Inkling (Puzzle Round)
Five clues hide one connection: name it with as few as you can.
Every day: One hidden connection a day, the same for every player, behind five clue words. You start with one clue; a new clue appears after three wrong guesses, and the last clue gives five guesses. Fewer clues used is a better result. New puzzle: Midnight UTC.
Inkling is Puzzle Round's daily connection puzzle. Five words share one hidden category, and you see them one at a time. Guess the link early to score well; every three wrong guesses reveal another clue.
About Inkling (Puzzle Round)
Inkling is a word and trivia puzzle about spotting what five things have in common. Each day has one hidden connection, a category all five clue words belong to, and the same puzzle goes to every player.
You begin with a single clue showing. Type what you think links it to the unseen others. After three wrong guesses the next clue appears, and on the fifth and last clue you get five guesses. The aim is to name the connection with as few clues as possible, so a lucky early guess is the best result and a careful wait for more clues is the safe one. Your earlier tries stay listed so you do not repeat them.
The puzzles are written by hand and rotate through a curated bank; the site's changelog mentions a batch of 30 new connections added in August 2026. Answers are checked on the server, so the day's solution cannot be read from the page. The format is close to LinkedIn's Pinpoint.
Puzzle Round is a free website of short daily puzzles by thatsoftwaredude, an independent developer. Every player gets the same puzzles each day, a countdown on the site runs to the next midnight UTC, and each game keeps its own daily leaderboard ranked by solve time. You can play without signing up; a free account saves your result to the leaderboard and keeps your streak, and private Circles let a family or a group of friends compare results. Clearing the whole lineup in a day counts as a Perfect Day.
How to play Inkling (Puzzle Round)
- Open puzzleround.com/inkling to see today's first clue.
- Type a guess at the hidden connection and press Guess.
- After three wrong guesses, a new clue is revealed.
- On the fifth clue you have five guesses left.
- Name the connection with as few clues as you can to top the leaderboard.
Tips
- Think of categories, not synonyms: films, brands, things with a shared prefix.
- Use your three guesses per clue on different kinds of link rather than variations of one idea.
- Check the list of tried guesses before typing another.
- If the first clue is vague, a broad category guess can still land.
Questions
How many clues does Inkling give?
Five. You start with one, get another after every three wrong guesses, and have five guesses on the last clue.
Is Inkling like Pinpoint?
Yes. Both reveal clue words one at a time until you name the category; Inkling counts how many clues you needed.
When does a new Inkling puzzle come out?
Once a day at midnight UTC. The site shows a countdown to the next puzzle, and everyone plays the same one that day.
Is Inkling free?
Yes. Puzzle Round is free to play in the browser (its terms mention optional ads). You can solve without an account; a free account puts your time on the daily leaderboard and keeps your streak.
Games like Inkling (Puzzle Round)
Pinpoint
LinkedIn's daily guess-the-category from five clues
Connections
The NYT's daily word grouping by hidden category
Links (Mind Loft)
Mind Loft's daily four-group word sort
DailyPuzzle.com
Nine small puzzles a day, from a chess mate to a dingbat, with points and a daily leaderboard.
Fourbe
Four clues. One hidden subject.
Connections: Sports Edition
Sort 16 sports terms into four groups of four, with four mistakes allowed.
Crossclimb
Answer trivia clues, then stack the answers into a ladder where each word changes one letter.
Ladder (Puzzle Round)
Solve clues to climb a word ladder, one letter changing per rung.