If you are wondering what Wordle is, you are not alone. The craze has taken Twitter by storm in recent weeks. And it is getting increasingly hard to avoid other people’s successes – and failures – when it comes to the daily word game. But what exactly is it? And why is it so popular?
What is Wordle?
In short, Wordle is a word game. Every day, those playing have to guess a mystery five-letter word. The catch? They only have six attempts.
The joy of Wordle is that it is quick to play. Just one word; once every 24 hours. It’s a fast brain-stretcher to start the day. Unless you get it wrong, in which case you could get vent your annoyance on social media as many have done.
Get the Wordle right and you are laughing. Get it wrong and you have to wait until tomorrow for your next hit.
Student friendly
In many ways, Wordle is perfect for students and it can quickly and easily become part of your morning routine.
If your brain takes a while to warm up in the mornings (and whose doesn’t?) Wordle is ideal for some mental gymnastics before lectures or exams.
It is also free! So what’s not to like?
If you have been watching daytime TV recently, you may see similarities with the quiz show Lingo. In the programme, contestants must guess four-letter words on the clock, with their guesses revealing the right letters (but not always in the right order).
The premise of colours highlighting where a letter should or shouldn’t be is the same with Wordle. When a letter is highlighted green, it is in the right place. If it shows up yellow, it means the letter is in the word somewhere else. If it’s grey, you can ditch that letter all together.
Everyone’s talking about it
Avoiding Wordle on Twitter is getting harder than avoiding spoilers for your favourite TV show. It seems that literally everyone is talking about it.
Some people aren’t happy. They talk about muting ‘Wordle’, grumbling about the fun other people are having. But forget about them! If they are angry that others are enjoying themselves in these grim times, there’s no hope for them.
The joy of Wordle is the fact that anyone can do it from anywhere, then talk about it with others. If you don’t want to get involved with that, simply keep scrolling.
See also: Why cancel culture does not work
