Wordle 500 frustrates fans with impossible challenge, 'THE HELL? HOW IS THIS A WORD?'

A certain word has infuriated a number of Wordle players who struggled to solve a particularly uncommon five-letter word on Tuesday, November 1, 2022.

Wordle players have been totally stumped by yet another tricky five-letter word as the game makers at the New York Times challenged players to solve an unfamiliar word.

While this isn't the first time players have been thrown a curveball - as words such as; leery, coyly, quart, and agape have caused a lot of frustration for fans in the past - this challenge on November 1, posed a particularly hard challenge for fans.

The answer for the Wordle challenge on November 1 was 'piney.' This stumped a number of players who took to social media to complain about the difficulty of this challenge.

"Look, I’m glad I got this but THE HELL? HOW IS THIS A WORD? Wordle 500 4/6," said one player. "Wordle 500 5/6 Have we run out of actual words and now we’re just making sh*t up?" said another.

Some players said that they only managed to work out the challenge because they guessed. "Wordle 500 5/6 I didn't know it was a word! Only tried because no alternatives," said another.

"Well, I got #Wordle500 right today, but, for the second time in a few weeks, the answer isn't a real word. Commiserations to those who don't get it right. Wordle 500 6/6," said another.

Others enjoyed the obscure word. "Before today I have never used this word Wordle 500 4/6," said one player. "Wordle 500 5/6* #Wordle500 What! A celebration of obscurity for 500. When was the last time you heard or spoke that word? I love a bit of ‘greenery’ in my Wordle but this takes the celebration cake," said another.

Piney meaning

Many players struggled with this challenge because they were simply unfamiliar with this term. The word is not particularly common in everyday life, so what does the word piney mean?

The word 'piney' is defined by the Collins Dictionary as a British English word and a varient of the word 'piny'. The word is  defined as a adjective that is 'of, relating to, having or consisting of, pine trees or pine.' Alternatively it can refer to a smell, 'having a scent like pine'. For example, you could say, 'the table was made from a pine-like wood and had a piney scent'.

If you struggled to solve this Wordle challenge, don't worry, you are not alone! This was a particularly tough challenge that stumped a lot of players. However, if you want to improve at this game, there are a number of Wordle hacks and Wordle tricks, that may help.

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 players on their toes!