Today's Wordle Answer #653 - April 3, 2023 Solution And Hints

You might not quickly guess today's Wordle answer if you don't have a deep-rooted knowledge of botany. If you're struggling to crack the code, the only thing that might be getting planted in your mind is doubt that you'll turn your tiles green before you run out of guesses. To stem those doubts and guarantee a quick win, we'll share a couple of clues that should nudge you toward the answer word. If you'd prefer to nip the uncertainty in the bud, you may skip to the second section to see the full disclosure of the solution.

The word you're looking for is a noun with two vowels — O and A — as its third and fifth letters, respectively. There are no repeated letters, and the word describes a horticulturist's field of study. It's also the name of the Roman goddess of flowers and spring, and it rhymes with aura. If you remove its first letter, you'd have the name of a radio communication platform used for the Internet of Things.

Still uncertain? The solution you seek to today's Worddle puzzle (#653 — April 3, 2023) is flora. It's the biological name for any plants or vegetation native to a region, with roots in ancient Roman mythology. Per Merriam-Webster, Flora was believed to be the goddess of abundance, fertility, and flowering plants, especially those that were wild or inedible. In images, Flora is depicted as an attractive young woman dressed in a flowing gown with flowers in her hair. Modern English words like floral and flourish are derived from her name, and the goddess is often associated with the rose, a symbol of love and beauty. 

The Greeks also have the nymph Chloris, wife of Zephyrus, the god of the West Wind, also believed to be the goddess of flowers and spring and depicted in a likeness similar to Flora's. Per Etymonline, the Romans held a spring festival in honor of Flora. Dubbed the "Floralia," it was celebrated between April 28 to May 2 and featured comic theater and a lot of booze. The French also paid tribute to the legend of Flora by naming the eighth month on their Revolutionary calendar "Floréal." It was the second month of the spring quarter and usually ran between April 20 and May 20.

We solved the puzzle in four tries like most other players today. Our opening guess, ghost, made all but 115 possible answers disappear. "Drove" was our next guess, and it reversed the number to just six. Our third guess, "ouija," was the final spell we needed, and after it, there was only one possible answer. We hope you finish faster, and if you're interested in more word puzzles, here are other games like Wordle you can try.