Squishword
Get from one word to another by adding, subtracting, joining and splitting ideas.
Every day: A new numbered puzzle each day with a start word and a goal word, the same for everyone, at easy, medium and hard settings. New puzzle: Once a day.
Squishword is a daily word game about meaning rather than spelling. You get a start word and a goal word, and you build a path between them with four kinds of moves: add something to a word, take something away, fuse two words, or split one in two. Every move is graded on whether it makes sense and how clever it is.
About Squishword
Squishword calls itself daily meaning math. Each day there is a numbered puzzle with two words, and your job is to travel from the first to the second using ideas instead of letters. The examples in its tutorial give the flavour: fire and water meet to make steam, a horse plus a horn gives a unicorn, and a storm splits into rain and wind.
There are four operations. Addition puts a quality, ingredient or part onto a word. Subtraction takes something out, and the rule of thumb is that adding it back should give the original. Joining fuses two words into something that is recognisably both, and splitting breaks a word into its two specific parts. You select a word on the board, pick an operation from the ring around it, type your answer and press Enter.
Every move is judged. A move that does not hold up can simply be tried again, and you can give feedback with a thumbs up or down if you disagree. Your puzzle grade is built from your move grades: reaching the goal is the point, and better grades are extra credit. Undo, delete and reset let you rework the board.
Easy is open play. Medium adds required words that must appear somewhere on your path, and Hard also limits how many of each operation you can use. A calendar shows the week, past puzzles sit in an archive, and a short tutorial walks through each operation. It suits people who enjoy riddles and lateral thinking more than spelling puzzles.
How to play Squishword
- Read the day's start word and goal word.
- Select a word on the board and choose add, subtract, join or split from the ring around it.
- Type the result into the bubble and press Enter: the move is graded.
- Keep building a path of moves until you reach the goal word.
Screenshots
Tips
- Test a subtraction or split by reversing it: adding the parts back should give the word you started with.
- Avoid answers that are too general, such as 'thing' or 'stuff': the judge wants specific ideas.
- On Medium, plan a route through the required words before you start moving.
Questions
Does spelling matter?
No. Moves are judged on meaning, not on letters.
What changes between difficulties?
Medium adds required words to use on your path, and Hard also limits how many of each operation you may use.
Can I play past puzzles?
Yes, from the archive. Past dailies count as solves but do not rebuild a streak.
What if I think the grading is wrong?
Each move has thumbs up and down buttons to send feedback.
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