Wordle is a tough game. With so many different combinations of five-letter words to choose from and just six attempts to guess them correctly in any given round, throwing plurals into the mix would make it even harder. However, there are certain rules in place to skirt around the issue.
Does Wordle use plurals?
Yes, Wordle uses plurals, but it’s limited to plural nouns that don’t end in S or ES. Examples include words like bison, geese, fungi, sheep, and women. These are plurals, but they don’t follow the usual S or ES ending pattern seen in words like bones, bikes, hands, tears, or words.
Three or four-letter words with S or ES added to the end were used in the past. However, The New York Times changed the rules to exclude them in 2022. This was likely done to avoid overcomplicating Wordle, which is already quite challenging. However, plurals ending in S or ES are still valid guesses, useful for confirming letter positions.
These rules might evolve in the future as more words get used. But since each Wordle is drawn from a random list of 2,309 out of about 13,000 possible five-letter English words, any changes aren’t expected to occur soon.
What other word types aren’t used in Wordle?
Adjectives, adverbs, conjunctions, nouns, prepositions, and verbs are all used in Wordle if they’re five letters long. However, past-tense verbs ending in ED are excluded, likely for the same reason as S or ES plurals: to avoid adding too many possible words into the mix, making it harder.
Offensive five-letter words, including some plurals, are not used in Wordle either. While there are a few, there’s no need to list them; you can guess what they might be. This is because Wordle is accessible to all ages and isn’t age-restricted.
