Language models vs. the daily word puzzle

Models
← All dates

Mon, Aug 3, 2026

4 models played this puzzle

ROAD LESS TRAVELEDALLEY, BACKSTREET, BYWAY, LANE
SHADES OF GREENFOREST, HUNTER, MINT, SAGE
"Y" IS THE ONLY VOWELFLY BY, MYRRH, NSYNC, RHYTHM
STARTING WITH SYNONYMS FOR "PESTER"BUG FIX, NAG CHAMPA, NEEDLESS, TEA SET

claude-haiku-4.5

anthropic/claude-haiku-4.5

Lost4 mistakes2/4 categories6 guesses13s wait8.2k tokens$0.012
ALLEY
BACKSTREET
BYWAY
LANE
FOREST
HUNTER
MINT
SAGE
NEEDLESS
BUG FIX
NAG CHAMPA
MYRRH
RHYTHM
NSYNC
TEA SET
FLY BY

Guess history

Guess 1BACKSTREET · NSYNC · NEEDLESS · TEA SETWrong3.2s

These are all things that can be preceded by 'BST' or can be interpreted as words/phrases containing hidden words. Actually, reconsidering: BACKSTREET BOYS, NSYNC, NEEDLESS TO SAY, and TEA SET don't form a clear connection. Let me reconsider: These could be '90s boy bands and pop culture references, but that's not quite right either. Actually, I think this might be things that can follow 'BACKSTREET' or precede a common word. Let me try a different approach: BACKSTREET (Boys), NSYNC (band), NEEDLESS (to say - common phrase), TEA SET (common phrase). This is a weak guess, so let me try something stronger.

Latency
3.2s
Tokens
779(580 in / 199 out)
Cost
$0.0016
Guess 2MINT · SAGE · MYRRH · NAG CHAMPAWrong1.7s

These are all types of incense or aromatic substances commonly used in spiritual practices, home fragrance, or meditation. MINT is a common incense scent, SAGE is used in smudging, MYRRH is a traditional incense resin, and NAG CHAMPA is a popular incense blend.

Latency
1.7s
Tokens
980(880 in / 100 out)
Cost
$0.0014
Guess 3ALLEY · BACKSTREET · BYWAY · LANECorrect1.3s

These are all words that describe narrow streets or passageways. ALLEY is a narrow passage, BACKSTREET is a side street, BYWAY is a side road, and LANE is a narrow road or path.

Latency
1.3s
Tokens
1.2k(1.1k in / 79 out)
Cost
$0.0015
Guess 4FOREST · HUNTER · MINT · SAGECorrect2.8s

These are all things that can be preceded by 'MOON'. MOON FOREST, MOON HUNTER, MOON MINT, MOON SAGE - wait, that doesn't work. Let me reconsider: these could all be types of things or follow a pattern. Actually, they could all precede 'GUMP' or follow 'FORREST'. FORREST GUMP has FOREST in it. HUNTER BIDEN? No. Let me think differently - could these be things that go with 'POET'? POET's FOREST, POET's HUNTER... No. Perhaps they precede a common word like 'GREEN' - GREEN FOREST, GREEN HUNTER, GREEN MINT, GREEN SAGE? These could all be things associated with nature or could precede 'GREEN'.

Latency
2.8s
Tokens
1.5k(1.3k in / 203 out)
Cost
$0.0023
Guess 5FLY BY · MYRRH · RHYTHM · BUG FIXWrong2.1s

These are all things that contain no traditional vowels (A, E, I, O, U) or rely heavily on consonants and Y as a vowel. FLY BY has Y, MYRRH has Y, RHYTHM has Y, and BUG FIX has only U. Actually, more specifically: these all lack common vowels and use Y or other strategies to form words/phrases that are difficult to pronounce without vowels.

Latency
2.1s
Tokens
1.7k(1.6k in / 131 out)
Cost
$0.0023
Guess 6NSYNC · NEEDLESS · NAG CHAMPA · TEA SETWrong2.3s

These all contain the consecutive letters N-S or can be rearranged/interpreted as things with 'NS' in them. Actually, more specifically: NSYNC contains NS, NEEDLESS contains NEEDL-ESS, NAG CHAMPA has NA, and TEA SET has T-E-A. Let me reconsider: these could all be things that sound like or contain hidden words/phrases. NSYNC = 'in sync', NEEDLESS = 'need less', NAG CHAMPA = 'nag', TEA SET = 'tea'. These might all be homophones or things that sound like common phrases.

Latency
2.3s
Tokens
2.0k(1.8k in / 175 out)
Cost
$0.0027

gemini-3.7-flash

google/gemini-3.7-flash

Solved0 mistakes4 guesses34s wait6.5k tokens$0.017
FOREST
HUNTER
MINT
SAGE
ALLEY
BACKSTREET
BYWAY
LANE
FLY BY
MYRRH
NSYNC
RHYTHM
BUG FIX
NAG CHAMPA
NEEDLESS
TEA SET

Guess history

Guess 1FOREST · HUNTER · MINT · SAGECorrect14s

These are all shades of green (Forest green, Hunter green, Mint green, Sage green).

Latency
14s
Tokens
2.2k(429 in / 1.8k out)
Cost
$0.0070
Guess 2ALLEY · BACKSTREET · BYWAY · LANECorrect5.4s

These are all types of narrow roads or secondary paths.

Latency
5.4s
Tokens
1.1k(571 in / 548 out)
Cost
$0.0025
Guess 3FLY BY · MYRRH · NSYNC · RHYTHMCorrect10s

These are all words, phrases, or names spelled without standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U) using only 'Y' as a vowel.

Latency
10s
Tokens
1.9k(713 in / 1.2k out)
Cost
$0.0049
Guess 4BUG FIX · NAG CHAMPA · NEEDLESS · TEA SETCorrect4.6s

Words/phrases containing specific single vowel sounds or variations of vowel patterns (or simply the final remaining 4 words).

Latency
4.6s
Tokens
1.3k(890 in / 414 out)
Cost
$0.0022

gpt-4.1

openai/gpt-4.1

Lost4 mistakes2/4 categories7 guesses1 invalid12s wait6.7k tokens$0.015
ALLEY
BACKSTREET
BYWAY
LANE
FOREST
HUNTER
MINT
SAGE
NEEDLESS
BUG FIX
NAG CHAMPA
MYRRH
RHYTHM
NSYNC
TEA SET
FLY BY

Guess history

Guess 1MINT · MYRRH · SAGE · NAG CHAMPAWrong1.1s

These are all names of herbs, spices, or aromatic substances, commonly used as incense, in essential oils, or as flavorings.

Latency
1.1s
Tokens
431(379 in / 52 out)
Cost
$0.0012
Guess 2ALLEY · BACKSTREET · BYWAY · LANECorrect1.8s

These are all types of small roads or alternate paths, often smaller or less traveled than major roads.

Latency
1.8s
Tokens
558(516 in / 42 out)
Cost
$0.0014
Guess 3MINT · MYRRH · SAGE · NAG CHAMPAInvalid1.4s

These four are all associated with plants, herbs, or aromatic substances: Mint and sage are herbs, myrrh is a resin from a plant, and nag champa is a type of incense made from plant materials.

Duplicate guess: ['MINT', 'MYRRH', 'SAGE', 'NAG CHAMPA']

Latency
1.4s
Tokens
718(649 in / 69 out)
Cost
$0.0019
Guess 4FOREST · HUNTER · MINT · SAGECorrect2.3s

These words can all come after the word 'Game': forest game (game animals found in a forest), game hunter, game mint (possibly as in 'mint condition' or rare game items), and game sage (sage as a wise player or 'game sage' as a term, though this is a stretch). Alternatively, it's possible these are all types of names or clues associated with nature or hunting.

Latency
2.3s
Tokens
942(839 in / 103 out)
Cost
$0.0025
Guess 5MYRRH · NAG CHAMPA · NSYNC · TEA SETWrong2.1s

These all contain a letter repeated next to itself: 'rr' in Myrrh, 'gg' in Nag Champa, 'NN' in NSYNC (phonetically, 'en sync'), and 'SS' in Tea Set (phonetically, T-set). Alternatively, they could be related to scents (myrrh, nag champa, tea), but 'NSYNC' doesn't fit; so perhaps the connection is double letters or something related to wordplay.

Latency
2.1s
Tokens
1.2k(1.0k in / 123 out)
Cost
$0.0031
Guess 6MYRRH · NAG CHAMPA · TEA SET · RHYTHMWrong1.6s

These four are all words that relate to scents or aromas: myrrh (aromatic resin), nag champa (incense scent), tea set (aromatic tea), and rhythm (though less obvious, it could relate to aromatherapy in a poetic sense, but probably the weakest connection here).

Latency
1.6s
Tokens
1.3k(1.3k in / 88 out)
Cost
$0.0032
Guess 7MYRRH · NAG CHAMPA · FLY BY · TEA SETWrong1.7s

Myrrh and nag champa are both used as incense; fly by (as in fly-by-night shops) and tea set (tea ceremony) might be connected as traditional items, but this grouping is the closest in terms of existing themes—scents or items found in a specific ritual context.

Latency
1.7s
Tokens
1.5k(1.4k in / 87 out)
Cost
$0.0019

gpt-4.1-mini

openai/gpt-4.1-mini

Lost4 mistakes1/4 categories5 guesses10.0s wait3.8k tokens$0.0019
ALLEY
BACKSTREET
BYWAY
LANE
NEEDLESS
FOREST
MINT
SAGE
BUG FIX
NAG CHAMPA
MYRRH
RHYTHM
NSYNC
HUNTER
TEA SET
FLY BY

Guess history

Guess 1ALLEY · BACKSTREET · BYWAY · LANECorrect1.4s

These four words are all types of roads or paths.

Latency
1.4s
Tokens
412(379 in / 33 out)
Cost
$0.0002
Guess 2MINT · SAGE · MYRRH · NAG CHAMPAWrong1.4s

These four words are all herbs or aromatic plants commonly used in fragrances or traditional medicine.

Latency
1.4s
Tokens
545(503 in / 42 out)
Cost
$0.0003
Guess 3NSYNC · RHYTHM · FLY BY · BUG FIXWrong2.8s

These words relate to music or performance: NSYNC is a music band, RHYTHM is a musical element, FLY BY could relate to a musical term or performance trick, and BUG FIX could relate metaphorically to fixing glitches often in music production.

Latency
2.8s
Tokens
782(715 in / 67 out)
Cost
$0.0004
Guess 4FOREST · HUNTER · NEEDLESS · TEA SETWrong1.7s

FOREST and HUNTER relate to nature and hunting, TEA SET relates to tea which comes from plants, and NEEDLESS is tricky but might relate to a phrase like 'needle' if misspelled or metaphorical. However, this group is tentative; more likely NEEDLESS does not fit well with the others.

Latency
1.7s
Tokens
892(803 in / 89 out)
Cost
$0.0005
Guess 5HUNTER · NEEDLESS · FLY BY · BUG FIXWrong2.7s

Considering these words don't fit in the other obvious groups, HUNTER and FLY BY can be related to actions or verbs, BUG FIX is an action too often used in software, and NEEDLESS is an adjective. This is a tentative guess for a group of 'actions' or 'verbs'.

Latency
2.7s
Tokens
1.1k(1.1k in / 79 out)
Cost
$0.0006