Today’s Wordle answer looks to be one of the easiest ones we’ve had in a while, possibly easier even than yesterday’s (which wasn’t too tricky at all).
That doesn’t mean you can’t use a few hints to help safeguard your streak, though, because a Wordle failure is only ever six guesses away. I’ve played every Wordle so far and lost only once — so I’ve got plenty of tips and tricks to share.
Each day, I’ll be updating this article with tips to help you find today’s Wordle answer. And if the hints aren’t enough, I’ll even give you the solution, in case you’re really stuck or just haven’t had time to complete today’s puzzle. But no cheating though, because that’s bad.
So be warned: spoilers lie ahead for game #278. Only read on if you want to know today’s Wordle answer!
Today’s Wordle answer #278 — hints to help you solve it
My first tip is that you should use one of the best Wordle start words for every game you play. But if you want some more specific clues to today’s Wordle answer then here you go:
- It has one vowel in it
- It includes two of the most common consonants
- It starts with a very common two-letter combination
Hopefully those hints will get you at least some of the way towards finding today’s Wordle answer, but if not then you can read on for a bigger clue; or, if you just want to know the answer, then skip down further for that.
Alright then, here’s my final hint for today’s Wordle answer: keep things close to this.
Hopefully that will help you without giving it away entirely. Anyway, the answer’s coming up next…
Today’s Wordle answer #278, Thursday, March 24
So, what is today’s Wordle answer for game #278?
I won’t keep you waiting any longer — it’s CHEST.
This is, on the face of it, a fairly easy Wordle answer to get; it’s not an obscure word, it uses only common letters, there are no duplicates and so on.
At the same time, it may well have caused a few people some problems, because its common structure and letters mean there are plenty of other options that could fit, depending on how your game went.
For instance, if you had __EST at any stage, you could have guessed QUEST, GUEST, WREST or indeed CHEST, while anyone with CHE__ may have had CHEAP, CHEEK, CHEAT, CHEER and CHESS, for instance.
All the same, ‘Wordle 278 X’ is not trending (yet) and I’m already seeing plenty of 3/6s on Twitter. In fact, I got it in 2/6 for what it’s worth.
CHEST is a very common word, ranking at 1,725th in the list of most frequently used words in English compiled by Word and Phrase Info. Anything inside the top 10,000 is very common, so to be below 2,000 puts in an elite class, so to speak.
It has a couple of different meanings, which you’re probably well aware of. Here’s how Merriam-Webster defines it:
- a container for storage or shipping
- a box with a lid used especially for the safekeeping of belongings
- a cupboard used especially for the storing of medicines or first-aid supplies
- the place where money of a public institution is kept
- thorax
- breast
I got VERY lucky today and found today’s Wordle answer in 2/6 guesses. That’s a great score and equals my best so far, but really I was fortunate not to end up with a far worse result.
As always, I played my favorite Wordle start word, STARE, and this time I was rewarded with three yellow letters. That doesn’t happen very often, and it gave me a solid basis on which to build.
CHEST was the first word I thought of; I tend to prioritize common combinations where possible, and CH features regularly in Wordle answers, both at the start and end of words.
What I hadn’t grasped was quite how many other options there were at this stage. After playing the word, and seeing those square flash up triumphantly, I had a look at the excellent Wordle Solver to see what else I could have played (you’ll have to trust me when I say I waited until afterwards; but I really did). The answer: lots.
Wordle doesn’t include plurals, which ruled out quite a few, but even so every one of these could have been a valid answer: BESET, BESOT, EXIST, FETUS, HEIST, GUEST, INSET, ISLET, ONSET, QUEST, UPSET. There are probably others I missed.
What does this prove? Probably nothing beyond that it was my lucky day. But it also backs up my (fairly obvious) theory that thinking about common combinations is almost as important as thinking about common letters and having a good start word. It certainly was today for me.
I’ve got my fingers crossed that not too many of you lost your streak today — let me know how you did in the comments or via email.
Previous Wordle answers
If you’re looking for a list of older Wordle answers, we can also help. Here’s a list going back 20 games.
- Wordle #277: PURGE
- Wordle #276: SLOSH
- Wordle #275: THEIR
- Wordle #274: RENEW
- Wordle #273: ALLOW
- Wordle #272: SAUTE
- Wordle #271: MOVIE
- Wordle #270: CATER
- Wordle #269: TEASE
- Wordle #268: SMELT
- Wordle #267: FOCUS
- Wordle #266: TODAY
- Wordle #265: WATCH
- Wordle #264: LAPSE
- Wordle #263: MONTH
- Wordle #262: SWEET
- Wordle #261: HOARD
- Wordle #260: CLOTH
- Wordle #259: BRINE
- Wordle #258: AHEAD
- Wordle #257: MOURN
Wordle tips — how to win at Wordle
he best tip I can give is to use one of the best Wordle start words. I can’t stress this enough — it makes a massive difference.
Without one, you’ll be scrabbling around in the dark trying (and possibly failing) to find the right five letters (or possibly fewer) out of the 26 possibles. But clever people (not me) have done the math and identified the best start words based on both frequency in English and frequency among Wordle answers. So use them!
Secondly, think about combinations, especially at the start and end. Some options are far more common than others — for instance, SH, ST, CR and CH all feature frequently.
Vowels obviously need consideration too: not all Wordle answers will contain more than one, but plenty do, and some even have three. A good Wordle start word should have used a couple, but if they don’t feature you might well want to try another one or two on your next go.
Plus, remember the Y — this sometimes acts as a surrogate vowel, and is easy to forget. It also appears at the end of plenty of words.
Finally, try out possibilities. So long as you don’t press ‘Enter’ you can try possible answers to see how they look on screen. Put in likely letters plus any you know are definitely in the word, then mentally change one to the other available options. This technique has worked for me multiple times, and it’s particularly helpful when the word in question is not an obvious one (like FJORD or ISLET).
What else should I know about Wordle?
Wordle launched in October 2021, but only grew in popularity towards the end of the year, then went viral in January as the world woke up to its charms. In fact, it proved so successful that The New York Times bought Wordle for a seven-figure sum in early February and the game is now part of NYT Games.
It’s played via the NYT Games website here, and is entirely free. Both the NYT and the game’s creator, Josh Wardle, have stated that it will remain free. Some people think that Wordle has got harder since the NYT takeover, but it really hasn’t.
Wordle is a simple game in which your challenge is to guess a five-letter word in six attempts. Each time you guess, you’re told which of your chosen letters are in the target word, and whether they are in the right place.
If a letter is in the correct place, it turns green. If it’s in the word but in the wrong place, it turns yellow. And if it’s not in the word at all, it turns gray.
There’s just one puzzle a day, and everyone completes the same one. It resets at 7 p.m. ET each day, but if you’re eager for another game to pass the time while you wait, we’ve put together a list of the best Wordle alternatives such as the ultra-stressful (but very good) Squabble, the four-Wordles-at-once Quordle, the eight-Wordles-at-once Octordle and the new, soccer-themed, Who Are Ya?.
We also like the geography-based Wordle clone Worldle, the Star Wars-themed SWordle and the math-based Mathler. And, there’s the unofficial Wordle Unlimited, which lets you play as many games per day as you like, and adjust the number of letters in the word, from four to a crazy 11.
We also have pages on today’s Quordle answers and today’s Octordle answers if you want a triple hit of puzzle solutions. And we’d also recommend checking out the excellent new Heardle, which is like Wordle for pop music.