Puzzle #398 · Sep 16, 2026
Poople #398 Answer: WHAT to POOP
Poople #398 was the puzzle for Wednesday, September 16, 2026. The starting word was WHAT, and the shortest ladder to POOP takes 5 steps. We found 7 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 #398 hints
Hint 1: Which letter changes first
The first move changes the 1st letter of WHAT, the W.
Hint 2: The next word starts with …
The word after WHAT starts with C. Halfway down, the ladder passes through a word that starts with C.
Hint 3: Show me the full ladder
WHAT → CHAT → CHAP → CHOP → COOP → POOP
5 steps
Step count computed with our word list (ENABLE + SCOWL); the official game uses its own list.
| Step | From | To | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | WHAT | CHAT | 1st letter W to C |
| 2 | CHAT | CHAP | 4th letter T to P |
| 3 | CHAP | CHOP | 3rd letter A to O |
| 4 | CHOP | COOP | 2nd letter H to O |
| 5 | COOP | POOP | 1st letter C to P |
Play this puzzle
All shortest paths from WHAT
Our word list allows 7 shortest ladders from WHAT to POOP, each 5 steps. They are folded so they don't give the answer away.
Show all 7 paths
- WHAT → CHAT → CHAP → CHOP → COOP → POOP
- WHAT → CHAT → COAT → COOT → COOP → POOP
- WHAT → WHAP → CHAP → CHOP → COOP → POOP
- WHAT → PHAT → PHOT → PLOT → PLOP → POOP
- WHAT → PHAT → PLAT → PLOT → PLOP → POOP
- WHAT → WHAP → WHOP → CHOP → COOP → POOP
- WHAT → PHAT → PHOT → PHON → POON → POOP
Words one letter away from WHAT
These 10 words differ from WHAT 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.
- CHAT common
- GHAT rare
- KHAT rare
- PHAT rare
- SHAT rare
- THAT common
- WHAM rare
- WHAP rare
- WHET common
- WHIT rare
How hard was Poople #398?
By our count it rates Hard: fewest 5 steps. That makes #398 harder than 13% of the 420 puzzles so far.
More Poople puzzles
- Previous: #397 RISK (Sep 15, 2026)
- Next: #399 DUTY (Sep 17, 2026)
- Same difficulty: #391 HYPE, #395 PAID, #396 CARS
- Every puzzle: Poople archive · Today: today's answer · Random practice: Poople Unlimited
How many steps is Poople #398?
Poople #398 takes 5 steps. We count the fewest steps from WHAT 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 #398?
The starting word for Poople #398 was WHAT, on Wednesday, September 16, 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 #398?
Yes. Press Play this puzzle on this page and the board loads with WHAT 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.