STARTING-WORD GUIDE

BUNT to POOP.

A reusable word-ladder guide, rather than a dated daily puzzle. Every move below changes exactly one letter.

5minimum moves
1shortest route
Easydistance-based rating

A shortest path from BUNT.

BUNT reaches POOP in 5 moves. The list includes 6 words because the starting position costs no move.

  1. StartBUNTThe starting word; no move used
  2. Move 1BUNKReplace T with K in position 4
  3. Move 2BONKReplace U with O in position 2
  4. Move 3BOOKReplace N with O in position 3
  5. Move 4BOOPReplace K with P in position 4
  6. Move 5POOPReplace B with P in position 1

There is exactly one shortest route in this checked word list.

Which first moves work?

One next word keeps you on a shortest route from BUNT: BUNK.

The table lists all 10 accepted one-letter neighbors. “Moves remaining” starts after that first move. “Total via this word” includes it, so you can compare that choice with the 5-move minimum.

Next wordMoves remainingTotal via this wordResult
AUNT67Longer route
BENT56Longer route
BUNG56Longer route
BUNK45Shortest route
BUNS56Longer route
BUST56Longer route
BUTT56Longer route
HUNT56Longer route
PUNT67Longer route
RUNT67Longer route

Why 5 moves is the minimum.

BUNT differs from POOP in 4 letter positions, so any route needs at least 4 changes. The accepted intermediate words require a longer route: the first complete connection in our search occurs at 5 moves.

The solver searches the checked word graph in distance order. It reaches every word one move away before trying two moves, then continues until it reaches POOP. The minimum applies to this word list; another game or dictionary may accept different connections.

Our Easy label uses distance only: up to 5 moves is Easy, 6 is Moderate, 7 is Tricky, 8 is Hard, and 9 or more is Expert. It does not measure how familiar you will find each word.

Try BUNT with a different target or read the verification method.

More 5-move ladders.

These starting words have the same shortest distance to POOP in the checked list.