Today's Wordle Answer #652 - April 2, 2023 Solution And Hints

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By Keyede Erinfolami/April 2, 2023 11:03 am EST

April starts off on a mild note, excusing the irony of yesterday's puzzle solution. Today's answer is a common word, but WordleBot says it took most players four tries to figure it out. Considering there are only six attempts per puzzle, that counts as a close shave. To help you crack the code in as few guesses as possible, we'll share a few hints that should nudge you toward the answer word. If you don't mind a spoiler or prefer to cut to the chase, you may skip to the second section for the solution reveal.

The word of the day is a noun that can double as a verb, and it only has one vowel, O, as its third letter. There are no repeated letters, and the word contains the letter S. Per usual, we won't disclose its exact position, so we don't give too much away. However, per the NYT's modified rules for Wordle, you can rule out the possibility that it's the last letter. The word rhymes with "wok," and it's the unit of NASDAQ's offerings.

If you remove its first letter, you'd have a word commonly paired with the word "tick." You could also replace its second letter with P, in which case you'd have the name of the Star Trek character credited with the line, "Live long and prosper."

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If you're still unsure, the solution to today's Wordle puzzle (#652 – April 2, 2023) is STOCK. The word has various meanings depending on whether you're talking about merchandise, financial investment, genealogy, or cooking, and we looked to the word's etymology to explain this variation.

Etymonline explains that the word is from Old English "stocc," which described a stump, post, or tree trunk, from Proto-Germanic "stauk-" of the same meaning. Per the same source, however, it is unclear how the word evolved to mean what it now means in some of the contexts above.

In its usage to mean "one's ancestry or line of descent," the connection is not too out of reach — it stems from a figurative use of the "tree trunk" sense, a play on the words "family tree.". The phrase "stock still" is also from this sense, as in to stand as still as a tree trunk. But this is as far as we could connect the dots of the word's evolution, and it is unclear how it came to mean commercial inventory or generic photos.

We solved the puzzle in three tries today — one lesser than the day's average. We chose "bloke" as a starting word, and after the second guess, "paint," we had three colored tiles and could make a correct third guess. We hope you finish even faster.

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5 games Wordle fans should check out now

chordbug (Lynn)/Hello Wordl

By Rob Rich/Feb. 1, 2022 6:10 pm EST

If you've been enjoying Wordle's brain-teasing word puzzles but have started considering alternatives for any particular reason, there are certainly many options out there — so many, in fact, it could be overwhelming. Having an idea of where to look may be useful, and so we've assembled a short list of Wordle-adjacent games you might want to check out.

These titles include everything from spatial organization to grid-filling games, plus there's a clone if that's what you really want. Several of the options on this list are available on more than one platform, including web browsers, Android and iOS devices, Steam, and game consoles.

Though these alternatives aren't all specifically word games, we did try to keep the spirit of Wordle's accessible-yet-challenging approach to puzzles in mind. As well, we did find a nearly direct copy of Wordle, one that brings some small additions to the formula.

Spry Fox

Triple Town's puzzles are far more focused on space and object placement, but no less taxing on your brain. Everything on the board – from rocks and trees to buildings and bushes – can be combined in connected groups of three or more to create one "upgraded" piece (three grass tiles become a bush, three bushes become a tree).

What's so insidious about Spry Fox's puzzle game is that the board can fill up pretty fast, leaving you with fewer good locations to place whatever the next piece is. The wandering bears don't help, either. The game may not use words, but it can be extremely difficult to put down all the same – even if (or when, really) you lose. But if you're prepared to take on the challenge, you can find Triple Town on iOS and Android for free, or on Steam for $9.99.

Barry Gilbert

You won't be guessing letters and words, but nonograms still require a fair bit of deductive logic. All you have to do is use the numbers provided in the various rows and columns to figure out which squares to fill in and which ones to leave blank – similar to something like sudoku, but more visual and a little less math-y.

Barry Gilbert's Nonograms Online gets a recommendation because it's a solid place to start for new nonogram players or a good way for more seasoned players to brush up on their techniques. There are no real penalties for being wrong, puzzles can be adjusted from 5x5 grids up to 25x25, and there are quite a few to cycle through.

Really, the only downside is that, unlike some other nonogram puzzles, you aren't left with a pixelated image when you're done. Nonogram-style puzzles are available in many varieties spread across just about every platform imaginable, but Nonograms Online is specifically available in your web browser.

Rocketship Park

Unlike Wordle, the goal in Rocketship Park's Word Forward is to use a grid of letters to spell a bunch of words rather than piece together a specific one. It's sort of like Boggle in a sense, except that successfully spelling a word makes the rest of the puzzle more difficult. Every time you complete a word your letters disappear, so you'll have to plan ahead in addition to all the spelling you'll already be doing.

This is made all the more difficult when you consider that every move you make is locked-in, so you can't go back and change your mind. At least that used to be the case, but a recent update did add an Undo feature. And while it's not a free download, Word Forward is available across multiple platforms including Android ($2.99), iOS ($3.99), Switch ($4.99), and Steam ($4.99).

Zach Gage

Zach Gage and Jack Schlesinger's SpellTower is another strategic word search, but now you're on the clock! Or more specifically, you have to spell words and clear letter tiles quickly enough to prevent everything from piling up and reaching the top of the screen. If even one letter touches the top, it's game over, so you'll have to keep your cool while also trying to spell under a time limit.

This game also adds a layer of complexity by having the tiles shift and settle every time space is cleared. This dynamic will change where different letters are in relation to one another as you play to open up new spelling opportunities — or close others off completely. If you aren't careful, you could end up making things harder for yourself. If you want to check out SpellTower, you can download it for free for iOS or Android, or get it through Apple Arcade.

chordbug (Lynn)

If anything other than Wordle won't do, there's always hello wordl, which is basically just Wordle. It's the same "six guesses to figure out a five-letter word via the process of elimination" approach you're likely already familiar with. Except it's also not, because along with the one-try daily word puzzle you can also just keep playing random ones to your heart's content.

In addition, the size of the word is adjustable using a slider at the top of the page that allows you to choose between 4-letter to 11-letter brain-teasers. Just like Wordle, you can play the game in your web browser or save the bookmark to your phone's home screen, effectively making it function like an app. The game is free to play, and the info page states it will remain that way forever.

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