Reveal every letter before your mistake allowance runs out. Spaces, hyphens and apostrophes are already shown. Use the letter tiles or your keyboard. Every matching occurrence is revealed; duplicate guesses cost nothing.
Easy: 8 mistakes and one free hint. Normal: 6 mistakes; the hint costs 40 points. Hard: 5 mistakes and no hints. A wrong whole-answer guess costs two mistakes. Whole answers must match displayed punctuation and spacing; letter case is ignored.
Scoring: win = (100 + 20 × unused mistakes) × difficulty multiplier (1, 2, or 3). Subtract 40 for a Normal hint. Loss = 0. Timed games add floor(seconds remaining ÷ 3) for a win. Untimed games never award speed points.
Timed challenge: 180 seconds per puzzle. Time running out ends the round. Solo and same-device timers stop when paused or the tab is hidden. Online timers keep running on the server.
Pass-and-Play: each player solves one puzzle per cycle with the same category and difficulty. A 5-round match means five puzzles per player. Highest total wins; ties are shared.
Word Setter: the setter enters a private answer and hands the device to the next player. Only the solver earns points. Roles rotate each round; one cycle gives everyone one turn setting and solving. Use comparable words and honest hints.
Race: all players independently solve the same puzzle. Other players' progress and answers stay hidden until everyone finishes. Cooperative: one shared board; valid guesses and hints pass the turn. Everyone receives the shared score.
Online rooms hold 2–4 people. The host starts when everyone is ready. Rematch returns to the lobby and keeps totals. Reconnect using this browser; keep your private player token private. Inactive players are marked away after 45 seconds, skipped after 60 seconds, and timed out after 10 minutes. Host duties pass to an active player after 60 seconds away. Rooms expire after 24 hours without activity.
The standard cartoon is non-graphic. Choose Build-a-Robot for an alternative. Sound and motion are optional. Local statistics record solo play only.
A wrong solution costs two mistakes. Match the visible punctuation and word spacing.