{"id":5458,"date":"2022-01-22T14:47:25","date_gmt":"2022-01-22T14:47:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2022\/01\/22\/whats-the-best-wordle-starting-word-review-geek\/"},"modified":"2022-01-22T14:47:25","modified_gmt":"2022-01-22T14:47:25","slug":"whats-the-best-wordle-starting-word-review-geek","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2022\/01\/22\/whats-the-best-wordle-starting-word-review-geek\/","title":{"rendered":"What\u2019s the Best \u2018Wordle\u2019 Starting Word? \u2013 Review Geek"},"content":{"rendered":"

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If you\u2019re anything like us here at Review Geek<\/i>, you\u2019ve probably become addicted to playing Wordle<\/i> , the word-guessing game. And despite its simple premise, the six-guesses-or-you\u2019re-out rule means choosing a strong starting word is imperative, so we figured we\u2019d round up the best starting words for the game.<\/p>\n

The strategic game is a fun way to engage and test your brain for a few minutes each day and low-key compete to be the smartest person in your friend group, so it\u2019s no surprise that it\u2019s skyrocketed in popularity recently. If you haven\u2019t started playing Wordle<\/i> yet, we recommend you learn how to play<\/a>, because it\u2019s a ton of fun. If you\u2019ve been playing it, however, and are now wondering what the best five-letter word is to start with, we have lots of suggestions for both words and overall strategy.<\/p>\n

How to Choose the Best Starting Word for\u00a0Wordle<\/em>?<\/h2>\n

If you, there are a few tips and tricks you should consider before you start your next Wordle<\/i> puzzle. These can help optimize your chances of winning (or winning faster, if you\u2019re competitive like us).<\/p>\n

No Repeating Letters<\/h3>\n

If you repeat a letter on your first guess, you\u2019re giving up one of five precious opportunities to test out a letter. And unless you\u2019re psychic, you\u2019ll want every chance you can get to hit the ground running. While this isn\u2019t always<\/i> a sure bet\u2014the puzzle recently threw \u201crobot\u201d at us\u2014the method does increase your odds.<\/p>\n

So, skip words with repeating letters, like queue, latte, again, rests, llama, and so on. In fact, queue is probably the worst word you could start with.<\/p>\n

Use Normal Words<\/h3>\n

The game isn\u2019t trying to trip you up with tough, rarely-used words you\u2019d find in the dusty corners of an old dictionary, we promise. In fact, it\u2019s proven to spit out words that are fairly common and simple, so you won\u2019t need to scratch your head trying to find obscure words. Don\u2019t overthink it.<\/p>\n

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Channel Your Inner\u00a0Wheel of Fortune<\/em><\/h3>\n

That\u2019s right\u2014when you think about it, Wheel of Fortune<\/i> wasn\u2019t so different from Wordle<\/i>. In the final little puzzle of each episode, the game automatically filled in any instances of the five most common consonants and the most common vowel: R, S, T, L, N, E.<\/p>\n

Given how common those letters are, you can easily hedge your bets by using any word that features a good chunk of these. Some examples include rents, slate, stare, stone, learn, snare, steam, tares, sired, risen, earns, rales, and tears.<\/p>\n

Use the Vowel Method<\/h3>\n

Some serious word game enthusiasts swear by the vowel method. By choosing a word with more than two vowels, you\u2019ll quickly gain a better grasp of what that day\u2019s word may look like. Vowels often flesh out the middle of a word, too, which can be telling. Vowels can also bunch together in some cases, which can narrow down the list of possible words super quickly.<\/p>\n

If you opt for this route, consider one of these vowel-heavy options, like adieu (one of our favorite picks for the game), aegis, raise, stoae, atone, audio, auloi, irate, arise, ouija, weary, vague, and canoe.<\/p>\n

Use a Mix of Common and Uncommon Letters<\/h3>\n

This option can potentially be more of a gamble, but if you get lucky, it can also have big payoffs. By selecting a word with a mix of common letters and uncommon letters\u2014think G, P, V, B, H, and Y\u2014you can potentially nail down a less-common word you probably wouldn\u2019t have thought of with any of these other methods (the game did use \u201cProxy\u201d recently, which threw many for a loop).<\/p>\n

The downside of this method is that it is never a guarantee. It can end up burning up a few of your precious guesses, which isn\u2019t at all what we want! We\u2019ve had success starting with words with common letters (aka the Wheel of Fortune<\/i> method) and then building out to words with some uncommon picks.<\/p>\n

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Avoid Words with Multiple Rare Letters<\/h3>\n

This one should be obvious, but we\u2019ll include it for the sake of being thorough. Don\u2019t choose words with lots of rare letters. So, no pizza, yummy, jaffa, oxbow, jujus, kudzu, affix, unzip, askew, fuzzy, immix, or xylyl (you know you were thinking it).<\/p>\n

What is the Statistically Best\u00a0Wordle<\/em> Starting Word?<\/h2>\n

Alright, if you don\u2019t want to spend all that time guessing and trying out different methods every day, we can (probably) help save you some time and frustration by simply telling you the statistically optimal first guess. One smart cookie\u2014Tyler Glaiel<\/a>\u2014actually sat down and did the math here.<\/p>\n

He found both of the actual word lists that\u00a0Wordle<\/em> uses by digging around in the game\u2019s source code.\u00a0 The \u201cpossible solutions\u201d list includes 2,315 words, while the game will accept 12,972 guess words.<\/p>\n

Glaiel, who works professionally as a programmer and game designer, ultimately ended up creating a bot to help go through the list and determine a word\u2019s viable solution value. He found the first iteration worked pretty efficiently, finding a solution in just 3.69017 guesses. Then, he refined the code so the bot could find the solution in an average of 3.49417 guesses and a worst-case of five guesses.<\/p>\n

After further testing, Glaiel determined that the ideal first guess is \u201croate.\u201d You\u2019re probably thinking that\u2019s not a real word, but it totally is<\/a>, and it\u2019s defined as \u201cthe cumulative net earnings after taxes available to common shareholders, adjusted for tax-affected amortization of intangibles, for the calendar quarters in each calendar year in a specified period of time divided by average shareholder\u2019s tangible common equity.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, roate is the best first guess, as Glaiel says, \u201cif the metric you\u2019re measuring is \u2018the size of the possible solution list after a guess\u2019.\u201d However, keep in mind that this word only appears in the guesses list, and not the solutions list. It\u2019s the likeliest way to land you close to an answer, but it\u2019ll never be correct. You\u2019ll still have to offer up at least one other guess after roate in order to win, but you\u2019ll be optimally positioned to do so. If you want the best word that could also be a correct answer, \u201craise\u201d is the best option. It actually appears in the solution list, and it\u2019s statistically nearly as good as roate.<\/p>\n\n

Hopefully, these tips make you feel better equipped to find the best first words to play in Wordle<\/i> and win your next puzzle, maybe even on the first or second guess! While the game is currently only available on the web, you don\u2019t have to play it on there\u2014you can easily add it to your device\u2019s home screen<\/a> and play it there. Easier is better, right?<\/p>\n

And if you\u2019re looking for a way to play even more Wordle<\/i> each day, since the game limits you to just one puzzle per day, we found some incredibly fun alternatives<\/a>. Some are even available as apps, allowing you to skip having to jump online every day to begin with. Good luck!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n