Staff Rants: Post-NYT Wordle

Our staff shares their thoughts on Wordle after its acquisition by the New York Times.

WSN Staff

On double letters

Yas Akdag, Music Editor

OK, I know Wordle hasn’t actually been harder post-NYT, but they seriously need to cool it on those double letters… and who even knows what caulk is?!

 

On the meaning of tacit

Mayee Yeh, Identity and Equity Editor

I do the Wordle at midnight, but the Times’ kink for double consonants that don’t even sound the same (“cynic” and “dodge”) and the expectation for me to be a Home Depot dad (“caulk”) is outright stupid. AND TACIT. WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN. 

 

On having many feelings

Alexandra Cohen, Deputy Opinion Editor

I have so many feelings! The post-NYT Wordle has almost ruined the game for me. Some days, the words seem completely made-up, and other days, the words are suspiciously easy. The New York Times is playing mind games with us. Wordle is now my first encounter with stress in the mornings rather than my peaceful meditation.The Times can take their obscure five-letter words and shove them up their butts.

 

On using thesauruses sparingly

Gillian Blum, Copy Chief

I love words, and I love logic puzzles. So, as you can imagine, I love Wordle. I also love the New York Times, so I had high hopes for its takeover of the game. Alas, the words recently have turned into niche and obscure terms. This has reached the point where a participant mostly acquainted with mere colloquial vernacular would perhaps find it near-unfeasible to conjure a conjecture for the day’s word. My point is, there are plenty of five-letter words that don’t sound like someone played darts with a list of the most obscure words in the thesaurus. But I still have faith in the Times, and I know that it’s receptive to feedback, so we’ll see if this pattern continues.

On exercising your brain

Jules Roscoe, UTA Staff Writer

I didn’t know about Wordle before the New York Times acquired it, but I’ve heard from people who played it before that the words have gotten harder since. I don’t know if that’s true, but personally, I like it better when the words are harder. If I have the Times to thank for that, then good for them!

Wordle is — without joking — the best part of my day. I stay up until midnight every night and wait for the new Wordle to come out, and then I’m done with it by 12:05. When I’m bored while doing homework, or have a wealth of free time, I catch up on the Wordle archive. Wordle makes me feel productive — like I’m learning something by figuring out the letters. 

It doesn’t count as procrastinating if it makes you smarter… right?

On alternatives

Srishti Bungle, Opinion Editor

Listen, if Wordle really has gotten more difficult, let me direct you to the iOS app PuzzWord. Sure, it looks like the Costco knock-off, but it’s more authentic than the Times’ attempt to fan the flames of English majors’ egos. 

Contact WSN Staff at [email protected].