Puzzle #189 · Feb 19, 2026
Poople #189 Answer: ARMY to POOP
Poople #189 was the puzzle for Thursday, February 19, 2026. The starting word was ARMY, and the shortest ladder to POOP takes 7 steps. We found 5 different shortest paths with our word list. Open the hints below one at a time if you want a nudge, or reveal the full ladder at the end.
Poople #189 hints
Hint 1: Which letter changes first
The first move changes the 4th letter of ARMY, the Y.
Hint 2: The next word starts with …
The word after ARMY starts with A. Halfway down, the ladder passes through a word that starts with R.
Hint 3: Show me the full ladder
ARMY → ARMS → AIMS → RIMS → ROMS → ROMP → POMP → POOP
7 steps
Step count computed with our word list (ENABLE + SCOWL); the official game uses its own list.
ROMS is in our word list but marked rare, so the official game may not accept it.
| Step | From | To | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ARMY | ARMS | 4th letter Y to S |
| 2 | ARMS | AIMS | 2nd letter R to I |
| 3 | AIMS | RIMS | 1st letter A to R |
| 4 | RIMS | ROMS | 2nd letter I to O |
| 5 | ROMS | ROMP | 4th letter S to P |
| 6 | ROMP | POMP | 1st letter R to P |
| 7 | POMP | POOP | 3rd letter M to O |
Play this puzzle
All shortest paths from ARMY
Our word list allows 5 shortest ladders from ARMY to POOP, each 7 steps. They are folded so they don't give the answer away.
Show all 5 paths
- ARMY → ARMS → AIMS → RIMS → ROMS → ROMP → POMP → POOP
- ARMY → ARMS → AIMS → DIMS → DOMS → POMS → POMP → POOP
- ARMY → ARMS → AIMS → RIMS → ROMS → POMS → POMP → POOP
- ARMY → ARMS → AIMS → NIMS → NOMS → POMS → POMP → POOP
- ARMY → ARMS → AIMS → SIMS → SIMP → PIMP → POMP → POOP
Words one letter away from ARMY
These 2 words differ from ARMY in one letter. Common words are in SCOWL size 35; rare words are only in the ENABLE list, and the official game is more likely to reject them.
- ARMS common
- ARTY rare
How hard was Poople #189?
By our count it rates Expert: fewest 7 steps. That makes #189 harder than 93% of the 420 puzzles so far.
More Poople puzzles
- Previous: #188 GOTH (Feb 18, 2026)
- Next: #190 CAFE (Feb 20, 2026)
- Same difficulty: #169 QUAD, #177 ETCH, #187 ANEW
- Every puzzle: Poople archive · Today: today's answer · Random practice: Poople Unlimited
How many steps is Poople #189?
Poople #189 takes 7 steps. We count the fewest steps from ARMY to POOP with a breadth-first search over our four-letter word list (ENABLE + SCOWL), and the official game uses its own word list, so its count can differ from ours.
What was the starting word for Poople #189?
The starting word for Poople #189 was ARMY, on Thursday, February 19, 2026. Every Poople puzzle ends at POOP, so the start word is the only thing that changes from day to day. With our word list this one rates Expert. Hints for it are at the top of this page.
Can I replay Poople #189?
Yes. Press Play this puzzle on this page and the board loads with ARMY as the start word, with Undo, Restart and three levels of hints. You can also play unlimited random puzzles on the home page, or pick any other past puzzle from the archive.