Cluword

About Cluword

Cluword is a free daily word puzzle from oneapplefall.com. Each numbered puzzle shows the length of the hidden word, which changes from day to day, and a cryptic clue that points at its meaning rather than its letters.

You type real words of the right length and read the tiles: green for the right letter in the right place, gold for a letter that is in the word somewhere else, grey for a letter that is not there. You have five guesses. If you are stuck you can open up to three further clues, each more literal than the last and the final one usually giving a letter, but every clue you open uses up one of your five guesses.

The difficulty follows the week: Easy on Monday and Tuesday with everyday words, Medium on Wednesday and Thursday, and Hard from Friday to Sunday with trickier clues and rarer words. Everyone gets the same puzzle each day, and the archive keeps every earlier one with its clues and the answer explained.

Your streak, win rate and guess distribution are kept in your browser, with no account or signup. It suits Wordle players who also like crosswords and want the clue to matter as much as the colours.

How to play Cluword

1. Open Cluword and press Play Today's Puzzle.
2. Read the cryptic clue and note the length of the hidden word.
3. Type a real word of that length and submit it.
4. Read the tiles: green is right letter and place, gold is in the word elsewhere, grey is not in the word.
5. If you are stuck, unlock another clue, knowing it costs one of your five guesses.
6. Solve the word before your guesses run out, then check your stats or try the archive.

Screenshots

Tips

• Work on the clue before your first guess: it often gives the theme.
• Open with a vowel-rich word to learn the word's shape, then follow the clue's meaning.
• Save the extra clues for when the colours stop narrowing things down.
• Expect easier words early in the week and harder ones at the weekend.

Questions