Wordle puzzle
Wordle puzzle

NEW YORK — Tuesday's Wordle offers a fairly gentle puzzle for most players, but its silent opening letter and single vowel could catch some solvers off guard before the answer falls into place.

The New York Times' daily word game released puzzle No. 1949 for Tuesday, Oct. 20, 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. In February 2026, the Times began reintroducing some previously used answers, so past solutions can appear again.

A new puzzle is released at midnight local time.

Hints for Wordle No. 1949

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 verb.
  • Hint 2: It contains only one vowel, and no letter appears twice.
  • Hint 3: It can describe a physical struggle over an object.
  • Hint 4: It means to pull or twist something away forcefully, or to obtain something through great effort.
  • Hint 5: The word starts with W and ends with T.

Strategy tips for today's puzzle

Remember silent letters. Today's answer begins with a letter that is not pronounced. Players who sound out possible answers may overlook words that start with a silent W, such as WRITE, WRONG or WRECK.

Watch out for near-misses. Several common words share most of today's letters. WRIST differs by just one letter, and CREST and CHEST share the same ending. Players who find R, S and T early may need to cycle through a few options before landing on the right one.

Think about homophones. The answer sounds exactly like a common four-letter word meaning to relax. Considering words that sound alike but are spelled differently can help unlock it.

Start with strong openers. The New York Times' WordleBot often recommends SLATE as an opening word. Other popular choices include CRANE, TRACE and STARE, which would reveal several of today's letters. Openers containing W, such as WATER or WRITE, could give an even bigger head start.

Use your second guess wisely. If your first guess reveals few letters, use your second guess to test fresh consonants rather than trying to solve immediately.

How hard is it?

Today's puzzle is expected to be relatively easy for most players. WordleBot data showed an average of about 3.3 guesses, according to a puzzle-tracking site, well below the typical average.

Recent Wordle answers

Here are the answers from the past 10 days:

  • 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
  • Saturday, Oct. 10 (No. 1939): BUMPY

Final warning: The answer is below

If you want to keep trying, stop reading here.

Today's Wordle answer

The answer to Wordle No. 1949 for Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026, is:

WREST

What the word means

"Wrest" is a verb meaning to pull or twist something violently, especially to take it from someone's grasp. For example, a person might wrest a bag from a thief's hands.

The word is also used figuratively to describe obtaining something through hard effort or struggle, such as a team wresting control of a game or a political party wresting power from rivals.

The word comes from Old English and is related to "wrestle," which describes a physical struggle between two people.

Why today's puzzle may be tricky

WREST uses common letters, but its structure can trip up players. It contains just one vowel, E, surrounded by consonants, and begins with a silent W.

Because the word sounds like "rest," some players may focus on words starting with R and miss the silent W entirely. Others who find R, E, S and T early may guess REST-based patterns or similar words such as CREST, TREST or WRIST before reaching the correct answer.

Keep your streak going

Tuesday's puzzle is a reminder that pronunciation can be misleading in Wordle. When common patterns are not working, consider silent letters and homophones.

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