Today's NYT Wordle lands with puzzle #1788, and this Tuesday challenge brings a double-letter curveball that could stall a streak if you're not paying attention. Whether you're protecting a legendary streak or starting fresh, we've got the hints to guide you home.
The Basics (For New Players)
Wordle gives you six attempts to crack a five-letter word. 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 the word at all. One puzzle per day, shared by millions worldwide. That's the beauty of it.
Created by Josh Wardle in 2021 and now part of The New York Times Games family, Wordle has become a daily ritual for word lovers everywhere. Today's puzzle #1788 awaits.
The Letter Rundown
Today's puzzle breaks down like this:
Vowel Count: 1 vowel
Consonant Count: 4 consonants
Repeated Letters: Yes - the letter C appears twice
Letter Rarity: All common letters, but the double-C pattern is less frequent
The Elimination Game (Progressive Hints)
We've designed these hints to reveal just enough at each level. Stop when you've got it figured out.
Level 1 (The Vibe): Tick-tock. Time is running out.
Level 2 (The Category): This word is a noun. It's something you'd find on a wall, a wrist, or a nightstand.
Level 3 (The Boundaries): Starts with C, ends with K.
Level 4 (The Structure): There's a double consonant in positions 1 and 3, with a single vowel in position 2.
Level 5 (The Giveaway): A device that measures and displays the time of day.
Quick-Reference Clues
First Letter: C
Last Letter: K
Vowels Present: O
Double Letters: Yes - C appears twice
Rhymes With: BLOCK, KNOCK, SHOCK
Today's Wordle Answer
Final warning: The answer is directly below. Scroll only if you're ready.
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The answer to Wordle #1788 is: CLOCK
Word DNA: Breaking Down Today's Answer
CLOCK is a noun and a verb. As a noun, it's an instrument for measuring and displaying time. As a verb, it means to record time or hit something with force.
Origins: Derived from Middle Dutch "clocke" meaning "bell," which came from Medieval Latin "clocca." The word originally referred to a bell that chimed the hours before mechanical timepieces existed.
Word Family: clockwork, clocked, clocking, clockwise, o'clock, clockmaker, clocktower
Fun Fact: "CLOCK" is one of only about 70 Wordle answers that contain a double consonant, making it statistically rarer than the average puzzle. The double-C pattern appears in fewer than 2% of all Wordle solutions.
The Streak Saver Rating
Difficulty: 2 / 5
Trap Factor: MEDIUM. The double C is the main stumbling block. Players who guess words like "BLOCK" or "TRUCK" early may lock in the ending but miss the repeated C.
Average Solve: 3.5 guesses (estimate based on difficulty)
This one sits on the easier side of medium. The letters are all common, and the word is instantly recognizable. But the double-C pattern throws off players who aren't watching for repeats. If your second guess turned up gray on one C while the other was yellow, you may have spent extra rounds sorting out the placement.
What This Puzzle Teaches
Double letters are Wordle's quiet assassins. Most players treat each letter as unique, but today's puzzle punishes that assumption. When you see a yellow C early, don't assume there's only one, test for duplicates before locking in your guesses.
Standard openers like CRANE or SLATE give you excellent coverage here. C and L in CRANE, or L and K in SLATE, both provide strong intel. The real trap is guessing a word like CHOCK or CLICK, valid guesses that waste a turn because they share too many letters with the answer without confirming the pattern.
Tomorrow's Reset
Puzzle #1789 drops at midnight in your timezone. Did today's CLOCK catch you off guard, or did you crack it in three? Either way, every Wordle sharpens your instincts for the next one.
See you at midnight for the next challenge.
