Wordle puzzle
Wordle puzzle

NEW YORK — Wednesday's Wordle uses a familiar everyday word, but a repeated letter and only one standard vowel could make it trickier than it first appears.

The New York Times' daily word game released puzzle No. 1950 for Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026, challenging players to find a five-letter word in six attempts or fewer. Below are hints arranged from gentle to more revealing, strategy tips and, for those who need it, the answer.

Spoiler warning: The answer to today's Wordle appears later in this article. Read only as far as you need.

How Wordle works

Each day, players get six tries to guess a five-letter word. After each guess, the tiles change color. A green tile means the letter is correct and in the right position. A yellow tile means the letter is in the word but in a different spot. A gray tile means the letter does not appear in the word.

Wordle was created by software engineer Josh Wardle and released to the public in late 2021. The New York Times bought the game in early 2022. Since February 2026, the Times has been reintroducing some previously used answers, so past solutions can appear again.

A new puzzle is released at midnight local time.

Hints for Wordle No. 1950

For players who want to keep solving on their own, here are hints arranged from least to most revealing.

Hint 1: Today's word is a noun related to money. Hint 2: It contains one standard vowel, plus Y. Hint 3: One letter appears twice. Hint 4: People sometimes toss one into a fountain while making a wish. Hint 5: In the United States, 100 of them make a dollar. Hint 6: The word starts with P and ends with Y.

Strategy tips for today's puzzle

Watch for repeated letters. Many players assume each Wordle answer has five different letters. Today's answer has a double letter in the middle, which can slow down solvers who keep testing new letters instead of reusing ones they have already found.

Remember Y as a vowel. Today's word contains only one of the standard vowels A, E, I, O and U. The final Y acts as a vowel sound, a common pattern in Wordle answers.

Choose a strong opener. The New York Times' WordleBot often recommends SLATE, which would reveal only E in today's puzzle. CRANE, which includes E and N, narrows the possibilities much more quickly, according to one puzzle-tracking site.

Be careful with near-misses. Several words share today's letters or structure, such as PENNE, PEONY and JENNY. If you find P, E, N and Y early, consider whether a letter might appear twice.

Use your second guess wisely. If your first guess reveals few letters, use your second guess to test new consonants. Letters such as N, P and Y may not appear in many popular openers.

How hard is it?

Today's puzzle is expected to be moderately challenging. WordleBot data showed an average of about 4.3 guesses, according to a puzzle-tracking site, slightly higher than many recent puzzles.

Recent Wordle answers

Here are the answers from the past 10 days:

Tuesday, Oct. 20 (No. 1949): WREST Monday, Oct. 19 (No. 1948): STINK Sunday, Oct. 18 (No. 1947): ADORN Saturday, Oct. 17 (No. 1946): GAFFE Friday, Oct. 16 (No. 1945): SHADY Thursday, Oct. 15 (No. 1944): DUNCE Wednesday, Oct. 14 (No. 1943): PSYCH Tuesday, Oct. 13 (No. 1942): WIDER Monday, Oct. 12 (No. 1941): YODEL Sunday, Oct. 11 (No. 1940): UNCAP

Final warning: The answer is below

If you want to keep trying, stop reading here.

Today's Wordle answer

The answer to Wordle No. 1950 for Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026, is:

PENNY

What the word means

A penny is a small unit of currency. In the United States, it refers to the one-cent coin, worth one-hundredth of a dollar. In the United Kingdom, a penny is worth one-hundredth of a pound.

The word also appears in many common expressions, such as "a penny for your thoughts," "a penny saved is a penny earned" and "the penny dropped," meaning someone finally understood something.

The U.S. Mint ended production of pennies for general circulation in 2025, after decades of debate over the coin's cost and usefulness, though existing pennies remain legal tender.

Why today's puzzle may be tricky

PENNY uses common letters, but its double N can trip up players who assume each letter appears only once. Because the word contains only one standard vowel, players who rely on vowel-heavy opening words may find fewer clues early on.

Players who find P, E and Y may also try other words, such as PEONY, before realizing the answer repeats a letter.

Keep your streak going

Wednesday's puzzle is a reminder to consider repeated letters, especially when common patterns are not working.

A new Wordle puzzle will be available at midnight local time, giving players a fresh chance to keep their streaks alive on Thursday.