Verbicular
Rate itPlace the day's letters on a 5x5 grid so every row and column reads as words.
on verbicular.com
Verbicular is a daily word grid puzzle. Some squares of a 5x5 board are black, some are pre-filled, and you place every letter from the day's pool so that each run of two or more letters, across and down, is a valid English word. It has easy and hard modes, hints, streaks and every past puzzle to replay.
About Verbicular
Verbicular calls itself a daily chess-board word puzzle. The 5x5 board has black squares that stay empty and grey squares already filled with letters, and the rest is up to you. Below it sits the day's pool of letters, and every letter in the pool must be used. You click an empty cell and then a letter, or drag letters into place, and every segment of two or more letters reading left to right or top to bottom has to be a real English word.
There are two modes. Hard mode shows only which letters are in the pool; easy mode shows how many of each there are. You can switch from hard to easy during a puzzle but not back. A hint button helps when you are stuck, and Check Solution tells you whether the grid is valid. Puzzles get harder through the week: Monday is easiest, Saturday hardest and Sunday in between.
The puzzles are numbered from #1 on 1 June 2025, with #508 on 21 October 2026, and arrows under the board open every earlier day. A stats panel counts games played, wins and your streak, and a share button copies your result. There are no ads and no sign-up. Keyboard shortcuts let you place letters and pick cells without a mouse. It suits players who like crosswords but enjoy fitting words together more than solving clues.
How to play Verbicular
- Open verbicular.com: today's puzzle loads in hard mode, and Show counts switches it to easy.
- Click an empty cell, then a letter from the pool to place it, or drag letters onto the grid.
- Make every run of two or more letters across and down a valid English word, using the grey letters as anchors.
- Use every letter in the pool; black squares stay empty.
- Press Check Solution, and use a hint if you get stuck.
Screenshots
Tips
- Start with the pre-filled letters as anchors and build words through them.
- Fill the most constrained row or column first, where few words fit.
- Watch common endings such as -ES and -ED across the bottom row.
- Try easy mode on a Saturday puzzle: the letter counts make a big difference.
Questions
Do I have to use every letter?
Yes. Every letter in the day's pool must be placed.
What is the difference between easy and hard mode?
Easy shows how many of each letter you have; hard shows only which letters are available. You can switch from hard to easy during a puzzle but not back.
Does difficulty change through the week?
Yes. Monday is easiest, difficulty rises to Saturday, and Sunday is medium.
Can I play older puzzles?
Yes. The arrows under the board go back day by day to the first puzzle of 1 June 2025.
What time does Verbicular reset?
The game uses the date in New York, so a new puzzle arrives at midnight US Eastern Time.
Ratings and reviews
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