Wordle Clues (alongside Solution) for Saturday, May 17, 2025

Wordle Clues (alongside Solution) for Saturday, May 17, 2025

Wordle Unleashed

If you're ready to crack today's Wordle for May 17, 2025, buckle up! We've got some hints, tricks, and the eventual solution for you. Today's puzzle makes for a tough nut to crack, but I managed in four attempts. Remember, there are spoilers ahead for Wordle #1,428 of May 17! Scroll below if you'd like some hints (and the answer) to today'sWordle game.

How to slay the Wordle beast

Find Wordle's lair on the New York Times website. A new challenge awaits every day at midnight, your local time.

Begin by guessing a five-letter word. The tiles will light up if you nail the letters right, get them in the wrong spot, or if they're missing from the day's secret word altogether. For more insights, glance over our guide to Wordle and my tips and tricks guide. (You'll find handy additional info at the bottom of this post.)

Feeling lucky? Let's dive into the hints!

Does today's Wordle have any bizarre letters?

We classify common letters as those that appear in the old typesetters' phrase ETAOIN SHRDLU. (Pronounce it as "Edwin Shirdloo," as if he's a pal, and imagine he's along for the ride.)

Three common letters from our friend Edwin make an appearance today. One is somewhat tempting, while one is not so ordinary.

Can you give me a Wordle whodunit?

An adult versus a child.

Has today's Wordle got any double letters?

There are no repeated letters today.

How many vowels does today's Wordle hold?

There's one single vowel in today's Wordle.

What letter does today'sWordle kick off with?

The word initiates with G.

What letter does today'sWordle wrap up with?

The word concludes with N.

What's the final answer to today's Wordle?

Here's your call to arms, brave Wordle warrior! Prepare thyself. Today's word is GROWN.

How I conquered today's Wordle

My opening salvo was RAISE, TOUCH, and BLOND. The war of words had many potential winners, such as FROWN, WRONG, and GROWN, and I opted for the latter first.

Yesterday's Wordle verdict

Yesterday's Wordle was a challenge with the clue being "an ordinal number." The answer contained three common letters and two somewhat common letters.

The answer yesterday was FIFTH.

A beginner's guide to Wordle basics

The goal of Wordle is to uncover the day's hiding word. When you launch the game, you'll find an empty grid filled with letters. It's now time for you to take the lead: type in any five-letter word.

Now, the hues that light up can provide clues about the word: Green reveals a correctly guessed letter, in the correct position. (For example, if you guess PARTY, and the word is actually PURSE, the P and R will be green.)

• Yellow signifies the letter is inside the word but not in the precise position you guessed. (For example, if you guessed PARTY, but the word is actually ROAST, the R, A, and T will all be yellow.)
• Gray denotes the letter is not in the solution at all. (If you guessed PARTY and everything is gray, it is impossible for the solution to be PURSE or ROAST.)

Make a smart guess, and then another, in pursuit of the correct word before you strike out. You receive six attempts, and if you falter, it's game over.

The best opening words for Wordle

What word should you play first? The optimal beginnings usually contain common letters to increase the likelihood of green and yellow sections to guide your journey. (And even when common letters fail, lack of green squares can help eliminate prospects.) The New York Times' Wordle analysis bot suggests starting with:

• CRANE
• TRACE
• SLANT
• CRATE
• CARTE

In the meantime, a MIT analysis found that starting with:

• SALET
• REAST
• TRACE
• CRATE
• SLATE

will eliminate the most possibilities in the opening round. Other options may be ARISE or ROUND. Distinct letters like ADIEU or AUDIO have more vowels, but it could be smart to prioritize more consonants with a starter like RENTS or CLAMP. Make your plan and watch it unfold.

The secrets to Wordle supremacy

We have a few Wordle strategy guides that you may find interesting if you're a serious student of the game. This one tackles the use of consonants, while this one takes a hard look at a strategy powered by the most common letters. The advanced guide unveils a three-pronged approach for mining hints while boosting your chances of success.

The difference between Wordle champs and Wordle sacrificial lambs boils down to this: Wordle victors utilize their guesses to uncover the letters inside the word. If you recognize that the word must end in -OUND, don't squander your guesses on MOUND, ROUND, SOUND, HOUND, or other combinations of those consonants; instead, combine these letters and guess MARSH. If the H color-codes to yellow, you have the solution.

Additionally, keep in mind that after Wordle was acquired by the NYT, the game now features a manual editor who specially picks the solutions. Sometimes they are tricky words that wouldn't have made the original list, and sometimes they are trendy. For instance, FEAST was the solution on one Thanksgiving. Always be on the lookout for a theme.

Alternative Wordle games

If five-letter word games are your thing and you're seeking more adventures, take a peek at these best Wordle alternatives, arranged by difficulty:

Easy to Moderate

• Wheeldle: Engage in one puzzle after another without waiting for the new puzzle to roll in.
• Dordle and Quordle: Try your hand at two (Dordle) or four (Quordle) puzzles simultaneously using the very same guesses. There are also Octordle (eight puzzles) and Sedecordle (sixteen puzzles) for the truly dauntless.

Moderate to Challenging

• Waffle: Unscramble assorted five-letter words presented in a scrambled grid by swapping the letters.
• Squabble: A competitive spin on Wordle where you duke it out with other players while keeping the timer running. Your opponents will bite the dust when you're the last one still standing.

Challenging

• Absurdle: The target word changes after each guess, yet it must remain consistent with its feedback up to that point. You must strategically lock it into a corner to force it down to only one possible solution and then, voila! You win.
• Octordle: An imposing challenge which solves eight five-letter puzzles concurrently using the same guesses. If you're up to this challenge, join the fray!
• Sedecordle: The monster older sibling of Octordle with sixteen puzzles at once. Prepare to dig in deep if you dare to take it on!
• Antiwordle: Your goal here is to avoid guessing the day's solution. The twist is that you're forced to reuse the letters that you correctly guessed, which means strategy is crucial for your success.

These alternatives deliver different levels of complexity and play mechanics to cater to a myriad of players. Happy hunting in the world of Wordle!

• The popular game Wordle, a source of daily entertainment and a part of many people's lifestyles, is now integrated with technology, accessible on the New York Times website.
• Today's Wordle answer is GROWN, a five-letter word that starts with G and ends with N, containing one vowel and three common letters from the old typesetters' phrase ETAOIN SHRDLU.
• Engaging in Wordle, either for entertainment or as a daily proverb of sorts, has become a common part of the modern lifestyle, often discussed among friends and family.

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