It’s the very first Thor’s Day of 2024, dearest Wordlers. Rather appropriately, it’s also the first day of snow. I know that Thor isn’t the god of snow, but he is a god often associated with storms.
In any case, yesterday was Wordle Wednesday and I handed out a somewhat tricky brain teaser. Today, I’ll give you the answer. Here was the puzzle:
A farmer sends his daughter on a small boat across the river to the market with a pouch of coins. With her pouch of coins she purchases a mangy dog, a chicken and a bag of corn. When she brings her purchases back to her small boat, she realizes that it is so small that she’ll only be able to carry one of her three purchases across at a time. She is faced with a dilemma, however: If she leaves the chicken with the corn, the chicken will eat the corn. If she leaves the mangy dog with the chicken, the mangy dog will eat the chicken. How does she get all three items across without any of them becoming a meal?
The answer is simpler than it seems. The farmer’s daughter has to make several trips, and bring cargo in more than one direction. She must first take the chicken—the only one of the three that can both eat or be eaten—across the river. Next, she goes back for the dog. When she brings the dog to the far bank, she has to load the chicken back onto the boat and return it to the original bank. She leaves the chicken there, taking the bag of corn with her. After depositing the corn with the dog, she makes one more trip to once again collect the chicken. What a hassle!
Alright, Wordle time!
How To Solve Today’s Word
The Hint: Not much.
The Clue: This word has way more consonants than vowels.
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See yesterday’s Wordle #928 right here.
Wordle Bot Analysis
After each Wordle I solve I head over to the Wordle Bot homepage to see how my guessing game was.
Well I just buckled and used the Wordle Bot’s favorite word today, and it was quite a good choice even if my second and third guesses did me dirty. Slate slashed the 2,309 possible solutions down to just 15, and stash brought that down to just 2. A coin toss. Alass, I picked smart instead of scant and walked away with the Wordle in 4.
Today’s Competitive Wordle Score
I get 0 points for guessing in four and -1 for losing to the Bot, who got today’s Wordle in just three.
Today’s Wordle Etymology
The word “scant” comes from Old Norse “skamt,” which means “short, brief, scanty.” This Old Norse word is related to the Old English “scamian,” meaning “to be ashamed, blush, feel guilt.” Over time, the meaning evolved from a sense of shortage or deficiency, likely influenced by the notion of not measuring up to a standard or expectation, which connects to the concept of feeling shame or insufficiency.
In Middle English, “scant” began to be used in the sense of “barely sufficient,” and this usage has continued into modern English. The word encapsulates the idea of something being just enough or slightly less than enough, often used to describe limited quantities or restricted allowances.
Play Competitive Wordle Against Me!
I’ve been playing a cutthroat game of PvP Wordle against my nemesis Wordle But. Now you should play against me! I can be your nemesis! (And your helpful Wordle guide, of course). You can also play against the Bot if you have a New York Times subscription.
Here are the rules:
- 1 point for getting the Wordle in 3 guesses.
- 2 points for getting it in 2 guesses.
- 3 points for getting it in 1 guess.
- 1 point for beating me
- 0 points for getting it in 4 guesses.
- -1 point for getting it in 5 guesses.
- -2 points for getting it in 6 guesses.
- -3 points for losing.
- -1 point for losing to me
You can either keep a running tally of your score if that’s your jam or just play day-to-day if you prefer.
