Letterboxed Answer Yesterday — Wednesday, September 9, 2026
Difficulty 5/10
Yesterday's Letterboxed Answer
Yesterday's Letterboxed Solution
Click each word to reveal the solution chain one step at a time.
Solution (2 words)
Puzzle Analysis
The Letterboxed chain AZURE to EVERYTHING presented a moderate challenge. Finding a word that bridges AZURE and a word starting with E proved to be the initial hurdle. The connection from AZURE to HAZARD felt logical enough, but HAZARD to BAZAAR was less intuitive. Once BAZAAR was established, the path to EVERYTHING opened up more readily with words like BAZAAR to FAZED and FAZED to GAZED. The latter part of the chain felt smoother. A difficulty rating of 5/10 seems accurate. The transitions were mostly sound, though a couple of steps required a bit of searching. It was a satisfying puzzle.
How to Play Letterboxed
You are given a square with 12 letters arranged along its four sides, three letters per side. Your goal is to use all 12 letters by forming a chain of valid words.
Each word must be formed by connecting letters from different sides of the square. You cannot use two consecutive letters from the same side. For example, if you start with a letter on the top side, the next letter must come from the left, right, or bottom side.
Words chain together: the last letter of one word becomes the first letter of the next. This chain continues until you have used every one of the 12 letters at least once.
The official challenge is to solve the puzzle in 5 words or fewer. Expert players aim for 2-word or even 1-word solutions. Letters can be reused across words, but you still need to cover all 12 unique letters.
The puzzle resets daily at 3:00 AM ET.
Play at nytimes.com/puzzles/letter-boxed. A new puzzle is available every day.
Tips & Strategy
- Start by looking for a long word that covers as many unique letters as possible. A 7- or 8-letter opener dramatically reduces what you need to find next.
- Pay attention to which letters share a side. Since consecutive letters cannot come from the same side, plan your letter order to zigzag between sides naturally.
- Focus on the last letter of each word. You want it to be a letter that starts many common words, giving you more options for the next word in the chain.
- Uncommon letter combinations like X, Q, or Z are usually harder to connect. Prioritize words that use these early so you are not stuck at the end.
Frequently Asked Questions
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