Target Time (The Sydney Morning Herald)
Make as many words as you can from nine letters, always using the centre one.
Every day: Nine letters in a 3x3 grid each day, the same for every subscriber: find words of four or more letters that use the centre letter, including at least one nine-letter word. New puzzle: A new dated puzzle each day (Sydney date); the next day's puzzle is listed on the puzzles page late in the evening.
Target Time on The Sydney Morning HeraldTarget Time on The Age
Target Time is the Herald's daily word puzzle: nine letters in a 3x3 grid, with the centre letter required in every word. Each dated puzzle has target scores from Average to Perfect, and one word always uses all nine letters. It is a Premium Digital feature of The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.
About Target Time (The Sydney Morning Herald)
The Target is a long-running word puzzle in Australian newspapers, and Target Time is the online version on the puzzles pages of The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. Each puzzle has its own dated page, for example the one for Saturday 3 October 2026.
The rules on the page are precise. Find words of four letters or more; every word must include the centre letter, and each letter can be used only once. There is always at least one nine-letter word. Colloquial and foreign words, capitalised nouns, apostrophes and hyphens are out, as are verbs or plurals ending in s, and the reference is the Macquarie Dictionary. The puzzle sets targets: on 3 October they were 15 words for Average, 23 for Good, 32 for Excellent and 39 for Perfect.
The online game has a timer, a shuffle button, a reveal option, game stats and a share button for your result. The Herald's paywall lists Target Time among its Premium Digital features, so non-subscribers see a subscribe prompt.
It suits players who like Spelling Bee or anagram games and want an Australian-English word puzzle with a clear daily target.
How to play Target Time (The Sydney Morning Herald)
- Open Target Time on smh.com.au or theage.com.au and log in with a Premium Digital subscription.
- Look at the nine letters; the centre letter must be in every word.
- Type words of four letters or more, using each letter only once per word.
- Find the nine-letter word that uses every letter.
- Aim for the Good, Excellent or Perfect targets before you reveal.
Tips
- Hunt for the nine-letter word early; it often unlocks shorter words inside it.
- Plurals and verbs ending in s do not count, so look for other endings.
- Use Shuffle to see the letters in a new order when you are stuck.
- Check spellings against Australian usage: the reference is the Macquarie Dictionary.
Questions
What are the rules?
Words of four letters or more, each including the centre letter, each letter used once. No proper nouns, foreign or colloquial words, and no verbs or plurals ending in s.
Do I need a subscription?
Yes. Target Time is a Premium Digital feature of the Herald and The Age.
Is there always a nine-letter word?
Yes. Every puzzle has at least one.
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