It's Wednesday, and with it comes a new Wordlepuzzle for you to solve. As always, we're here with some tips and hints to help you find the solution.

If you just want to find out today's answer, you can jump to the end of this article for January 18's Wordle solution revealed. If you'd prefer to solve it yourself, keep reading for a few tips, tricks, and hints to guide you along the way.

Where did Wordle come from?

While engineer Josh Wardle originally created Wordlefor his partner, the word guessing game has since become a daily habit for thousands of players across the globe. In fact, Wordlebecame so popular that it was eventually purchased by the New York Times. 

Wordle has also inspired numerous fanmade clones and alternate iterations, such as battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordleand Quordlethat have you trying to guess multiple words at once. It has also provided ample content for TikTok creators, because sometimes it's nice to just watch someone solve a problem rather than do it yourself.

Not the day you're after? Here's the Wordleanswer for January 17.

What's the best Wordle starting word?

Like determining Peoplemagazine's Sexiest Man Alive, determining the best Wordlestarting word is an entirely subjective matter. However, if you enjoy being ruthlessly strategic when taking on word puzzles, we have a few ideas to help you select your opening move. One hot tip is to choose a word that has at least two different vowels in it. It wouldn't hurt to make sure it has a few common consonants as well, such as S, T, R, or N.

What happened to the Wordle archive?

The entire archive of past Wordles used to be available for you to access whenever you wished, like a giant wonderland of word puzzles. Unfortunately it has since been taken down, which was done at the request of the New York Times according to the website's creator. Nothing good ever lasts.

Is Wordle getting harder?

No, Wordle isn't getting harder, even though you may feel like it is! Though conversely, if you feel as though you haven't been getting enough of a challenge, you can switch on Hard Mode.

Why are there two different Wordle answers some days?

Wordlesolutions usually stand alone, with only one correct answer per day. However occasionally the puzzle game will break this rule and accept two different solutions as correct on the same day. This is because the New York Timesmade changes to Wordleafter acquiring it, swapping out some answers for new ones.

The Timeshas since added its own updated word list, so this should happen even less frequently than before. To avoid any confusion, it's a good idea to refresh your browser before getting stuck into a new puzzle.

Here's a subtle hint for today's Wordle answer:

The solution to today's Wordleis a noun, and one that's pretty good for you. It can be a bit bitter, though.

Does today's Wordle answer have a double letter?

The answer to today's Wordledoesn't have any double letters for you to trip over, so no need to worry about that!

Today's Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with...

Today's Wordlestarts with the letter C, as in "Charmer" by Stray Kids.

• Meet Jonathan Knight: The guy who runs Wordle, Spelling Bee, and The Crossword
• Wordle-obsessed? These are the best word games to play IRL.
• The Wordle archive is gone, but you can still find past Wordle answers here
• Best 'Wordle' starting word? Step up your game today.
• How to Hack Wordle from the New York Times' Head of Games

What's the answer to Wordle today?

Lock in your final answers, because it's time to reveal the answer to today's Wordle.

Are you ready?

The solution to Wordle #578 is...

CHARD.

Don't be sad if you didn't get it today. There will be a new Wordlepuzzle for you to try tomorrow, and we'll be back again with more tips and tricks to help you out.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Wordle.