Wordle #1,698: A Plant-Based Puzzle That Might Leave You Hungry for a Win
Welcome back, Wordlers! Wordle #1,698 has arrived, and it’s serving up a challenge that’s a bit… selective. If your usual starting words feel a little meat-and-potatoes today, you might find yourself struggling. According to the official New York Times WordleBot, the average player will need about 4.0 moves to crack this one on easy mode, or 3.9 if you’re playing by hard rules. It’s not the most brutal puzzle we’ve ever seen, but it has a specific flavor that can trip you up if you’re not careful.
Ready for some help? Below, you’ll find our trademark progressive hints, designed to nudge you in the right direction without spoiling the meal. But if you’re absolutely stuck and just want the answer to keep your precious streak alive, scroll all the way down. Consider this your official, slightly dramatic spoiler warning.
Your Progressive Wordle Hint Menu
Level 1: Gentle Nudges
Let’s start light. Today’s Wordle answer is an adjective (and can also be used as a noun). It contains two vowels. In terms of category, think about lifestyle choices and dietary labels.
Level 2: Intermediate Clues
Time to narrow it down. The word begins with the letter V. One of the vowels is an E, and it is the second letter in the word. This word is often found on restaurant menus and food packaging.
Level 3: Advanced Intel
Last stop before the answer. The structure of today’s word is: V E _ A _. A close synonym would be “plant-based”. It’s most commonly used to describe a person who abstains from all animal products, or the diet they follow.
Today’s Difficulty Breakdown
| Factor | Level | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| Common Letters | 6/10 | It uses several top-tier letters (E, A, N), but starts with a less common one. |
| Patterns | 4/10 | The “V” start is rare, and the “_E_A_” pattern isn’t among the most frequent. |
| Vowels | 7/10 | Two vowels in clear positions (E in spot 2, A in spot 4) is helpful. |
| Trickiness | 8/10 | High! Many common-word guesses won’t apply, leading to quick dead ends. |
How to Solve Wordle #1,698: A Step-by-Step Walkthrough
Let’s talk strategy. A strong opener like CRANE or SLATE is always wise. For this puzzle, let’s say you started with CRANE. A great result! It would likely give you a green ‘A’ and a yellow ‘E’, instantly placing a key vowel and hinting at another.
For your second guess, you want to test other common consonants while locking in the ‘A’. A word like PLATE would be strategic. This might turn the ‘E’ green in its correct second position and possibly add a yellow ‘L’ or ‘T’.
Now the elimination process begins. You know the pattern is _ E _ A _. With common letters like L, T, S, and N in play, you might try BLEAT or STEAM. These will fail, revealing that the initial letter isn’t common at all. This is the “aha” moment—you need to think outside the box of typical Wordle answers.
Considering dietary terms or less-common adjectives starting with ‘V’ should lead you to the solution. A savvy solver might get this in 4 or 5 attempts, while the “V” hurdle could push others to the brink.
Specific Strategies for This Vexing Puzzle
If you’re stuck after guess three, abandon the common consonant hunt. The starting ‘V’ is the key. Think of five-letter words beginning with V: VIOLA, VAPID, VIGIL, VEGAN. Which one fits your confirmed letters?
Avoid the trap of fixating on words ending in “N” or “S” just because they’re common endings. Today’s answer does end with “N,” but that’s a red herring if it’s all you focus on. The real trap is ignoring the possibility of a less-frequent leading letter.
The unique pattern today is the strong vowel placement (E, A) with an uncommon opener. This is a classic “pattern-familiar, word-unfamiliar” scenario designed to test your lexical range.
By The Numbers: Wordle Stats for #1,698
- Word Frequency: “Vegan” is a moderately common word in modern English, but far less frequent in general literature than classic Wordle answers like “STONE” or “HEART.”
- Common Word Ranking: It sits well outside the top 1,000 most common five-letter words, making it a relatively rare pick for Wordle.
- Comparison: This is notably trickier than yesterday’s answer, SCENE, which used more common letters and a familiar double-E pattern.
- Success Rate: We estimate a slightly lower success rate today, with more players likely needing 5 or 6 guesses compared to an easier puzzle.
For the Truly Curious
The term “vegan” was coined in 1944 by Donald Watson, a founder of the British Vegan Society. He took the beginning and end of the word “vegetarian,” arguing that veganism is “the beginning and end of vegetarian.”
A fun, lesser-known use: In software development, a “vegan build” is a compilation that uses no code or libraries from animal-tested companies (a very niche, ethical stance). Culturally, the word’s popularity has skyrocketed in the last two decades alongside the plant-based movement.
In other languages, the word is often adopted directly (German: vegan, Spanish: vegano), though some, like French, also use the term “végétalien” to specify the diet.
Looking Back: Wordle #1,697 Answer
Yesterday’s solution was the much more straightforward SCENE. A double-E word with common consonants, it was a puzzle that rewarded pattern recognition. The jump from “SCENE” to today’s “VEGAN” is a perfect example of Wordle’s shifting difficulty—from cinematic familiarity to a more specialized vocabulary.
General Wordle Wisdom
To conquer puzzles like today’s in the future, remember these tips:
- Embrace Rare Starters: After two guesses with common letters, consciously test a less frequent starting letter like V, K, X, or Z to break open tough puzzles.
- Think Thematically: When standard words fail, consider categories: jobs, diets, animals, verbs ending in -ING. Today was a category puzzle.
- Use Your Yellow Letters Aggressively: Don’t just reuse them; move them to every untested position in your next guess to maximize information.
- Best Starters Based on Today: Words like ADIEU (tests many vowels) or STARE (hits common consonants and E/A) would have set you up well for today’s vowel-heavy answer.
