Knotwords
A clueless crossword where each section of the grid tells you which letters it holds.
Every day: Two puzzles a day, Daily Classic and Daily Twist, the same for every player: fill a small grid with words across and down using only the letters allowed in each section. The dailies grow harder through the week. New puzzle: Once a day; the game does not state the time.
Knotwords is a word logic puzzle by Zach Gage and Jack Schlesinger: arrange the letters given for each section of a small grid so every row and column spells a word. Each day brings a Daily Classic and a Daily Twist, free to play daily on phones and tablets without ads; the Steam version is paid.
About Knotwords
Knotwords is a word logic puzzle by Zach Gage and Jack Schlesinger, the pair behind Good Sudoku and SpellTower, released in April 2022 for iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac and Windows. Gage has said the idea came from applying KenKen's grouped cells to a crossword grid.
Each puzzle is a small, irregular grid with no clues. The grid is split into sections, and each section shows the letters that belong in it, in no particular order. You place those letters so that every run of squares across and down spells a real word. Each puzzle has one solution, and like a good sudoku it can be solved by reasoning rather than guessing: a rare letter or a section with few options is usually the way in.
Two puzzles arrive each day. Daily Classic is the plain form, and Daily Twist changes the rules, for example by showing how many vowels each word holds. The dailies grow larger and harder through the week, in the way newspaper crosswords do, and the month's dailies stay in an archive. Monthly Puzzlebooks add more puzzles.
On phones and tablets the daily puzzles are free and there are no ads; a premium tier opens the full puzzlebooks, statistics and archive. On Steam the game is a one-time purchase. Knotwords suits players who like crosswords but prefer logic to trivia, and sudoku players who want words instead of numbers.
How to play Knotwords
- Open Knotwords and choose Daily Classic or Daily Twist.
- Look at the letters shown in each section of the grid; those are the only letters that go in that section.
- Place letters so that every run across and every run down spells a word.
- Start with sections that have few possible arrangements or rare letters, and work outward.
- Finish the grid: when every word is valid, the puzzle is solved. Come back the next day for two new ones.
Screenshots
Tips
- A section with a Q, X or Z often has only one sensible place for it; start there.
- Short words of two or three letters limit the long words that cross them.
- The dailies get harder through the week, so Monday is the best day to learn the rules.
- In the Twist, read the new rule first; it often removes most of the options.
Questions
Is Knotwords free?
The daily puzzles are free on iPhone, iPad and Android, with no ads. A premium tier adds the full puzzlebooks, statistics and archive. On Steam the game is paid.
How many daily puzzles are there?
Two: Daily Classic and Daily Twist.
Are there clues?
No. Each section of the grid shows its letters, and you work out the words from those.
Can I play missed days?
Yes, the month's dailies are kept in an archive.
Games like Knotwords
Crosswordle
Another clueless daily crossword where you move letters until every word fits
Waffle
A daily grid of crossing words fixed by swapping letters
Good Sudoku
Zach Gage and Jack Schlesinger's sudoku app, with the same logic-first approach
SpellTower
Zach Gage's word grid game, daily on Puzzmo
Typeshift
Another Zach Gage word puzzle with a daily board
The Mini Crossword
A short daily crossword for players who also want clues
Gridmino
A daily set of more than a dozen small logic and word puzzles, ad-free.
Netflix Puzzled
A daily set of word, logic and picture puzzles from Netflix, no membership needed.