If you're finding Friday's Wordle puzzle to be a bit of a struggle, you're certainly not alone—the game's inventor has admitted to needing a few attempts each day.
"[My partner] and I play it on the couch together each morning," New York-based software engineer Josh Wardle told Newsweek in January 2022. "She will consistently get it in three goes, which is way, way better than I can ever hope to achieve. I normally need at least four or five attempts."
Years after coming up with the initial concept, Welsh-born Wardle perfected Wordle during the COVID-19 lockdowns. It was then released to the public in October 2021.
Following its public debut, Wordle exploded from 90 users on November 1, 2021, to 300,000 on January 2, 2022, according to figures by Statista. The New York Times purchased the game for an undisclosed seven-figure fee soon after.
A major part of Wordle's appeal is its simplicity. Players get six attempts to guess a five-letter word. Gray tiles behind each letter indicate that they're not in the word at all; yellow means the letter features, but is in the wrong position, while green lets players know the letter is in the word and in the correct place.
Erhan Aslan, an expert in applied linguistics who teaches at the University of Reading in the U.K., previously provided some useful advice for Wordle players in an interview with Newsweek.
"One thing that I think is important in this game is the starting word chosen," Aslan said. "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. 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."
Newsweek has provided some clues below for today's Wordle puzzle. The answer will be revealed at the end of this article, so please scroll down with caution if you want to work it out for yourself.
'Wordle' #993 Hints for Friday, March 8 Game
Newsweek has put together five hints to help you figure out today's Wordle puzzle.
Hint #1: Friday's answer ends in "Y."
Hint #2: "E" is the first letter of today's word.
Hint #3: There are no repeated letters.
Hint #4: Today's answer is an adverb and adjective.
Hint #5: The correct answer is associated with punctuality.
'Wordle' #993 Answer for Friday, March 8 Game
The answer to today's Wordle is "early."
Wordle is released at midnight in your local time zone. Newsweek will be back with another round of hints and tips for each new game.
Players who would like something to keep themselves busy while they wait can have a go at other word-based puzzles such as Typochondria and Spellspire.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Ryan Smith is a Newsweek Senior Pop Culture and Entertainment Reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on ... Read more
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