Codewords Strategy: How to Win

Every miss hands the turn to the other side, and the assassin ends the game. So a clue your side reads correctly beats a clever clue it misreads.

The side that goes first has 9 words and the other side has 8. Four clues for two words each will not quite get the first side home. You win by getting a few clues that land three, and never giving away a turn for nothing.

Before you type anything, look at the whole board. Find the assassin first and keep it in mind for every clue. Then look at the other side’s words, then the civilians.

• Look for two or three of your words that share something: a place, a use, a shape, a story. FISH, BOAT and HOOK all live at the lake.
• Test every clue against the words you must avoid. Ask: would anyone read this clue as the assassin? If the answer is maybe, pick another clue.
• Then test it against the other side’s words. Hitting one of theirs costs you the turn and gives them a word.
• Civilians are the cheapest miss. If a clue has to risk something, let it be a civilian.
• Pick the plainest word that works. Your side has to land on the same idea you had, out loud, with no help from you.
• Keep a straight face while they guess. Anything you say or show is an extra clue.

The number is a promise. Your side cannot stop early: it keeps guessing until it has found that many words or misses. Ending the turn is only offered at the bonus guess.

So a 3 you are not sure of forces your side into a third guess it may not want. If the third word is a stretch, give a 2 and save that word for later.

Go for a 1 when one word is in danger, when it sits next to the assassin in meaning, or when it is your last. A clean 1 is better than a messy 2. Late in the game, a 1 that finishes it beats any combo.

When you are behind, take more risk. A side that is two clues behind will not catch up with safe 1s.

• One word only, letters only. One hyphen or apostrophe inside it is fine.
• Not a face-down word, or its plural or everyday form. A word that has already been flipped is free to use.
• The number cannot be more than the words your side still has to find.

The first tap on your side flips the card, with no undo. So the rule is simple: talk first, tap last. Agree out loud which word goes next and who taps it.

• Say every word the clue could mean, then rank them. Start with the one everyone agrees on.
• Think like your handler. They chose this word for a reason. Why this clue and not an easier one? Often it is because the easy one would have hit the assassin or the other side.
• Take the sure words first. Each right guess makes the next one easier, because the board gets smaller.
• If you are forced into a guess you are unsure of, pick the word least likely to be the assassin. A civilian only ends your turn.
• Leave a word the other side’s clues pointed at. It is probably theirs.

When you have found as many words as the number, you get one more guess. Take it when an earlier clue still has a word you missed. If your handler said 3 last turn and you only found 2, that third word is still out there, and the bonus guess is the place for it.

Pass when you have nothing solid. A wrong bonus guess can hand the other side a word, or worse, and you were already ahead for the turn.

Keep old clues in your head, or say them out loud now and then. Your handler is counting on you to come back for missed words.

You see every clue the other side gets. Use it.

• When they get a clue, the words it points at are probably theirs. Do not touch them on your turn.
• When they miss a word for a clue, it is still theirs. It may sit on the board all game. Do not flip it later by accident: it ends your turn and gives them a word.
• Flipping the other side’s last word makes them win, even on your turn. Late in the game, be extra careful near their words.
• As handler, watch which words their clues seem to target. If your clue would point near them, pick something else.

• Tapping before the side agrees. The first tap counts.
• Giving a big number for a stretch link. Your side has to keep guessing.
• Forgetting the assassin when a clue looked perfect for your words.
• Taking a bonus guess on a hunch, with no old clue behind it.
• Giving up on old clues. A missed word is still yours to find.

A bot handler always gives its best clue. It looks for the clue that points at its words and stays well clear of everything else, the assassin above all. Its number is how many words it meant, so trust it: the words it meant are the ones closest in meaning to the clue.

A bot guesser reads your clue by its everyday meaning. Give common words. A name, slang or an in-joke may leave it guessing. Easy bots misread more often and never stop early; medium and hard bots stop when nothing fits well.

• If you are the only person guessing on your side, you make every tap. The bots only join you in ending the turn.
• A side of only bot guessers ends its turn at the bonus guess. As handler for bots, do not count on them coming back for missed words. Give those words a fresh clue.
• Against a bot handler, read its clue as a meaning match. Its words will be close in meaning, not clever.
• When the other side is all bots, every clue still tells you which words are theirs.

• Get the guessers where they can hear each other: in the same room, or on a call.
• Let one person do the tapping once you agree, so nobody taps early.
• Know your handler. A friend’s clues get easier to read every round.
• Give everyone a turn as handler. The game picks someone who has not had a go first.
• With a TV on the watch screen, the whole room sees the board and the clue without crowding a phone.

• Find the assassin before every clue.
• Two clean words beat three shaky ones.
• Talk first, tap last.
• Use the bonus guess for an old clue’s missed word.
• The other side’s clues tell you where not to tap.

How do you win at Codewords?

Find all your side’s words before the other side finds theirs, and never flip the assassin. Clues that land two or three words at once, and guessers who agree before they tap, win most games.

How do you give good clues in Codewords?

Find two or three of your words that share an idea, then check the clue against the assassin and the other side’s words. Pick the plainest word that works, and give a number you are sure of, because your side must keep guessing until it is used up.

What is the best strategy for Codewords?

As handler, play safe clues for two or three and always steer clear of the assassin. As a guesser, talk it over, take the sure words first, and use the bonus guess for words an old clue missed.

When should you take the bonus guess in Codewords?

Take it when an earlier clue still has a word you have not found. Pass when you have no clue behind the guess, especially when you are ahead.

How do you play Codewords with bots?

Bots can be handlers or guessers. A bot handler gives its best clue, so trust its number. As handler for bot guessers, use common words they can read by meaning, and give missed words a fresh clue, because a side of bots does not take the bonus guess.