Step Words (Decatur Games)
Rate itTurn the day's 4-letter word into a 5-letter one: change, change, add a letter, change.
Every day: One ladder a day, the same for every player: a 4-letter start word and a 5-letter end word (LINK to TRUCK on 7 October 2026), to be joined by four words in between. Past days stay playable from a calendar, and signed-in players can compare time and score with friends. New puzzle: Once a day, a new start and end word; earlier dates stay in the calendar.
Step Words (Decatur Games) is a daily word ladder in which you link a 4-letter start word to a 5-letter end word with four words in between. The steps follow a fixed order: change one letter, change another, add a letter, then change one more so the last word is one letter from the end. It is a different game from Stepwords at stepwords.xyz.
About Step Words (Decatur Games)
Step Words is one of three daily word puzzles on Decatur Games, alongside Word Weft and Twice Thrice. Not to be confused with Stepwords at stepwords.xyz, which is a clued anagram ladder: this one is a letter-change ladder with no clues and no rearranging.
Each day the board shows a 4-letter word at the top and a 5-letter word at the bottom, with four empty rows between them. The first two rows take 4-letter words, each one letter different from the word above. The third row adds one letter to make a 5-letter word, and the fourth changes one letter so that it sits one change away from the end word. Letters keep their order, every entry must be a real word, and no word may repeat.
When you press Submit, wrong entries are marked: a red box for an invalid or repeated word and a red line for a step that changes the wrong number of letters. Valid common words turn green and rare words purple. Your first full solution is worth 10 points, plus one per rare word, and after that you can keep submitting alternate paths for more points, one for each new common word and two for each new rare one. A timer runs from the moment you press Start.
There is no sign-up needed to play. A calendar lets you go back to any earlier puzzle, and with an account you can collect achievements and add friends to a leaderboard of time and score for each day.
How to play Step Words (Decatur Games)
- Open decaturgames.com/stepwords and press Start to reveal the day's start and end words.
- Type a 4-letter word one letter different from the start word, then another one letter different from that.
- In the third row add one letter to make a 5-letter word, keeping the other letters in order.
- In the fourth row change one letter so the word is one change away from the end word, then press Submit.
- After solving, enter alternate paths with new words for extra points, or share your result.
Screenshots
Tips
- Work backwards too: list 5-letter words one letter from the end word, then see which drop a letter to make a 4-letter word.
- Plan where the added letter goes first, since it decides which 4-letter words can lead into it.
- Rare words turn purple and score an extra point in your first solution, so an unusual but valid word is worth trying.
- Open Used Words after solving to see which words you have already entered before hunting for alternates.
Questions
Is this the same game as Stepwords at stepwords.xyz?
No. That game is a clued ladder where each word is an anagram of the last plus a letter. Step Words by Decatur Games changes one letter at a time in place, with no clues and no rearranging.
Do I need an account?
No. You can play the daily puzzle and the archive without signing up; an account adds achievements and a friend leaderboard.
Can I play earlier puzzles?
Yes. Play Historical Puzzle in the menu opens a calendar of past days.
How is it scored?
Ten points for your first solution plus one per rare word in it, then one point for each new common word and two for each new rare word in alternate solutions.
Ratings and reviews
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