Poople #448 answer & hints
Ladder 1
KILN → POOP
KILNPOOP
Hint 1 Tap to reveal
The shortest path takes 5 steps after KILN.
Hint 2 Tap to reveal
Your first move turns KILN into a word matching K I L _.
Hint 3 Tap to reveal
The word just before POOP is POOL.
Show the shortest path Spoiler
5 steps
startKILN
step 1KILL
step 2PILL
step 3POLL
step 4POOL
step 5POOP
There is only one shortest path (5 steps).
Reasoning & candidate comparison Contains the answer
Why the 5-step KILN ladder works
- Start at KILN. A breadth-first search from POOP over the 2,398 words in the captured official dictionary places KILN at distance 5. Each edge changes exactly one letter, so no shorter route exists in this captured graph.
- KILN → KILL: change letter 4 from N to L. The shortest remaining distance falls from 5 to 4.
- KILL → PILL: change letter 1 from K to P. The shortest remaining distance falls from 4 to 3.
- PILL → POLL: change letter 2 from I to O. The shortest remaining distance falls from 3 to 2.
- POLL → POOL: change letter 3 from L to O. The shortest remaining distance falls from 2 to 1.
- POOL → POOP: change letter 4 from L to P. The shortest remaining distance falls from 1 to 0.
- 1 of the 3 accepted one-letter neighbours of KILN can start a shortest route: KILL. Compare remaining distance, not just how similar the spelling looks to POOP.
| Candidate / approach | Assessment | Why |
|---|---|---|
| KILN → KILL | Keeps a shortest route | KILL is in the captured game dictionary and changes one letter. It needs at least 4 more steps, making 5 from KILN. |
| KILN → KILO | Valid word, longer route | KILO is in the captured game dictionary and changes one letter. It needs at least 5 more steps, making 6 from KILN, 1 more than the optimum. |
| KILN → KILT | Valid word, longer route | KILT is in the captured game dictionary and changes one letter. It needs at least 5 more steps, making 6 from KILN, 1 more than the optimum. |
What this does and does not establish
- This is our reproducible graph analysis using the dictionary snapshot captured 2026-11-05 (SHA-256 4e15f14a91768bd0b3c7104ed443dfd4499cbd0b4f7cdcbd1525fa83bfb6f5f9). It is not a claim that Poople published this exact route, or that its dictionary was identical on every historical date.
Show the Poople #448 answer card Spoiler
Every answer for #448
All Poople #448 answers in one table Spoiler
| Ladder | Clue | Shortest path |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | KILN → POOP | KILN → KILL → PILL → POLL → POOL → POOP |
Poople #448 FAQ
What date was Poople #448?
Poople #448 was the puzzle for Thursday, November 5, 2026.
How do I check Poople #448 without spoilers?
Open the hints one at a time on this page. There are 3 hints across 1 ladder, ordered from a gentle nudge to the full solution, and each shortest path stays hidden until you tap to show it.
Play today's Poople How to play
Also today
Chainle · #77