How to Play Cluword

Cluword is a free daily word puzzle. You get one cryptic clue and five guesses to find a hidden word. After each guess the tiles turn green (right letter, right place), gold (right letter, wrong place) or grey (not in the word). Stuck? You can unlock up to three extra progressive clues.

The rules, step by step

1. Read the cryptic clue at the top — it points at the hidden word's meaning, not its letters.
2. Type any real word of the shown length and submit it.
3. Read the tile colours and use them to narrow down the answer.
4. If you're stuck, unlock a hint — but each hint costs one of your guesses.
5. Solve the word before your five guesses run out.

What the tile colours mean

Using the progressive clues

Every puzzle starts with one cryptic clue. If you need more help you can reveal up to three further clues that get more literal each time — the last one usually gives a letter hint. Each unlocked clue uses up one guess, so weigh whether you'd rather spend the guess on a hint or a word.

Difficulty changes through the week

Cluword rotates difficulty automatically: Easy on Monday and Tuesday, Medium on Wednesday and Thursday, and Hard from Friday to Sunday. Easy days use everyday words; hard days lean on trickier clues and less common words.

Tips for new players

• Solve the clue first — it often tells you the theme before you guess a single letter.
• Open with a vowel-rich word to reveal structure fast, then pivot to the clue's meaning.
• Don't waste a hint early; save it for when the colours have stopped narrowing things down.
• Your streak and stats save automatically in your browser — no account needed.

Common questions

Play Cluword free →