Daily Waffle #80 answers and hints
Need a nudge on the Tuesday, May 19, 2026 grid? Start with one clue. Nothing else shows until you tap it.
The starting grid for #80
6 words hide in this 5×5 grid. You get 15 swaps, and the best solve takes 10.
Want one more try first? Play #80.
Hints for each word in #80
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.
Word 1: the top row (row 1)
Hint 1: the clue
noun: a body of students who are taught together
Hint 2: first and last letter
It starts with G and ends with E.
Show the word
GRADE
Word 2: the middle row (row 3)
Hint 1: the clue
noun: spiritual leader of a Jewish congregation
Hint 2: first and last letter
It starts with R and ends with I.
Show the word
RABBI
Word 3: the bottom row (row 5)
Hint 1: the clue
noun: solid-hoofed herbivorous quadruped domesticated since prehistoric times
Hint 2: first and last letter
It starts with H and ends with E.
Show the word
HORSE
Word 4: the left column (column 1)
Hint 1: the clue
noun: the distance around a person's body
Hint 2: first and last letter
It starts with G and ends with H.
Show the word
GIRTH
Word 5: the middle column (column 3)
Hint 1: the clue
noun: tree (as opposed to shrub)
Hint 2: first and last letter
It starts with A and ends with R.
Show the word
ARBOR
Word 6: the right column (column 5)
Hint 1: the clue
noun: a group or class of persons enjoying superior intellectual or social or economic status
Hint 2: first and last letter
It starts with E and ends with E.
Show the word
ELITE
What is the answer to Waffle #80?
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: GRADE, RABBI, HORSE
Down: GIRTH, ARBOR, ELITE
How do you solve #80 in 10 swaps?
Make the swaps that fix two tiles at once first. This grid has 7 of them. The list below is one shortest route from the start to the answer.
Show every swap
- Swap row 1, column 1 with row 4, column 3. This puts G and O in place.
- Swap row 1, column 3 with row 5, column 2. This puts A and O in place.
- Swap row 2, column 5 with row 4, column 1. This puts L and T in place.
- Swap row 3, column 4 with row 5, column 3. This puts B and R in place.
- Swap row 1, column 4 with row 3, column 2. This puts D in place.
- Swap row 3, column 2 with row 3, column 5. This puts A and I in place.
- Swap row 1, column 5 with row 2, column 3. This puts R in place.
- Swap row 1, column 5 with row 5, column 4. This puts E and S in place.
- Swap row 3, column 1 with row 5, column 1. This puts H in place.
- Swap row 3, column 1 with row 5, column 5. This puts R and E in place.
What do the words in #80 mean?
- GRADE
- noun: a body of students who are taught together
- RABBI
- noun: spiritual leader of a Jewish congregation
- HORSE
- noun: solid-hoofed herbivorous quadruped domesticated since prehistoric times
- GIRTH
- noun: the distance around a person's body
- ARBOR
- noun: tree (as opposed to shrub)
- ELITE
- noun: a group or class of persons enjoying superior intellectual or social or economic status
Word meanings come from WordNet 3.1, a free English dictionary from Princeton University. Puzzle published Tuesday, May 19, 2026.