Skip to content
Waffle Daily

Daily Waffle #173 answers and hints

Need a nudge on the Thursday, August 20, 2026 grid? Start with one clue. Nothing else shows until you tap it.

The starting grid for #173

6 words hide in this 5×5 grid. You get 15 swaps, and the best solve takes 10.

Want one more try first? Play #173.

Hints for each word in #173

Tap one hint at a time. The clue comes first. Then you get the first and last letters. The word shows only when you tap the last button.

  1. Word 1: the top row (row 1)

    Hint 1: the clue

    noun: the act of gambling

    Hint 2: first and last letter

    It starts with W and ends with R.

    Show the word

    WAGER

  2. Word 2: the middle row (row 3)

    Hint 1: the clue

    noun: a cruel and brutal fellow

    Hint 2: first and last letter

    It starts with R and ends with Y.

    Show the word

    ROWDY

  3. Word 3: the bottom row (row 5)

    Hint 1: the clue

    noun: how something is done or how it happens

    Hint 2: first and last letter

    It starts with S and ends with E.

    Show the word

    STYLE

  4. Word 4: the left column (column 1)

    Hint 1: the clue

    noun: buildings for carrying on industrial labor

    Hint 2: first and last letter

    It starts with W and ends with S.

    Show the word

    WORKS

  5. Word 5: the middle column (column 3)

    Hint 1: the clue

    adjective: lacking grace in movement or posture

    Hint 2: first and last letter

    It starts with G and ends with Y.

    Show the word

    GAWKY

  6. Word 6: the right column (column 5)

    Hint 1: the clue

    noun: correspondence in the sounds of two or more lines (especially final sounds)

    Hint 2: first and last letter

    It starts with R and ends with E.

    Show the word

    RHYME

What is the answer to Waffle #173?

The answer is 6 words that fit together in one grid. Tap below to see all of them. This puzzle has only one answer, so if your words differ, a letter is still in the wrong place.

Show the full answer grid

Across: WAGER, ROWDY, STYLE

Down: WORKS, GAWKY, RHYME

How do you solve #173 in 10 swaps?

Make the swaps that fix two tiles at once first. This grid has 5 of them. The list below is one shortest route from the start to the answer.

Show every swap
  1. Swap row 1, column 5 with row 4, column 1. This puts R and K in place.
  2. Swap row 2, column 1 with row 3, column 5. This puts O and Y in place.
  3. Swap row 1, column 3 with row 2, column 5. This puts H in place.
  4. Swap row 1, column 3 with row 2, column 3. This puts A in place.
  5. Swap row 1, column 3 with row 3, column 3. This puts G and W in place.
  6. Swap row 1, column 4 with row 4, column 5. This puts M in place.
  7. Swap row 1, column 4 with row 3, column 2. This puts O in place.
  8. Swap row 1, column 4 with row 5, column 1. This puts E and S in place.
  9. Swap row 3, column 1 with row 4, column 3. This puts R in place.
  10. Swap row 4, column 3 with row 5, column 5. This puts K and E in place.

What do the words in #173 mean?

WAGER
noun: the act of gambling
ROWDY
noun: a cruel and brutal fellow
STYLE
noun: how something is done or how it happens
WORKS
noun: buildings for carrying on industrial labor
GAWKY
adjective: lacking grace in movement or posture
RHYME
noun: correspondence in the sounds of two or more lines (especially final sounds)

Word meanings come from WordNet 3.1, a free English dictionary from Princeton University. Puzzle published Thursday, August 20, 2026.