Play Word Duel online — free
Hide a word. Crack theirs first.
- 1 or 2 players
- Play the computer — 5 levels
- Play friends or other players online
- Phone, tablet or computer — right in your browser
- Free — no sign-up, no download
About Word Duel
In Word Duel you and your opponent each hide a secret five-letter word, then take turns guessing. Every guess shows which letters are right, which are in the word but in the wrong place, and which are not in it.
The first to work out the other's word wins. Play the computer or a friend online.
How to play Word Duel
Goal
You and your opponent each hide a secret 5-letter word. Take turns guessing — the first to work out the other's word wins.
Setup — choosing your secret word
- Type a word on the keyboard (or your own keyboard), or tap 🎲 Random for one.
- It must be a common 5-letter word: no rare words, plurals (boats) or -ed/-ing forms (asked, using). Words like chaos, bless or naked are fine.
- Press Lock it in. Your word is sealed for the rest of the game.
On your turn
- Type any real 5-letter word and press Enter. Rarer words are allowed as guesses — they just can't be secret words.
- Both British and American spellings count — fibre and fiber, litre and liter.
- Your opponent's game answers at once, colouring each letter. Then it's their turn to guess your word.
- The big board shows your guesses at their word; the small one shows their guesses at yours.
Colours
- Green — right letter, right spot.
- Yellow — the letter is in the word, but somewhere else.
- Grey — the letter isn't in the word (or not that many times).
Repeated letters work like this: if you guess paper and the word is apple, one P is green, the other P is yellow — the word has two Ps. If the word only had one P, the extra P would be grey. The keyboard keeps track of what you've learned.
Fair play
Nobody sees your word — not your opponent, not a server. When you lock it in, a sealed fingerprint (a cryptographic hash) of it goes to your opponent. At the end both words are opened, checked against the fingerprints, and every answer is re-checked. A player whose game gave a false answer loses.
How the game ends
- The first player to guess the other's word wins.
- Last-turn rule: the first player has a head start, so if they solve it on their 4th guess, the second player still gets their 4th guess. If they solve it too, it's a draw.
- If nobody has solved it after the guess limit (6, 8 or 10 each — chosen when the game is set up), it's a draw.
- At the end both secret words are shown.
Tips
- Open with a word full of common letters, like raise or stare.
- A guess doesn't have to fit what you know — a word of fresh letters can rule out more than a lucky stab.
- Hide an awkward word: lots of words like hatch (batch, catch, latch, match…) can take many guesses to pin down.
Word Duel: questions and answers
Is Word Duel free to play?
Yes. Word Duel on Neon Game Cave is completely free — there's nothing to download and you don't need to sign up.
Can I play Word Duel against the computer?
Yes. Choose "Play the computer" and pick one of 5 levels — from a gentle beginner to a tough opponent.
How do I play Word Duel with a friend online?
Open the Game Cave and challenge your friend from the Players online list in the lobby. To be sure you find each other, share a chat room code first — friends in a chat room also get free text chat during the game.
Can I play Word Duel on my phone or tablet?
Yes. Word Duel runs in the web browser on phones, tablets and computers, so there's no app to install. You can add Neon Game Cave to your home screen to open it like an app.
Do I need an account to play Word Duel?
No. You can play straight away as a guest. Signing in with Google is optional — it keeps your games safe in the cloud and, in games with leaderboards, puts your best scores on them.