Today's NYT Wordle lands with puzzle #1868, and a compact, approachable challenge rewards careful pattern reading over flashy guessing. Whether you are protecting a streak or opening the game for the first time, welcome in.
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 #1868 awaits.
The Letter Rundown
Today's puzzle breaks down like this:
Vowel Count: 2 vowel(s)
Consonant Count: 3 consonant(s)
Repeated Letters: No repeats today
Letter Rarity: Mostly common letters, with P the least frequent of the set
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): Think of something practical, personal, and often kept close at hand.
Level 2 (The Category): It is most commonly a noun for a small container used to carry personal belongings.
Level 3 (The Boundaries): Starts with P, ends with E.
Level 4 (The Structure): All five letters are different, and the vowels sit in positions 2 and 5.
Level 5 (The Giveaway): It is the small bag or pouch where someone might keep money, cards, keys, and other essentials.
Quick-Reference Clues
First Letter: P
Last Letter: E
Vowels Present: U, E
Double Letters: No
Rhymes With: CURSE, NURSE, VERSE
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 #1868 is: PURSE
Word DNA: Breaking Down Today's Answer
PURSE is a small bag or pouch used for carrying money and personal items. You might put a wallet in one, search one for loose change, or carry one by a strap.
The word also works as a verb, as when someone tightens or puckers the lips.
Origins: The word came into Middle English through forms related to Old English purs, ultimately tracing through Latin bursa to Greek byrsa, meaning hide or leather.
Word Family: pursed, pursing
Fun Fact: The same spelling names a carrying pouch and describes tightening the lips. That split between familiar meanings makes the word easy to recognize once its clean set of five distinct letters appears.
The Streak Saver Rating
I rate this one 2.5 out of 5. Its trap factor is the familiar four-letter rhyme pattern at the end, which can leave several plausible opening consonants in play.
All five letters are unique, so there is no duplicate-letter ambush, but the consonant pairing in the middle can delay the answer if your early guesses miss it.
A solver can uncover the final four-letter sound pattern and then spend turns testing CURSE, NURSE, and other rhyming candidates one at a time. The disciplined response is a probe that tests several possible opening consonants together.
What This Puzzle Teaches
When a nearly complete pattern supports several familiar words, stop guessing directly into the family. Use one information-rich probe to eliminate multiple candidates, even if that probe cannot be the answer.
Tomorrow's Reset
Puzzle #1869 drops at midnight in your timezone, Friday handing the streak over to a fresh board.
PURSE is tidy once seen, but its rhyming neighbors can make the approach surprisingly crowded. How did your solve go today?
See you at midnight for the next challenge.
