How do you play?
- Read the clue. It tells you the category of the hidden word, like Fruits or Dog breeds.
- Tap a letter or type it. If the letter is in the word, every place it appears is filled in.
- If not, a part is added to the drawing: head, body, two arms and two legs.
- Find the whole word before the sixth miss to win.
Is there a new word every day?
Yes. The Daily tab gives everyone the same word, and it changes at midnight UTC. Your guesses save, so you can come back later. Switch to Unlimited for new words as often as you like.
What is the best way to guess?
- Start with vowels. Almost every word has one. E and A are the safest first picks.
- Move to common consonants. R, S, T, N and L show up in a large share of words.
- Use the clue. If the category is Pasta shapes and the word ends in I, think of PENNE or RAVIOLI.
- Look at the gaps. A pattern like _ _ A _ _ often means a vowel pair or a common ending.
- Save rare letters. Only guess Q, Z, X or J when the pattern points to them.
Where does the game come from?
It is an old pen and paper game, played by children in classrooms for well over a hundred years. One player picks a word and draws dashes, the other guesses letters. It needs nothing but a pencil, which is why it spread so widely.
Is it good for learning?
Yes. It builds spelling and letter patterns, and the category clue adds vocabulary. Teachers use it as a warm up because every guess teaches something, even a miss.
At a glance
| Misses allowed | 6 (head, body, two arms, two legs) |
| Words in our list | 1,198 words across 140 categories |
| Average word length | 5.9 letters |
| Clue | The category of every word |
| Cost | Free, no account |
Which letters should you guess first?
We counted every word in our list. These letters show up in the most words: E (52%), A (48%), R (41%), O (37%), I (37%), N (32%), T (31%), L (31%). Of the vowels, the order from most to least common is E, A, O, I, U. Start with the top few and you will uncover part of most words before your first miss.