Wordle Green, Yellow, Gray
The three colours, the subtleties, and the duplicate-letter trap.
Read the colours correctly and you never waste a guess on a dead branch.
Wordle gives you three signals per letter. Understanding exactly what each colour means — especially with duplicate letters — is the difference between confident solves and wasted guesses.
Part of: Pattern & Puzzle Solvers
Quick answer
Read the colours correctly and you never waste a guess on a dead branch.
Key points
- ▸ Green: the letter is in the word AND in this exact position. Lock it; it will not move.
- ▸ Yellow: the letter is in the word but NOT in this position. It is elsewhere. Move it.
- ▸ Gray: the letter is NOT in the word — with one big exception for duplicates.
- ▸ Duplicate trap: if you guess two Es and only one is in the word, one goes green/yellow and the other goes gray. The gray one does NOT mean "no E anywhere".
- ▸ Once a letter is green, keep it green in every subsequent guess unless you are deliberately probing.
Examples
- Clean caseGuess SLATE, word is BLAST. L green, A green, S yellow (wrong position), T yellow, E gray. Next guess places S and T correctly.
- Duplicate letterGuess LEVEL, word is EARLY. First L gray, first E yellow, V gray, second E gray, second L yellow. The second E being gray does NOT mean "no E"; you already got a yellow E.
- Green firstLetters locked green stay in position. Guessing around them focuses on remaining slots.
When to use which tool
- Wordle SolverTakes the exact green/yellow/gray feedback and produces the narrowed list.Narrow Wordle candidates by entering greens (letter + position), yellows (letter present but wrong spot), and gray letters.
- 5-Letter Word FinderIf you prefer pattern-style entry (??T??, contains A, excludes RIO), this is the tool.Find every 5-letter word matching a pattern. Use ? for unknown letters — perfect for Wordle hints and crossword fills.
Related
- Wordle SolverNarrow Wordle candidates by entering greens (letter + position), yellows (letter present but wrong spot), and gray letters.
- 5-Letter Word FinderFind every 5-letter word matching a pattern. Use ? for unknown letters — perfect for Wordle hints and crossword fills.
- How to Use a 5-Letter Word FinderFrom a few known letters to a clean shortlist.
- Wordle Strategy GuideBest openers, narrowing technique, and endgame decisions
Frequently asked questions
› Why did my repeated letter go gray when the word has one? Troubleshooting
Wordle only highlights the copies that match. If the word has one E and you guess two, one is coloured and the other is gray as a "no second E" signal, not "no E anywhere".
› Can a letter turn green on one guess and gray on the next? Trust & accuracy
No. Green means "correct letter, correct position" — once green, always green. If you see this, you are misreading a later guess.
› How should I use this guide with a Kefiw tool? How-to
Use the guide as the plan and the linked Kefiw tool as the check. Read the steps first, try the move manually, then use the tool to compare outputs, catch edge cases, and decide whether the result actually fits your task.
› What mistake do tool guides help avoid? Troubleshooting
Tool guides help avoid using a utility mechanically without understanding what you are trying to accomplish. Most word, writing, and text utilities are fast, but speed can hide context mistakes. Know whether you are solving a puzzle, cleaning copy, drafting a line, or checking a rule.
› Can a tool guide help me learn the skill? How-to
A tool guide can help you learn if you pause before accepting the output and ask why it worked. Compare your first guess with the tool result, look for the rule or pattern, and repeat that review. Passive copying solves one task; active review builds the skill.