How to Play Word Solitaire
The aim is to clear the table by collecting every word into its category. Meaning matters more than spelling: related words form a movable stack. You do not need to make a new word from letters. Here is the short version before your first deal.
- Read the table. Look at the uncovered cards and the open category slots. Each slot shows its minimum collection size.
- Choose a matching run. Select an uncovered word and the continuous matching words beneath it. Move them onto a matching word or into an empty column.
- Collect a group. Tuck enough matching cards into an open category. Completing a category opens the next one.
- Deal when you need to. The deck adds one card to every column, including empty spaces. New cards can cover useful stacks.
- Try another route. Use Undo or a hint in free play, and keep sorting until every category is complete.
Read the full rules for collection examples, or try the guided tutorial to practice each move on the table.
Three Difficulty Levels
The fixed collection offers three ways to approach the same word solitaire game. All 26 strategy puzzles have 20 cards and four columns. The main difference is how many matching cards you must gather before collecting, rather than a bigger table or a test of word length.
Gentle: collect one word at a time
Eight Gentle puzzles begin with a minimum of one. That makes it easier to practice uncovering cards and opening categories without first building a pair. You still need to rearrange the columns; collecting whatever is visible is not always enough. Cozy corners is a good place to start noticing how a cleared column gives another stack somewhere to go.
Thoughtful: bring matching words together
Nine Thoughtful puzzles start with a minimum of two. A single useful word may need to wait while you find its partner, so timing becomes more important. Consider whether collecting a pair would remove a landing place you still need. Try Postcards home for an introduction to this rule, then look a move ahead before each deal.
Challenging: make room for larger groups
Nine Challenging puzzles start with a minimum of three. You need space to assemble a batch while keeping covered cards reachable. Behind the gallery begins this series. At every difficulty, the final batch can be smaller when fewer cards of that category remain anywhere in the puzzle. Check the minimum displayed on the slot rather than holding out for an impossible group.
Endless Mode and Ranked Play
A fresh table at your own pace
Endless offers fresh word groups and arrangements after the fixed collection. It has no time limit, and you can use hints and Undo without signing in. Your free-play progress stays in this browser when storage is available. Choose it when you want another word stacking game without a deadline, or when you want to practice making room before dealing again.
A timed challenge when you want competition
Leaderboards offer ranked play with day, week and month competition periods. Ranked attempts require Google sign-in and an internet connection. They use a running server clock, allow Undo, and do not offer hints. Undo does not rewind the clock or erase counted moves, so practice a new rule in free play before taking it into a timed attempt.
Returning tomorrow can mean tackling the next fixed puzzle, starting another Endless table, or entering a daily ranking period. There is no separate fixed daily puzzle page here; choose the mode that suits the kind of session you want.
How It Differs from Card Solitaire and Other Word Games
A solitaire word game combines a familiar card-table problem with a different kind of matching. The cards are already written. You work out which meanings belong together and how to rearrange the table so those words can meet. Recognizing a category helps, but it does not replace planning your next move.
Compared with Klondike and Spider
Traditional card solitaire organizes numbered cards using ranks, suits or colors. Here, a category connects the cards, and an open collection slot accepts a group once it meets the displayed minimum. The familiar pleasure is uncovering a card and creating space. The new decision is whether a matching run should be collected now or kept as a useful destination for another word.
Compared with Scrabble and Wordle
Scrabble asks you to build words from letters on a shared board. Wordle asks you to identify a hidden word through guesses. This word card game asks neither. You sort existing words, move continuous matching runs, and choose when to deal more cards. You can take as long as you like in free play, and there is no opponent waiting for a turn.
Compared with a simple sorting exercise
Knowing the categories is only part of the solution. Hidden cards, locked categories and collection minimums affect which moves are useful. A correct match can still leave an awkward table. That is why an empty column and a well-timed deal matter as much as recognizing a word: you are solving the arrangement as well as the vocabulary.
26 Puzzles to Work Through
The fixed word solitaire collection has 26 strategy puzzles plus a separate guided tutorial, making 27 mainline levels in total. Each named puzzle opens its own playable page. These small groups help you choose a setting; the full puzzle directory shows every difficulty and introduction.
- Everyday places: Cozy corners, Market morning, Back to basics, Make a little room, Making a home, A place for everything.
- Nature and the outdoors: Animal neighbors, Field notes, Under the stars, Beside the stream, A woodland walk.
- Journeys and the coast: Ways to wander, Postcards home, A day by the sea, Beyond the harbor.
- Music, books and creative moments: A little concert, Creative afternoon, Find your rhythm, Between the pages, Behind the gallery, An evening on stage.
- Time, meals and familiar routines: Passing moments, The supper club, A well-stocked kitchen, Ready to wear, Notes from the desk.
Start with a difficulty you understand, then try a different theme. A replay opens the same fixed layout, so you can revisit a decision and compare your own approaches rather than learning a new deal every time.
Word Solitaire Tips and Strategy
Useful moves change what you can do next. Before moving a visible match, look at the card it will uncover, the destination it will occupy, and whether you will still have room to rearrange the table afterward.
- Look across all four columns. Word length does not decide a move. Compare the visible meanings and check which matching run could reveal another card.
- Give an empty column a job. Use it to hold a run while you uncover something useful. Remember that the next deal also puts a card in that space.
- Think before collecting. A group may meet the minimum but still be useful as a landing place. Compare the benefit of collecting it with the card you could expose by moving it.
- Check the table before dealing. One click covers all four columns. Try available rearrangements first, particularly when a new card would bury a group you have been building.
- Use help to understand the obstacle. Select a word for a clue, or use Hint without a selection for a suggested route when one is found. Undo lets you revisit a decision instead of repeating an unhelpful move.
Every published fixed starting layout has a checked path to completion. That does not mean every sequence of moves will work. If you get blocked, step back to the choice that reduced your options and try a different order.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is wordtuck free to play?
Yes. You can play free word solitaire through the tutorial, the 26 fixed puzzles and Endless. Free play includes Undo and hints, so you can learn the rules before choosing a timed challenge. Ranked play also requires Google sign-in to associate attempts and results with your account.
Do I need a download or an account?
No download is needed: the game runs in your browser with JavaScript enabled. You can play the fixed puzzles and Endless without an account. Their progress is saved in the current browser when storage is available; it does not automatically follow you to a different device. Google sign-in is required for ranked attempts.
Can I play on a phone?
Yes. Tap an uncovered word to select its matching run, then tap a legal destination or an open category slot. On a desktop, you can also drag a run between columns. The phone layout keeps the four columns together and places the deck below them.
Is there a new daily puzzle?
There is no separate fixed daily puzzle in the current game. The 26 named puzzles stay available to replay, Endless provides fresh arrangements, and ranked play has daily, weekly and monthly competition periods. Come back for another table or a ranking attempt without expecting the fixed collection to change overnight.
Is word solitaire the same as Wordle?
No. Wordle centers on guessing a hidden word from letter feedback. Here, the words are already on the cards, and you sort them by meaning while planning moves through the columns. If you enjoy making connections and rearranging a card table, try word solitaire online with the guided first game.