Gruel - Wordle 423 infuriates players with old-fashioned word, 'I don't even know what it means'

The word 'gruel' frustrated a number of wordle players who were unable to work out this recent tricky challenge from the New York Times game makers. 

Wordle has been known to throw players a few curveballs, and words such as; patty, coyly, quart, and agape have caused a lot of frustration for fans in the past. The word 'gruel' was yet another word that infuriated wordle players who struggled to solve this old-fashioned word that is no longer in day-to-day language. Many players took to social media to complain about the difficulty of Wordle 423, and many insisited that they had never even heard of the word before.

"I don't even know what the word means," said one player who managed to solve this puzzle by the skin of their teeth.

"Wordle 423 5/6* Phew! I found that quite hard," said another player.

"Literally could not think of anything else that would fit but never thought but would be right..Wordle 423 3/6," said another player who was surprised by the word 'gruel' appearing in Wordle.

"Today's word real is hard to swallow. Wordle 423 6/6," joked another.

Gruel meaning

Many players struggled to solve this Wordle challenge because they were unfamiliar with the word 'gruel'. Gruel is not a particularity common word and most people are only familiar with it because of the film Oliver Twist, when the young protagonist confidently asked for an additional portion of gruel in his bowl. So what is gruel exactly?

Gruel is a thin porridge-like substance that is traditionally made from oats, wheat, rye, or rice. The dish has often been associated with poverty as it is relatively cheap to make and can be made from a variety of different ingredients. 

If you struggled to solve this Wordle challenge, don't worry, you are not alone! There are a number of Wordle hacks and Wordle tricks, that may help you improve at this game.

If you fancy something a little different instead, there are a number of Wordle alternatives that are just like Wordle, but with a slightly different twist to keep things interesting!