word that had more options.
Questions
Why was my word rejected?
The message under the ladder says which rule it broke. If it says the word is not in the list, it may be a proper noun, an abbreviation or a word that was removed. Offensive words are left out on purpose.
Will I need a strange word to reach par?
No. Every puzzle has a route of par length made up of common words. Less common words are still accepted if you know them.
How does the streak work?
Each daily you solve extends it, and it goes back to zero once a full day passes without one. Going over par or using hints does not break it. Practice does not count.
What does the share text show?
Your steps, par, hints and a line of symbols: a triangle up for a step that got closer to the end, a dash for one that stayed level, and a triangle down for one that moved further away. It never shows the words.