Wordle answer changed to avoid fraught word, NY Times says

NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Times scrambled to change its Wordle game on Monday to avoid a puzzle answer that might be seen as some sort of commentary on the news.

FILE – A sign for The New York Times hangs above the entrance to its building, Thursday, May 6, 2021 in New York. The New York Times moved swiftly to change the word fetus, Monday’s answer to its daily Wordle puzzle, out of fear that it would be seen as some sort of commentary on the debate over abortion rights. The game, which became a sensation late last year and was bought by The Times in January, gives users six tries to guess a different five-letter word each day. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)

The Times says its game, which gives users six tries to guess a different five-letter word each day had “fetus” as its original answer on Monday.

The newspaper said it was “entirely unintentional and a coincidence” that the word came up less than a week after a leaked report suggested the U.S. Supreme Court was about to change the nation’s abortion policy.

The Times said ‘fetus’ had been loaded into the game before the newspaper even bought it, and changed to a different word because it intends games to be an escape from the news.

You can read more here.

You can find more national news here.