Wordle Solved: A Coin Flip Decides Today’s Puzzle – and Keeps the Bot in the Lead
New York, NY – August 24, 2024 – Today’s Wordle proved a surprisingly challenging puzzle, culminating in a coin-flip victory for Forbes contributor Erik Kain. After a lackluster start, Kain secured the win with the word “MIRTH,” narrowly edging out the Wordle Bot in a tie.
Kain detailed his solving process, beginning with the common opening guess ”PLANE,” which yielded a disappointing 377 words remaining. A subsequent guess of ”HOIST” narrowed the possibilities to nine,but provided only yellow letter clues. Focusing on the potential ending, kain tried “GIRTH,” coming close to the solution. Ultimately, “BIRTH” and “MIRTH” remained, and a coin toss resolute the winning word.
The competitive Wordle score remains tight, with Kain earning 0 points for solving in four guesses and tying the Bot. This leaves the current standings at:
Erik Kain: 13 points
Wordle Bot: 14 points
The Bot maintains a slim lead in their ongoing competition. Scoring is weighted as follows: 3 points for solving in one guess,2 for two,1 for three,0 for four,-1 for five,-2 for six,and -3 for failing to solve. Players also earn 1 point for beating their opponent, 0 for a tie, and -1 for a loss. Fridays offer double points, positive or negative.
Today’s solution, “MIRTH,” boasts a rich etymological history. The word originates from the Old English myrgth, meaning “joy, pleasure, delight.” This evolved from Myrge (“pleasant, agreeable, sweet”), linked to Old High German nightmore (“short, brief, pleasant”) and Gothic Maurgjan (“to shorten”). The shift in meaning likely stemmed from associating brevity or ease with pleasant experiences. By the Middle English period, myrth(e) specifically signified joy, amusement, and gladness, frequently enough expressed through laughter and festivity.
Readers can follow Erik Kain’s daily puzzle-solving guides, TV show and movie reviews on his Forbes blog here.