What is Semantle?
Semantle is a word-guessing game about meaning rather than spelling. The secret word could be anything, and the letters in your guess don't matter at all. Instead, each guess gets a score that shows how close its meaning is to the secret word, based on how a computer model links words that tend to appear in similar contexts. When you get very close, you also see a rank that tells you how near you are among the closest words. So you start by throwing out broad, unrelated words, watch which ones score highest, and then follow the trail of meaning until you land on the answer. It can take dozens of guesses, and that's part of the fun: the game rewards lateral thinking and patience more than vocabulary. Semantle was created by David Turner. It suits people who find Wordle too easy and enjoy a puzzle that feels like a game of hot and cold.
How to play
- Guess any word. You get a score for how close its meaning is.
- Follow your highest-scoring guesses towards the secret word.
- There's no guess limit. Keep going until you find it.
Quick facts
- Typical time
- 15–60 min
- Difficulty
- Hard
- Price
- Free to play, supported by ads.
- Account
- Not needed.
- Past puzzles
- Free. Past games sit behind the “Play Archive” button.
- On a phone
- Works in your phone's browser. Nothing to install.
- Guesses
- Unlimited. Most people need dozens, and sometimes more than a hundred.
Tips to get better
- Cast a wide net. Begin with very different words: a feeling, an object, an action, a place, something from science, something from politics. You're looking for any score that stands out.
- Watch for the rank. When a guess is among the closest words, the game shows how near it is. That's the moment to stop wandering and stay put.
- The answer can be any kind of word. It might be a verb, an adjective or an abstract idea, not just an object. If nouns get you nowhere, try actions and describing words.
- Try the opposite. The model groups words by how they're used, so opposites often score high: 'hot' is close to 'cold'. If a word scores well, test its opposite too.
- Test the relatives. 'Decide', 'decision' and 'decisive' all get different scores. If one is warm, try the others.
- Play it together. Semantle is easier, and more fun, with two people throwing out words.
Who it's for
Semantle is for patient people who enjoy a long, strange hunt. It can easily take half an hour, and the breakthrough is one of the best feelings in daily games. It's also the game on this site most likely to make you give up. If you'd like the idea in a gentler form, start with Contexto.
