If you’re looking for the Wordle answer for December 15, 2023, read on. We’ll share some clues, tips, and strategies, and finally the solution. Today’s puzzle is medium difficulty; I took five guesses but only because I made a dumb mistake. Beware, there are spoilers below for December 15, Wordle #909! Keep scrolling if you want some hints (and then the answer) to today’s Wordle game.

How to play Wordle

Wordle lives here on the New York Times website. A new puzzle goes live every day at midnight, your local time.

Start by guessing a five-letter word. The letters of the word will turn green if they’re correct, yellow if you have the right letter in the wrong place, or gray if the letter isn’t in the day’s secret word at all. For more, check out our guide to playing Wordle here, and my strategy guide here for more advanced tips. (We also have more information at the bottom of this post, after the hints and answers.)

Ready for the hints? Let’s go!

Does today’s Wordle have any unusual letters?

We’ll define common letters as those that appear in the old typesetters’ phrase ETAOIN SHRDLU. (Memorize this! Pronounce it “Edwin Shirdloo,” like a name, and pretend he’s a friend of yours.)

Three of the letters are on our common list. The other two are middlingly common. Nothing unusual today–not even that X I mistakenly thought might be in the mix.

Can you give me a hint for today’s Wordle?

Teenagers like a “hot” one of these. (Or maybe they don’t anymore, I don’t know much about teenagers.) 

Does today’s Wordle have any double or repeated letters?

Nope, not today!

How many vowels are in today’s Wordle?

There are two different vowels in today’s word.

What letter does today’s Wordle start with?

Today’s word starts with T.

What letter does today’s Wordle end with?

Today’s word ends with C.

What is the solution to today’s Wordle?

Ready? Today’s word is TOPIC.

How I solved today’s Wordle

ARISE got me the I; TOUCH got me the T, O, and I. Obviously it’s TOXIC, right? It was not. Well then, of course it’s TONIC—nope. I examined the keyboard closely before deciding TOPIC was the only plausible answer left. If I had realized I needed to choose between three similar words, I would have played something like NEXUS for my third guess to narrow down whether I needed an N, P, or X. 

Wordle 909 5/6

⬜⬜🟨⬜⬜
🟩🟩⬜🟨⬜
🟩🟩⬜🟩🟩
🟩🟩⬜🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

A primer on Wordle basics

The idea of Wordle is to guess the day’s secret word. When you first open the Wordle game, you’ll see an empty grid of letters. It’s up to you to make the first move: type in any five-letter word. 

Now, you can use the colors that are revealed to get clues about the word: 

• Green means you correctly guessed a letter, and it’s in the correct position. (For example, if you guess PARTY, and the word is actually PURSE, the P and R will be green.)

• Yellow means the letter is somewhere in the word, but not in the position you guessed it. (For example, if you guessed PARTY, but the word is actually ROAST, the R, A and T will all be yellow.)

• Gray means the letter is not in the solution word at all. (If you guessed PARTY and everything is gray, then the solution cannot be PURSE or ROAST.)

With all that in mind, guess another word, and then another, trying to land on the correct word before you run out of chances. You get six guesses, and then it’s game over.

The best starter words for Wordle

What should you play for that first guess? The best starters tend to contain common letters, to increase the chances of getting yellow and green squares to guide your guessing. (And if you get all grays when guessing common letters, that’s still excellent information to help you rule out possibilities.) There isn’t a single “best” starting word, but the New York Times’s Wordle analysis bot has suggested starting with one of these:

• CRANE

• TRACE

• SLANT

• CRATE

• CARTE

Meanwhile, an MIT analysis found that you’ll eliminate the most possibilities in the first round by starting with one of these:

• SALET

• REAST

• TRACE

• CRATE

• SLATE

Other good picks might be ARISE or ROUND. Words like ADIEU and AUDIO get more vowels in play, but you could argue that it’s better to start with an emphasis on consonants, using a starter like RENTS or CLAMP. Choose your strategy, and see how it plays out.

How to win at Wordle

We have a few guides to Wordle strategy, which you might like to read over if you’re a serious student of the game. This one covers how to use consonants to your advantage, while this one focuses on a strategy that uses the most common letters. In this advanced guide, we detail a three-pronged approach for fishing for hints while maximizing your chances of winning quickly.

The biggest thing that separates Wordle winners from Wordle losers is that winners use their guesses to gather information about what letters are in the word. If you know that the word must end in -OUND, don’t waste four guesses on MOUND, ROUND, SOUND, and HOUND; combine those consonants and guess MARSH. If the H lights up in yellow, you know the solution.

One more note on strategy: the original Wordle used a list of about 2,300 solution words, but after the game was bought by the NYT, the game now has an editor who hand-picks the solutions. Sometimes they are slightly tricky words that wouldn’t have made the original list, and sometimes they are topical. For example, FEAST was the solution one Thanksgiving. So keep in mind that there may be a theme.

Wordle alternatives

If you can’t get enough of five-letter guessing games and their kin, the best Wordle alternatives, ranked by difficulty, include:

• Wheeldle, which lets you play one puzzle after another

• Dordle and Quordle, which ask you to play two (Dordle) or four (Quordle) puzzles at the same time, with the same guesses. There is also Octordle, with eight puzzles, and Sedecordle, with 16.

• Waffle, which shows you several five-letter words, scrambled in a grid; you play by swapping the letters around until you solve.

• Absurdle, which changes the solution after each guess, but needs to stay consistent with its previous feedback. You have to strategically back it into a corner until there is only one possible word left; then you guess it, and win.

• Squabble, in which you play Wordle against other people with a timer running. You take damage if you spend too much time between guesses; winner is the last one standing.

• Antiwordle, in which you are trying not to guess the day’s solution. You’re required to reuse any letters that you (oops) guessed correctly, so the longer it takes you, the better you are at the game.

Source: LifeHacker – Today’s Wordle Hints (and Answer) for Friday, December 15, 2023

When home improvement projects require tools or equipment that even avid DIYers don’t have in their well-stocked garages, basements, or sheds, renting the items you need might be the best option—or at least one to consider. If you’re new to tool rental and are unsure where to start, here are some expert insights into where to rent the items you need and how much you can expect to pay.

Best places to rent tools and equipment

Your tool-rental options largely depend on where you live and what’s in or near your area—but generally speaking, here are the best places to rent tools and equipment.

Big-box home and garden retailers

Most Home Depot, Lowe’s, and Menards locations have tool-rental departments. One the plus side, these large chains are competitive in price and often located within driving distance, says Tom Yates, an asbestos abatement contractor and the founder of Asbestos Sampling. The downside, he says, is that many customers may want to rent the same tools at the same time, so if you don’t reserve yours in advance, the ones you need may be out of stock.

Independent hardware stores

While you can find True Value and Ace Hardware stores throughout the country, all True Value locations and most Ace outposts are independently owned and operated, and many offer tool rentals. Other local, independent hardware stores often do too. Their selection may not be as large as the large national chains, but often have better customer service and more knowledgable staff.

Rental companies

There are also dedicated rental companies—some of which offer a wide range of tools and equipment, while others are more specialized. For example, there are more than 950 Sunbelt Rentals locations across the country, some of which offer delivery and collection service. That is convenient when you don’t have the time to go and collect the item yourself. There may also be independent rental companies in your area. For more specialized tools and expert advice, local rental companies might be the way to go, according to Drew Mansur, the co-founder and director of TileCloud.

Tool-shares or tool libraries

Technically, you don’t rent items from tool-shares or tool libraries: You borrow them. If you’re unfamiliar with the concept, we’re talking about neighborhood or community groups, or sections of public libraries where people can borrow tools instead of buying them. Mansur says they are great for basic tools and large equipment, and are either free to loan or are affordable.

How much does it cost to rent tools?

The cost of renting tools or equipment depends on multiple factors, including:

• The type item you’re renting

• Whether you’re opting for higher-end/professional-grade or lower-end versions

• How long you need the item (e.g., number of hours, days, etc.)

• The rental options in your area

Mansur estimates that the rental cost for a basic power tool will be around $30 to $50 a day. The prices go up from there, especially on larger pieces of equipment. And while shelling out a few hundred dollars to rent some equipment for a day may seem like a lot, it’s still probably cheaper than purchasing it yourself or hiring professionals to do a job and use their own equipment.

It’s also important to note that rental costs aren’t necessarily consistent in different locations of the same big-box retailer or rental chain, so select your local branch when looking up prices. Though the Menards website indicates that their rental costs may vary depending on the location, it does provide this price list (last updated in June 2023), which can give you an idea of what to expect.

Lastly, while some tool-shares or tool libraries are free to use, others have membership fees, which could cost up to $200/year.

Source: LifeHacker – The Best Places to Rent Tools and Equipment (and What It Will Cost)