POOPLE #289 · 30 May 2026

Poople #289 Answer — GRAY to POOP in 5 Moves

A little help for this word ladder. Open only the hints you need.

5shortest moves

9shortest paths

Easyour distance-based rating

01A gentle nudgeJust the shortest length. No words revealed.

You can get from GRAY to POOP in 5 moves. That means 6 words, including the start.

02A little more directionFind out which letter to change first.

One shortest route starts by changing letter 1. You do not have to match a letter in POOP on every move.

03Your first stepping stoneReveal the first word of a shortest route.

Try CRAY. From there, you have 4 moves left.CRAY

04The full answerReady? Reveal every step to POOP.

GRAY · CRAY · CRAP · CROP · COOP · POOP

9 shortest paths in the checked word list.

Every step, explained.

Full solution below. Stop here if you want to keep solving.

All 9 equivalent shortest paths

Legal choices change one letter. Shortest-route choices also reduce the remaining distance by one; the counts below refer to the route shown above.

Word	Legal choices	On a shortest route	Next words on a shortest route
GRAY	11	5	CRAY, GRAD, GRAM, GREY, PRAY
CRAY	12	1	CRAP
CRAP	10	1	CROP
CROP	8	2	COOP, PROP
COOP	14	1	POOP

Historical entry reconstructed from the official schedule available on 10 Nov 2026. Source and verification details.