What is Shrinkle?
Shrinkle presents whole words and asks you to slim them down. Each click removes a letter, and the shortened word must remain valid. You repeat this process until the reduced words reveal the day's hidden phrase. No keyboard, no typing: everything is done by removing letters from words already placed.
How to play Shrinkle
- Spot the starting words shown letter by letter on the board.
- Click a letter to remove it from the word that contains it.
- Check that what remains still forms a valid word. That is the only constraint imposed on each removal.
- Continue reducing word by word until the whole set reveals the hidden phrase.
Why play Shrinkle?
Shrinkle reverses the usual move in word games: instead of adding letters to build a word, you remove them while keeping the result valid. Each click tests whether the remaining letters still form a word. Valid dead ends cost nothing, but removing a letter that breaks the word uses one of your mistakes. The goal is to keep testing possible removals until a hidden phrase emerges from the truncated letters.
Reading the feedback
The game distinguishes two ways to be wrong. A removal that does not leave a valid word counts as a mistake, and the rules allow three before the end of the game. A valid word that does not lead to the solution is treated as a “detour,” with no penalty, so you can keep exploring.
Modes
Daily Puzzle
A new grid is published each day at midnight, numbered at the top of the page.
Archive
An Archive button appears in the header, next to the icons for statistics, help, and feedback.
Tips & strategy
- Explore without fear. As long as the word you obtain is valid, it does not count as an error. The allowance of three mistakes is only reduced by removals that break a word.
- Don't hunt for exotic vocabulary. The game's word list excludes obscure words, hyphenated words, and proper names, so the solution necessarily uses common words.
- The help panel contains an animated demonstration, "Watch the Process". A few seconds of watching are worth more than an error spent learning the mechanic.
Common questions
What happens if I remove the wrong letter?
If the remaining word is not valid, that is an error, and Shrinkle allows three before the end of the game. If the word is valid but off the path to the solution, the rules describe it as a mere detour, with no penalty.
When does the next puzzle arrive?
A new puzzle is published each day at midnight.