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How to Play Hangman

Rules, the category-and-clue hint system, a sensible letter-picking order, and the small tricks that rescue your last two guesses.
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What is Our Daily Hangman?

Every morning there's a fresh mystery word. You see the category and the number of letters - then it's one guess at a time. Each miss draws another part of a stick figure; crack the word before six wrong guesses complete the drawing and you've won. The classic schoolroom hangman, now as a free daily puzzle. No account, no app, no paywall.

How to Play

  1. A daily word: Each midnight a new mystery word lands. You see a blank for each letter and a category hint (Animals, Science, Food and so on).
  2. Guess letters: Tap the on-screen keyboard or use your physical one. Each letter can only be guessed once per round.
  3. Correct letter: If the letter's in the word, it fills every position it belongs in. The keyboard key turns green.
  4. Wrong letter: Miss, and one body part of the stick figure is drawn. The keyboard key goes grey.
  5. Win: Fill every letter before the drawing's finished and you've won. The fewer misses, the better the result.
  6. Lose: After six wrong guesses the stick figure is complete and the round ends. The correct word is revealed so you can pocket it for next time.

The 6 Wrong Guesses

Each miss adds one part of the stick figure, in this order:

  • 1. Head

    A circle appears as the head.

  • 2. Torso

    A vertical line for the body.

  • 3. Left Arm

    A diagonal line from the torso.

  • 4. Right Arm

    A second diagonal line from the torso.

  • 5. Left Leg

    A diagonal line heading down.

  • 6. Right Leg

    The final body part - the drawing is complete and the round is lost.

Category & Clue Hints

  1. Category hint: Every word sits within a category (Animals, Food, Science) shown from the off. Use it to keep your guesses on theme.
  2. Clue unlock: After four wrong guesses a 'Show clue' button appears. Tap it for a sharper hint about the answer.
  3. Your call: You don't have to reveal the clue. If you fancy a sterner test, work it out from the category alone. The clue is there as a safety net when your guesses are running thin.

Strategies & Tips

  1. Start with vowels: A, E, I, O, U first - nearly every English word contains at least one.
  2. Common consonants next: after the vowels, try T, N, S, R, L - the workhorses of English spelling.
  3. Use the category: if it says 'Animals', you can ignore abstract nouns entirely. Let the theme do some of the narrowing.
  4. Look for patterns: a _ _ A V E outline points straight at BRAVE, GRAVE or SHAVE. Partial words tighten the odds rapidly.
  5. Common endings: in longer words, watch for -ING, -TION, -ER and -LY. Landing one ending often reveals several letters at once.
  6. Save the rare letters: leave Z, Q, X and J until last. Only try them if the pattern and category practically demand it.

Advanced Tips

  1. Letter pairs: in English, Q is almost always chased by a U. Spotting a confirmed U somewhere odd can be a quiet tip-off.
  2. Double letters: think LETTER, COFFEE, BALLOON - one correct guess fills both slots. Two blanks side by side in a Food-category word, for instance, often means a double is hiding in there.
  3. Wait for the clue: three misses in with no idea? Don't burn another guess on instinct. One more miss unlocks the clue, which may save your last two.
  4. Elimination: once you've a handful of letters, mentally list every word that fits both the pattern and the category. Cross off the ones using letters you've already tried.

Game Features

  • Daily puzzle: a fresh word at midnight, shared worldwide - so comparing scores with friends is straightforward.
  • Archive: missed a day? The archive keeps every previous puzzle. Your progress on each one saves automatically.
  • Share your result: finish up and share a spoiler-free summary - green dots for lives left, red for misses.
  • Works everywhere: phone, tablet or desktop. Browser only, no app, and progress is kept locally.

Why Play Hangman?

What the daily hangman habit quietly does for you:

  • Better Vocabulary

    A new word every day, with active recall doing more for spelling than any wordlist ever did.

  • Logical Thinking

    Practise deduction and strategy as you narrow down possibilities guess by guess.

  • Language Sense

    Build an instinct for letter frequency, common patterns and the shape of English words.

  • Daily Ritual

    Under two minutes, one mystery word. Share your result with friends and compare scores.

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