Past Wordle Words

Every past Wordle word

Above is the full archive of every word Wordle has used so far — 1,878 answers and counting, newest first, each linking to that day's hints and answer page. Whether you're settling a debate about whether a word has come up, ruling candidates in or out for today's grid, or just curious how the list has grown, the complete run of previous Wordle words is here.

Recent past Wordle words

Here are the most recent previous answers, newest first — a quick look at the last couple of weeks if you only missed a day or two. Each links to that day's full hints and answer.

Search the past-answers archive

With well over a thousand words on the list, scrolling isn't always the fastest way to find what you need. Use the search box above the archive to narrow it down:

• Search by word, puzzle number, or date to jump straight to a match.
• Combine terms — a partial word plus a year, say — to filter further.
• Page through the full archive when you'd rather browse in order.

It's the quickest way to confirm whether a specific word has already been a Wordle answer, or to find every past word that fits a pattern you're curious about.

Answers vs. allowed guesses: what actually counts as a Wordle word

Not every five-letter word you're allowed to type has ever been — or ever will be — an answer. Wordle runs on two separate lists, and the difference is the whole reason a past-answers archive is useful:

So when you type an obscure word and it's accepted, that doesn't mean it's ever been the answer. The answer list was deliberately curated down to common, familiar vocabulary — which is exactly why the past-words archive on this page is a reliable reference for what has, and hasn't, come up.

How the Wordle word list was built

Wordle's original answer list wasn't pulled from the dictionary at random. It was hand-curated to roughly 2,315 everyday words, with obscure terms, most proper nouns, and plurals ending in “S” deliberately left out — the aim being words most people already know. That curation is why past Wordle words skew familiar (CRANE, GHOST, PARTY) rather than technical, and why you'll almost never see a five-letter word that needs a dictionary to recognise.

Since the New York Times acquired Wordle in early 2022, the answers have been editor-curated rather than left to run on the original fixed list. The Times has its own Wordle editor overseeing the sequence, smoothing out words that are too hard, too obscure, or awkward for a given day.

Which past Wordle words has the NYT changed or retired?

Part of what makes an archive interesting is the handful of words the game has adjusted along the way:

• Obscure words swapped out. Soon after the acquisition the Times began editing the upcoming list — puzzle #241 (February 2022) had its answer changed from AGORA to AROMA, and #284 (March 2022) from HARRY to STOVE, both deemed too obscure. Because upcoming answers were baked into the game's code, players who hadn't refreshed briefly saw the old word — the clearest early sign the sequence was no longer fixed.
• The FETUS change (May 2022). For puzzle #324, the Times swapped the loaded original answer FETUS for SHINE to keep the game “distinct from the news” during the Roe v. Wade leak. Un-refreshed browsers still showed FETUS, so two answers circulated that day.
• Retired guesses and answers. The Times has also quietly removed scheduled or accepted words it considered obscure, British-spelled, or offensive (reports cite examples like SLAVE, WENCH, and LYNCH among removed entries), so some words once in the pipeline never appeared.
• Repeats. For most of Wordle's life no answer was ever repeated — every day's word was one that hadn't been used before. With thousands of puzzles now behind it, the occasional repeat has become possible, though it's still rare. That's another reason the past-words list earns its keep: knowing what's already appeared helps you judge whether a word is even worth guessing today.

Using past Wordle words to solve today's puzzle

A past-answers archive isn't just trivia — it's a mild edge on the daily grid:

• Rule words in or out. If you're torn between two candidates and one appeared very recently, the fresher-in-memory word is the less likely repeat — history skews against back-to-back reuse.
• Study the shape of real answers. Browsing past words is a quick feel for the vocabulary Wordle favours: common consonant-vowel patterns, few plurals, no proper nouns.
• Sharpen your starter. Seeing which letters open past answers most often is a nudge toward strong opening guesses. If you'd rather have the tool do it, our Wordle solver turns the green, yellow, and grey letters you already have into a shortlist, and our Wordle hint today page gives graduated clues for the current puzzle without spelling out the answer.