When Josh Wardle first developed Wordle, during the COVID-19 lockdown, the New York-based software engineer surely had no idea he was about to launch a global sensation. Indeed, his initial aim was remarkably modest, with Wardle simply wanting to create a game “for me and my partner to enjoy.”
In October 2021, Wardle released Wordle to the general public. The game soon developed a dedicated following across the globe, with some players taking to social media each day to share tips and their results. Such was the game’s popularity that, in January 2022, it was purchased by The New York Times for an undisclosed low seven-figure sum, though it remained free to play.
During a previous interview with Newsweek, Erhan Aslan, who teaches linguistics at the University of Reading in the United Kingdom, offered some tips for Wordle players.
“One thing that I think is important in this game is the starting word chosen. Starting off with words that include commonly used vowels, for example, e and a, consonants such as r and t, and sound sequences might be helpful. Choosing a word that starts with q, z, j, or x, for instance, may not be the best choice,” Aslan said.
He continued: “As you get more feedback after a few guesses, users need to draw on some knowledge of phonics to narrow down or eliminate some words that they might be thinking. For example, if the second letter of the target word is l (indicated by green) and the player feels that the word starts with a consonant, they will need to know that there are only a few consonant cluster possibilities (such as bl, cl, fl, gl, pl, sl).”
The answer to Sunday’s puzzle will be revealed at the end of this article, so scroll down with caution if you want to work it out for yourself.
Alexi Rosenfeld/GETTY
Wordle #1,226, Clues for Sunday, October 27
Newsweek has put together five clues to help you solve today’s Wordle brainteaser.
Hint #1: There are no repeated letters.
Hint #2: The answer contains two vowels, one of which functions as a consonant in a different sentence structure.
Hint #3: Associated with the beach.
Hint #4: The second letter is a vowel.
Hint #5: One of the first three letters in the alphabet is featured.
Wordle #1,226, Answer for Sunday, October 27
The answer to today’s Wordle puzzle is “sandy.”
Well, that was a fun one! Did you get it? If so congratulations, but please don’t be put off if not.
What Does ‘Sandy’ Mean?
The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines “sandy” as “consisting of or containing sand.”
For example: “I’d love to go with you to the beach but only if it’s a sandy one.”