Puzzle #342 · Jul 22, 2026
Poople #342 Answer: WARY to POOP
Poople #342 was the puzzle for Wednesday, July 22, 2026. The starting word was WARY, and the shortest ladder to POOP takes 5 steps. We found 2 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 #342 hints
Hint 1: Which letter changes first
The first move changes the 4th letter of WARY, the Y.
Hint 2: The next word starts with …
The word after WARY starts with W. Halfway down, the ladder passes through a word that starts with W.
Hint 3: Show me the full ladder
WARY → WARD → WORD → WOOD → POOD → POOP
5 steps
Step count computed with our word list (ENABLE + SCOWL); the official game uses its own list.
POOD is in our word list but marked rare, so the official game may not accept it.
| Step | From | To | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | WARY | WARD | 4th letter Y to D |
| 2 | WARD | WORD | 2nd letter A to O |
| 3 | WORD | WOOD | 3rd letter R to O |
| 4 | WOOD | POOD | 1st letter W to P |
| 5 | POOD | POOP | 4th letter D to P |
Play this puzzle
All shortest paths from WARY
Our word list allows 2 shortest ladders from WARY to POOP, each 5 steps. They are folded so they don't give the answer away.
Show all 2 paths
- WARY → WARD → WORD → WOOD → POOD → POOP
- WARY → WARN → WORN → PORN → POON → POOP
Words one letter away from WARY
These 16 words differ from WARY 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.
- NARY rare
- VARY common
- WADY rare
- WALY rare
- WANY rare
- WARD common
- WARE rare
- WARK rare
- WARM common
- WARN common
- WARP common
- WARS common
- WART common
- WAVY common
- WAXY common
- WIRY common
How hard was Poople #342?
By our count it rates Hard: fewest 5 steps. That makes #342 harder than 13% of the 420 puzzles so far.
More Poople puzzles
- Previous: #341 NEST (Jul 21, 2026)
- Next: #343 TILE (Jul 23, 2026)
- Same difficulty: #337 GRAN, #339 TEAL, #341 NEST
- Every puzzle: Poople archive · Today: today's answer · Random practice: Poople Unlimited
How many steps is Poople #342?
Poople #342 takes 5 steps. We count the fewest steps from WARY 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 #342?
The starting word for Poople #342 was WARY, on Wednesday, July 22, 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 Hard. Hints for it are at the top of this page.
Can I replay Poople #342?
Yes. Press Play this puzzle on this page and the board loads with WARY 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.