Word Game Glossary

Terms and concepts from our word games, briefly explained to help you understand the rules, scoring, and strategy behind each of our daily puzzles.

Pangram
A word or sentence that contains all available letters. In Hive, a pangram earns a bonus.
Anagram
A word formed by rearranging the letters of another word.
Palindrome
A word or phrase that reads the same forwards and backwards (e.g. "level").
Acronym
An abbreviation formed from the initial letters of several words.
Letter Frequency
How often a letter appears in a language. In Hangman, common letters (E, T, A in English) help you guess the word faster.
Grey Letter (Wordle)
A letter that does not appear in the target word.
Yellow Letter (Wordle)
A letter that is in the word - but in a different position.
Green Letter (Wordle)
A letter that is in the word and in exactly the right position.
Hive Pangram
In Hive, a word that uses all 7 letters of the honeycomb. Earns a large point bonus.
Centre Letter (Hive)
The letter in the centre of the honeycomb - must appear in every word you play.
Clue (Crossword)
The description that leads you to the answer.
Across
Entry direction: the answer is written left to right in the grid.
Down
Entry direction: the answer is written top to bottom in the grid.
Diagonal (Word Search)
Words can be hidden diagonally - in all four diagonal directions.
Backwards (Word Search)
Words can also be written backwards - both horizontally and diagonally.
Streak
The number of consecutive days on which you have solved the puzzle.
Archive
A collection of puzzles from past days - available to play at any time.
Daily Puzzle
A new puzzle every day at midnight. All players get the same one.