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How to play

Rules and guides

Each of the six rooms in a paragraph, plus three longer guides on habits that help in every word puzzle in the house.

Word shapes: how English words are put together

Endings, letter pairs and vowel patterns — the habits of English spelling that make wheels, scrambles and mystery words easier.

Scanning a grid without getting lost

Rare letters first, one direction at a time, long places before short ones: a method for word searches and criss-cross grids.

One letter at a time: planning ladders and guesses

Counting differences, spotting detours and using every mark: the planning behind Word Ladder and Mystery Word.

The rules in one paragraph

Word Search

Find every listed word in the grid. Words run in straight lines; on harder floors also diagonally and backwards.

Word Wheel

Spell words of three letters or more from the wheel, using each letter once per word, until the little grid is full.

Mystery Word

Six tries to name a five-letter word. After each guess: solid square = letter in its place, round tile = letter in the word but elsewhere, faded tile = letter missing.

Word Ladder

Change exactly one letter of the last word to make a new real word, step by step, until you reach the target.

Word Scramble

Tap the letters or type them to spell the word hidden in the scramble. Each set of letters makes exactly one word.

Criss-Cross

Tap a word, then a place in the grid (or the other way round). Lengths and crossing letters must agree; there is only one way to fit all the words.