Today's Quordle lands on Friday, and this challenge serves up four words anchored by a heavy dose of E's and a pair of past-tense verbs that could trip up even seasoned players. With nine guesses to solve all four words simultaneously, you'll need every edge you can get. We've got the hints to guide you to a clean sweep.
The Basics (For New Players)
Quordle gives you nine attempts to crack four five-letter words at once. Each guess applies to all four grids simultaneously. After each guess, tiles change color: green means right letter, right spot; yellow signals right letter, wrong position; gray indicates the letter isn't in that particular word. One puzzle per day, shared by word game enthusiasts worldwide.
Created as a Wordle variant and now hosted by Merriam-Webster, Quordle has become the ultimate test for word puzzle veterans who want more challenge. Today's puzzle awaits with four words to conquer.
Today's Puzzle at a Glance
All four words are common five-letter English words. Three start with consonants (D, C, D), one with a vowel (E). The vowel count skews low, each word contains exactly one or two vowels. No repeated letters in any individual word, but the letter E appears across three of the four answers. Watch for the past-tense trap: two words end in -T but only one is a verb in past form.
Word 1 (Top-Left): Hints
The Vibe: Movement without direction, floating, aimless, carried by forces beyond control.
The Category: Verb (also works as a noun). Describes slow, uncontrolled movement through air or water.
The Boundaries: Starts with D, ends with T.
The Structure: Consonant-vowel-consonant-consonant-consonant. One vowel, four consonants, a tight squeeze.
The Giveaway: What snow does in the wind, or what your attention does during a boring meeting.
Word 2 (Top-Right): Hints
The Vibe: Stealth and silence, moving without being noticed, sneaking past detection.
The Category: Verb (past tense). An action completed quietly and carefully.
The Boundaries: Starts with C, ends with T.
The Structure: Consonant-consonant-vowel-consonant-consonant. One vowel buried in the middle.
The Giveaway: What the cat did when it didn't want to be seen entering the room.
Word 3 (Bottom-Left): Hints
The Vibe: Character, identity, belief, the guiding principles of a person or group.
The Category: Noun. A philosophical or sociological concept about collective values.
The Boundaries: Starts with E, ends with S.
The Structure: Vowel-consonant-consonant-vowel-consonant. Two vowels sit at positions 1 and 4.
The Giveaway: The core beliefs and spirit that define a culture or organization.
Word 4 (Bottom-Right): Hints
The Vibe: Deterioration, gradual breakdown, rot, the slow march of entropy.
The Category: Verb (also a noun). The process of something breaking down over time.
The Boundaries: Starts with D, ends with Y.
The Structure: Consonant-vowel-consonant-vowel-consonant. Clean alternating pattern.
The Giveaway: What happens to organic matter when left exposed to the elements, and what teeth do without proper care.
Quick-Reference Clues
Word 1 First Letter: D | Last Letter: T
Word 2 First Letter: C | Last Letter: T
Word 3 First Letter: E | Last Letter: S
Word 4 First Letter: D | Last Letter: Y
Today's Quordle Answers
Final warning: All four answers are directly below. Scroll only if you're ready.
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Word 1 (Top-Left): DRIFT
Word 2 (Top-Right): CREPT
Word 3 (Bottom-Left): ETHOS
Word 4 (Bottom-Right): DECAY
Word DNA
DRIFT, Noun and verb. A slow, continuous movement from one position to another, or the act of being carried along by currents. From Old Norse drift, related to "drive", originally referring to snow or sand moved by wind.
CREPT, Verb (past tense of creep). Moved slowly and stealthily to avoid detection. From Old English crēopan, with Germanic roots meaning "to bend" or "move close to the ground."
ETHOS, Noun. The distinctive character, spirit, or guiding beliefs of a person, community, or culture. From Greek ēthos, character or custom, the root of "ethics."
DECAY, Verb and noun. The gradual process of rotting, decomposition, or decline in quality. From Old French decair, ultimately from Latin dēcadere, "to fall down" or "fall away."
Difficulty Rating
Overall Difficulty: 3 / 5
Hardest Word: ETHOS, less common in everyday conversation; its vowel-first structure can make it elusive early on.
Easiest Word: DECAY, straightforward consonant-vowel pattern, common word, intuitive spelling.
Trap Factor: MEDIUM. DRIFT and CREPT both end in -T and share a past-tense feel, but only CREPT is actually past tense. This similarity could mislead players who lock onto patterns too early.
This is a solid mid-week puzzle, not punishing, but not a gimme either. The spread of starting letters (D, C, E, D) means a strong opener like AUDIO or STARE will catch useful information across multiple grids. ETHOS is the curveball; it's a word players know but don't reach for quickly in a puzzle context.
Tomorrow's Reset
Tomorrow's puzzle drops at midnight. Did today's quartet catch you off guard, or did you sweep all four with guesses to spare? Either way, every Quordle sharpens your instincts for the next one.
See you at midnight for the next four-word challenge.
