TALES uses the same legendary letters as SLATE, but its structure falls victim to Wordle’s plural ban, making it the weakest of the major anagrams.
Deploys A and E, giving you incredible information about the vowels present in the solution.
Tests T, L, and S, three of the absolute best structural consonants in the game.
Placing S at the end is a severe handicap because most plural words ending in S were removed from the Wordle answer list.
Our analysis leverages Information Theory and exhaustive dictionary testing to evaluate TALES.
TALES uses the statistically perfect five letters. This combination guarantees high raw information gain regardless of order.
We apply the “Wordle Plural Rule.” Because most 4-letter words made plural with an S are banned as answers (e.g., DOGS, CATS, TALES), putting S in the 5th spot is mathematically inefficient.
TALES scores 4.05 bits of entropy. While still very good due to the sheer power of its letters, it lags significantly behind SLATE (4.30) and SALET (4.34).
On average, playing TALES leaves you with roughly 80 possible answers, notably worse than its anagrams.
Because TALES is a plural word, it cannot win on turn one. Furthermore, a green -ES ending trap can be incredibly dangerous in Hard Mode.
Combining the phenomenal letters with the severely handicapped arrangement gives TALES an 85/100.
TALES is an anagram of SLATE, SALET, STALE, and LEAST. It uses the exact same five letters (S, A, L, E, T), which are mathematically proven to be the best combination in the game.
However, Wordle has a strict rule: Simple plurals ending in S or ES are generally excluded from the answer list.
This means words like DOGS, CARS, FOXES, and TALES are valid guesses, but will never be the actual answer. When you play TALES, you are placing the letter S in position 5. While there are some valid answers that end in S (like GLASS, GUESS, or BONUS), the overwhelming majority of words ending in S are banned plurals. Therefore, putting S in position 5 provides very poor diagnostic feedback compared to putting S in position 1 (like SLATE or SALET).
If the S is yellow, you now know it likely belongs at the beginning. But wouldn’t it have been better to just test it at the beginning on turn one? Yes.
Let’s examine how each of TALES’s letters performs in its specific position.
Frequency: High
Positional Strength: Strong
T is a highly common starting letter (TRACK, THINK). If yellow, it often moves to the end (PLANT).
Frequency: High
Positional Strength: Strong
A is an incredibly common second letter, catching hundreds of standard CVCVC structures (MANGO, PARTY).
Frequency: High
Positional Strength: Strong
L in the middle forms the core of many words, acting as a bridge (BELOW, SOLID) or part of a double letter (SALLY).
Frequency: Highest
Positional Strength: Strong
E in position 4 is very diagnostic, often catching -ER or -EN endings.
Frequency: Low (for Answers)
Positional Strength: Weak
Due to the plural ban, S in position 5 is mathematically the worst place to put it. It wastes a slot that could have been used to test S at the beginning.
TALES uses A and E. This is the optimal vowel pairing in Wordle. If they are gray, you can immediately pivot to words featuring O, U, and I on turn two (like ROUND or CHOIR). If they hit, they severely restrict the possible shape of the final answer.
T, L, and S form an elite consonant framework. However, testing the S at the end is highly inefficient. If S is yellow, you know it belongs somewhere else (usually the front). If S is green, it’s one of a few dozen non-plural words ending in S (like GLASS or BONUS). You gain information, but less efficiently than testing S in position 1.
Looking at TALES through the lens of Information Theory:
How does TALES stack up against its mathematically superior siblings?
Winner: SLATE
SLATE is vastly superior. It moves S to position 1 (optimal) and E to position 5 (highly diagnostic). SLATE achieves 4.30 entropy and is a valid answer list word. TALES is not.
Winner: SALET
Neither is an answer list word, but SALET is mathematically perfect. It places the letters in the best possible diagnostic configuration, achieving 4.34 entropy compared to TALES’s 4.05.
Winner: LEAST
LEAST keeps T at the end (a great spot for T) and moves S to position 4, avoiding the plural penalty. LEAST achieves 4.13 entropy and is a valid answer list word.
Winner: STALE
STALE is also superior (4.18 entropy) because it puts S in position 1. STALE is also a valid answer list word.
In Hard Mode, TALES is dangerous (Rating: 65/100). The biggest risk is hitting a green S and E (_ _ _ E S). While there are some valid answers like GUESS or PRESS, if you land in a hole like _ A S E S (BASES, GASES, CASES), you might find yourself trapped, even though many of those are banned plurals. The real issue is that TALES wastes a guess that could have been used on a word like SLATE that avoids the plural S trap entirely.
How to handle feedback from TALES:
Meaning: The word contains T, but it’s not the first letter. Best next move: PITCH, OUTGO, RIGHT. Note: T very frequently moves to the end of the word.
Meaning: The word contains S, but it does not end in S. Best next move: SCION, SNOOP, SHIRK. Note: Immediately assume the S goes in position 1.
Meaning: T, A, L, E, S are all absent. Best next move: ROUND, CORNI, CHINO. Common mistakes: Panicking and guessing random letters instead of structurally checking O, I, U, N, R.
It uses the best letters in the game, so it’s decent, but mathematically it is the worst of the major S-A-L-E-T anagrams due to the plural ban.
No. TALES is a plural word, meaning it is excluded from the official Wordle solution list.
No. SLATE is vastly superior because it puts S in position 1, avoids the plural ban, and is on the answer list.
No. SALET has much higher entropy (4.34 vs 4.05) and reduces the candidate list far more efficiently.
No. LEAST has better entropy and is a valid answer list word.
No. STALE puts S in position 1 and is a valid answer list word.
Because Wordle removed most 4-letter words made plural with an S (like DOGS or CATS) from the answer list, making the 5th position mathematically inefficient for S.
If all gray, guess ROUND, CORNI, or CHINO to test O, I, U, N, R.
Usually because they thought of it first when trying to cram T, A, L, E, and S into a word, without realizing SLATE is structurally better.
It means the answer ends in S, but is NOT a plural. Look for words like GLASS, GUESS, BONUS, or VIRUS.
TALES has an entropy score of 4.05 bits, which is solid, but lower than its anagrams.
No. Beginners should use SLATE. It uses the same letters but is structurally superior and can actually win on turn one.
An all-gray TALES means the word heavily relies on O, I, U, N, R, C. Guess ROUND or CORNI.
Yes. Even though TALES is a flawed anagram, testing T, L, S is still far superior to wasting guesses on weak vowels in ADIEU.
Yes, for the same reasons it beats ADIEU. Consonant testing is better than vowel hunting.
It means the word contains S, and since it’s yellow at the end, it almost certainly belongs at the beginning (like START).
On average, TALES reduces the dictionary down to about 80 remaining candidates.
Missing all letters, but even then, you have eliminated the most common letters in the game.
Absolutely. There is zero strategic disadvantage to switching from TALES to SLATE.
No. TRACE has higher entropy (4.19) and is an answer list word.
If E, A, T, S are gray, Y becomes a highly probable ending letter.
Yes, it is the plural of tale. Wordle accepts it as a valid guess.
It’s decent because it tests great letters, but SLATE or SALET are still better for multi-board games.
Fairly often. T is a common starting letter (TRACK, THINK).
It’s a measure of how many words are eliminated by a guess. TALES is decent (80 remaining), but SLATE is better (63 remaining).
No. ROATE has higher entropy (4.25) than TALES (4.05).
Position 5 (S). It suffers tremendously from the plural word ban.
L is incredibly common in consonant blends (BL-, CL-) and endings (-LE, -AL).
Use our Wordle Analyzer tool to input TALES against any specific daily answer.
No. You should use SLATE or SALET instead to get the exact same letter coverage with a superior structural layout.
Input your TALES results to get the exact remaining words.
Match word shapes instantly using our visual tool.
Review your finished game and see your efficiency score.
Discover why you should switch from TALES to SLATE.