You’re staring at those empty grey boxes again. It’s Saturday morning, the coffee is barely kicking in, and the streak you've spent months building is suddenly looking a little fragile. Wordle is funny like that. It feels like a breeze for three days straight, and then, out of nowhere, it throws a word at you that makes you question your entire vocabulary.
If you’re here because you’re down to your last two rows, don't panic. Honestly, today’s word isn’t the hardest we’ve seen this month, but the vowel placement is just weird enough to trip up anyone playing on autopilot.
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Let's get into what makes whats the wordle word today such a persistent question for the thousands of us who still treat this game like a morning ritual.
A Little Help Without the Spoilers
Sometimes you don't want the answer handed to you on a silver platter. You just need a nudge. If you want to keep the "aha!" moment for yourself, here are a few hints for Wordle #1673.
- The Vowel Count: There are two vowels in this word.
- The Structure: No letters repeat. This is a huge relief compared to those nasty double-consonant days.
- Starting Letter: It begins with the letter F.
- The Vibe: Think of something intense, hot, or someone who has a bit of a short fuse.
Basically, if you were describing a spicy pepper or a very angry debate, this is the word you’d use. It’s an adjective that carries a lot of heat.
Why Today’s Word is Tricky
Today’s answer is FIERY.
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Now, why does FIERY cause so many problems? It’s the spelling. In English, we’re so used to the "ie" vs "ei" rules, but "fire" turning into "fiery" is one of those linguistic quirks that catches people off guard. Most people want to type "firey," but that extra "e" will get you a "not in word list" error every single time.
If you used a starting word like ARISE or ORATE, you likely saw a yellow R and E or I dancing around. The problem is that FIERY uses the Y as a pseudo-vowel at the end. If you’re not a "Y-ender" strategist, you might have spent three guesses trying to cram those vowels into the middle of the word.
Breaking Down the Stats
According to the early data from WordleBot and various player forums, the average score for January 17, 2026, is hovering around 3.8. That’s actually pretty solid. It means most players are finding it on their fourth guess.
If you got it in two, you probably started with something like FLARE or FIBER. If you’re at six guesses, you likely got trapped in the "___ER" rabbit hole. Words like FILER, FIXER, or FINER are absolute streak-killers because they all look so tempting when you have the first few letters locked in.
Strategies That Actually Work
If you struggled with whats the wordle word today, it might be time to rethink your opener. A lot of people swear by ADIEU because it knocks out four vowels immediately. It’s a classic move. But lately, the New York Times editors seem to be leaning into words with more common consonants.
- CRANE and SLATE remain the mathematical kings of openers.
- AUDIO is great, but it leaves you totally blind on consonants like R, S, and T.
- If you see a yellow I and E, try to test the Y earlier than you think.
The Evolution of the Wordle Obsession
It’s been years since Josh Wardle sold the game to the New York Times, and honestly, the "Wordle is getting harder" conspiracy theories haven't stopped. They aren't true—the word list was mostly set in stone from the start—but the feeling of difficulty changes based on our own mental fatigue.
We’ve seen variants like Quordle and Heardle come and go, but the original five-letter grid remains the gold standard. There’s something deeply satisfying about that specific 1:00 AM (or whenever you wake up) moment where the world is quiet and it's just you versus the dictionary.
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To keep your streak alive for tomorrow, remember that the "sometimes Y" rule is your best friend. In words like FIERY, the Y isn't just a decoration; it’s the structural backbone of the word.
Your Wordle Checklist for Tomorrow
- Don't Chase the Green: If you have three letters but 10 possibilities, use your next guess to eliminate as many consonants as possible, even if it means "wasting" a turn on a word you know isn't the answer.
- Watch for the Y: If vowels are scarce, the Y is usually hiding at the end.
- Step Away: If you’re on guess five and drawing a blank, put the phone down. Looking at it with fresh eyes an hour later usually clears the brain fog.
Getting the whats the wordle word today result shouldn't be a source of stress. Whether you nailed it in three or barely squeaked by in six, you've kept the streak alive for another twenty-four hours.
Actionable Next Steps:
- Check your WordleBot score to see how your efficiency compared to the global average.
- If you're playing on "Hard Mode," try switching it off for a day if you're feeling burnt out; it allows for more "information-gathering" guesses.
- Log your results in a tracker if you're serious about seeing your long-term patterns with vowel-heavy words.