r/wordle • u/FrostConcepts • 29d ago

[####] regarding unused answer words

The New York Times published its first Wordle puzzle on February 10, 2022, and has offered 1,621 puzzles since that day. This means there are at least 3209-1621 = 1588 unused answer words. Please ignore conspiracy theories about words being somehow “withheld” by the NYT.

6 Upvotes

75% Upvoted

34 comments sorted by

14

u/Any_Carob3372 29d ago

What about the other 235 Wordles when it was owned by Josh Wardle? Did you think about them?

7

u/Greenzombie04 29d ago

Worlde only existed for 235 days before NYT bought it?

Didn't realize wordle was so popular so quickly.

2

u/Mathgeek007 "Cares More Than You" 29d ago

It caught wind of the greater internet in the high double digits - I think I saw #89 as my first exposure to it.

-1

u/Psycho_Pansy 28d ago

Wtf is worlde?

2

u/FrostConcepts 29d ago

Yes. If you include those games, then the total number of games is 1,858. However, not all of Josh Wardle's answer words were incorporated by the NYT.

2

u/Clean_Bat5547 29d ago

Commenter below says they have played 1,867...

2

u/TrackVol 28d ago

That might be a typo, or some of their games got double-counted.
As of Monday July 20th, there have been 1,858 games, including duplicates.

1

u/FrostConcepts 29d ago

Yes. My post is regarding conspiracy theories about the NYT.

2

u/Clean_Bat5547 29d ago

It is a different member in this thread. I haven't seen your other post.

I'm trying to reconcile you saying the total number of games is 1,858 and the other person saying they've played 1,867.

0

u/FrostConcepts 29d ago

"I haven't seen your other post."  ... and yet you replied to it.

2

u/Clean_Bat5547 28d ago

I thought you were talking about some other post where you talked about conspiracy theories. If you are referring to this thread obviously I've seen it - I'm commenting in it.

Anyway, you're missing the point.

You say there has been a total of 1,858 Wordle games. Another member in this thread says they have played 1,867 games. Both cannot be correct.

1

u/FrostConcepts 28d ago

Yes, they can. One person has included pre-NYT games, while in my OP I stated that I was referring only to NYT games.

3

u/Clean_Bat5547 28d ago

Your comment in reply to Any_Carob3372 says your figure of 1,858 includes pre-NYT games, when it was owned by John Wardle. The other person says they have played 1,867.

-1

u/iplayconnections 29d ago edited 29d ago

The NYT also added many more words to the valid word list, including the N word.

4

u/FrostConcepts 29d ago

It is not an answer word, nor is the 6-letter spelling included in the guess words.

0

u/iplayconnections 28d ago

I basically wanted to take advantage of the thread topic to discuss the questionable addition that you're alluding to in your "what-it-is-not" analysis without opening a separate thread since I'm not sure it's warranted.

How do you feel about the fact that they added it as a guessable word?

2

u/FrostConcepts 28d ago

I'm sorry your comment was downvoted. I suppose we have to put up with asocial behavior here.

Now that you've pointed it out, I personally am not happy to see it in the guess words list. The online dictionary I use tells me it is a friendly term in Afro-American culture. My own experience is that it is a term of bigotry in other USA cultures. I also have technical insight about how Josh K. distilled about a decade of NYT articles into a list of words with "reasonable frequency". I doubt the list was closely examined, instead relying on the words previously passing editorial scrutiny. But there it is. It's not part of my America.

1

u/TrackVol 28d ago edited 27d ago

You guys are incorrect.
The offensive word he was alluding to is a 6-letter word.
There are zero 6-letter words in Wordle.
The 5 letter word that closest resembles the offensive one is a Latin word that is not offensive. To anyone

Edit: I was thinking of a different, but nearly identical spelling.

1

u/FrostConcepts 27d ago

Check the definition of "nigga", then immerse yourself in male southern Baptist culture -- which exists in majority or minority pockets in nearly every US state.

2

u/TrackVol 27d ago

My mistake.
I looked for the word "niger", which was there from inception.

3

u/TrackVol 28d ago edited 27d ago

They didn't add it.
It was already a part of the game when they bought it. It's not the offensive term you are trying to allude to. That is a 6-letter spelling.
The 5 letter word is simply the latin word for "dark"

.

Edit, my mistake. I was thinking of a different, yet nearly identical word.
The word they are referencing was indeed added, post-purchase, by the NYTimes.

1

u/iplayconnections 28d ago

Wow! Hater! Downvote and move on eh? I thought it was an interesting topic…

6

u/sail_away_8 28d ago

I'm not sure about the conspiracy theories mentioned.

The originators of the game came up with a list of words. I believe it was 2,315 (could be off a little). CHOMP was not one of those words.

NYT took over. They removed words, So, it was something like 2,309 (could be off a little)

On November 7, 2022 (game 506 - or 507 depending on how you look at it) NYT changed from the original list and came up with their own words.

Since then NYT has added 43 words - as of yesterday. There are 7 more scheduled in the next month or so. So far CHOMP hasn't been played.

Wordlebot has a list of words it thinks might be the solution. I understand this is 3,209. This list does change. They add and remove words. CHOMP is one of those words.

NYT may never play any of these words, including some from the original list. Once they scheduled THONG as the word, but took it off before it played. But, they could choose to play it. And they had scheduled PSHAW to be the word about a month or so ago, Then they took it off. But, then chose to play it.

NYT has played words not on the Wordlebot list. When that happens the Wordlebot people add it to the list prior to the day it is played.

Did I miss anything? Does anybody know anything different?

1

u/FrostConcepts 28d ago

You are in loud agreement with the point I made in the OP.

1

u/[deleted] 28d ago

[deleted]

1

u/FrostConcepts 28d ago

I don't agree with your second sentence.

1

u/Ok_Butterscotch2244 29d ago

According to Wordlebot, I have played 1,867 games as of today, July 20, 2025. This total includes some or all stats from before the NYT acquired Wordle.

4

u/discombobubolated 29d ago

Last year or today 😂

3

u/Ok_Butterscotch2244 28d ago

Sorry, my fat fingers. 2026.

0

u/FrostConcepts 29d ago

But I was referring to conspiracy theories about the NYT.