Today’s Wordle answer has kind of an unpleasant meaning. And it could make playing tough. Even if you guess the last four letters correctly, you could fall into one of those Wordle traps where you’re frantically guessing a bunch of first letters and getting it wrong, because this word is similar to many others.
Every day, we’ll post hints and then the answer for the current day’s Wordle, just in case you need it.
Today’s Wordle hints
Warning: If you keep reading, you’ll see the Wordle answer for Thursday, April 11, puzzle No. 1027. That could be a devastating spoiler for some players. But if you just need the answer — maybe you’re on your last guess and just don’t want to see an 800-game streak go poof — keep reading.
Wordle hint No. 1: Three vowels
Some Wordle answers have only one or two vowels, but this one has three.
Wordle hint No. 2: Ending-letter hint
Today’s Wordle answer ends in a vowel.
Wordle hint No. 3: Two vowels together
Two of the word’s three vowels sit right next to each other.
Wordle hint No. 4: Starting letter
The answer begins with the letter L.
Wordle hint No. 5: Meaning
This word refers to a small insect. It’s also an insult that’s not used a lot these days.
TODAY’S WORDLE ANSWER
Here comes the spoiler: Today’s Wordle answer is LOUSE, which is the singular version of lice, those creepy little parasites that sometimes live on humans. It can also be a derogatory term for an unpleasant person. It’s where we get the word “lousy” for a bad thing. This answer might have tricked some players. If you didn’t know the first letter, but had the rest filled in with -OUSE, you might have guessed MOUSE, HOUSE or even DOUSE.
Yesterday’s Wordle answer
Yesterday’s answer was BROTH.
Past Wordle answers
April 6, No. 1022, FINCH
April 7, No. 1023, VOILA
April 8, No. 1024, BREED
April 9, No. 1025, MERGE
Everyday Wordle tips
I’ve written a lot about Wordle — from covering its 1,000th word to my list of the best starter words to a helpful two-step strategy to news about controversial word changes. I’ve even rounded up what I learned playing the hit online word puzzle for a full year. So if you’re rethinking your need for the actual answer, you might try tips from one of those stories.
Still need a starter word? One person told me they just look around and choose a five-letter object that they’ve spotted to use as their starter word — such as COUCH or CHAIR. I tend to stick to starter words that have the most popular letters used in English words. I like TRAIN as a starter, though I have a friend who uses TRAIL. I’ve read that people use the financial term ROATE, but I like to use words I actually know.
What is Wordle?
If you read this far, you know how to play. You have six chances to guess a five-letter word, and the game gives you feedback as to whether the letters you’ve guessed are in the puzzle or not, and if they’re in the same spot where you guessed they are. The New York Times bought the game from creator Josh Wardle for seven figures in 2022. Wardle famously created the game for his partner, and let her narrow down the 12,000 five-letter words in the English language to just 2,500, creating the database of answers. It was convenient, too, that he has a name that plays off “word.”
A Times spokesperson told me it lists the very first Wordle as appearing on June 19, 2021, and the paper celebrated the game’s 1000th word on March 15. Spoiler: That 1000th word was ERUPT. As in, “Dad will erupt if the Wordle is so tough he loses his streak.”
There are other fun games in the Times Games stable. My latest addiction is Connections, which I think is trickier than Wordle. This is the game where you look at a grid of 16 words and try to put them into four groups of related words. Sometimes the relationships between the words are pretty out there — like the time when it was four words that all began with rock bands, such as “Rushmore” and “journeyman.” (Connections got a little sassy on April Fools’ Day with an all-emoji puzzle. Some gamers did NOT find that funny.)
Spelling Bee is a popular Times game too. And there’s a new game that’s still in beta, Strands, which I’m trying to master.