Are you addicted to Wordle? You're not alone: the spelling game has over 3 million players and its popularity is accelerating fast. This newfound word craze was created by Josh Wardle in October 2021 for his crossword loving girlfriend. He is an artist, product manager and engineer focusing on human interaction and his vocabulary game has attracted participation from all generations. 

 

The concept of the game is simple: you have six attempts to figure out the five-letter word of the day. After each valid attempt, the letters you enter are colour coded either green, orange or grey. Green means you have the correct letter in the correct space, orange means it is the correct letter but in the wrong space and grey means the letter is not in the word. Initially, Wordle appears to be guesswork. However, it is much more strategic as you evaluate which letters to rule out as well as which letters to include. 

 

The online game has been circulating across social media, particularly Twitter, for most of 2022 and is popular with both the young and the old. Wordle is website based rather than app based which is part of its appeal. It has caught the attention  of mathematicians (who try to work out a formula to solve the puzzle) as well as linguists (who will debate the best starting words). Personal statistics are given to you once you complete the daily challenge and encourages you to share your results. This has led to competitiveness as players try to identify the word in fewer attempts than their friends and family members. Nigel Chapman, an avid Wordle fan, says, "Wordle is great fun and so simple yet challenging. I heard about it via a Whatsapp group and now play everyday - I've got to maintain my streak of 20 days!"

 

Wordle can be found at www.powerlanguage.co.uk and the next challenge starts at midnight.