Puzzle #405 · Sep 23, 2026
Poople #405 Answer: YANK to POOP
Poople #405 was the puzzle for Wednesday, September 23, 2026. The starting word was YANK, and the shortest ladder to POOP takes 5 steps. We found 1 shortest path 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 #405 hints
Hint 1: Which letter changes first
The first move changes the 1st letter of YANK, the Y.
Hint 2: The next word starts with …
The word after YANK starts with H. Halfway down, the ladder passes through a word that starts with H.
Hint 3: Show me the full ladder
YANK → HANK → HONK → HOOK → HOOP → POOP
5 steps
Step count computed with our word list (ENABLE + SCOWL); the official game uses its own list.
HANK is in our word list but marked rare, so the official game may not accept it.
| Step | From | To | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | YANK | HANK | 1st letter Y to H |
| 2 | HANK | HONK | 2nd letter A to O |
| 3 | HONK | HOOK | 3rd letter N to O |
| 4 | HOOK | HOOP | 4th letter K to P |
| 5 | HOOP | POOP | 1st letter H to P |
Play this puzzle
Words one letter away from YANK
These 9 words differ from YANK 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.
- BANK common
- DANK common
- HANK rare
- LANK rare
- RANK common
- SANK common
- TANK common
- YACK rare
- YANG rare
How hard was Poople #405?
By our count it rates Hard: fewest 5 steps. That makes #405 harder than 13% of the 420 puzzles so far.
More Poople puzzles
- Previous: #404 WHEN (Sep 22, 2026)
- Next: #406 TRAY (Sep 24, 2026)
- Same difficulty: #400 CARE, #401 FANS, #404 WHEN
- Every puzzle: Poople archive · Today: today's answer · Random practice: Poople Unlimited
How many steps is Poople #405?
Poople #405 takes 5 steps. We count the fewest steps from YANK 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 #405?
The starting word for Poople #405 was YANK, on Wednesday, September 23, 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 #405?
Yes. Press Play this puzzle on this page and the board loads with YANK 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.