Wordle #201 Answer – January 6, 2022

This page covers Wordle puzzle #201, played on Thursday, January 6, 2022. If you are playing it in the NYT Wordle archive, start with the hints. The answer comes after them, along with what the word means, how hard it was, and how the most popular starting words would have done.

Hints for Wordle #201

Hint 1: How many vowels?

The answer has 2 vowels (A, E, I, O, U).

Hint 2: First letter

It starts with the letter B.

Hint 3: Last letter

It ends with the letter L.

Hint 4: Repeated letters?

Yes, one letter appears more than once.

Hint 5: Meaning

adjective — Common in a boring way, to the point of being predictable; containing nothing new or fresh.

Wordle #201 Answer

The answer to Wordle #201 on January 6, 2022 was:

BANAL

BANAL has been the Wordle answer only once so far.

What Does BANAL Mean?

Banal (adjective): Common in a boring way, to the point of being predictable; containing nothing new or fresh.

How Hard Was Wordle #201?

5.8/10Medium-Hard
66%harder than this share of all 1,962 Wordles
1look-alike answers
  • 2 vowels, which a typical starting word uncovers quickly.
  • A repeated letter, which most players do not test until late.
  • Only common letters, with nothing unusual to find.
  • A few look-alike answers share four of its five letter spots.

Look-alike answers: CANAL.

How Popular Starting Words Did Against BANAL

Here is the color feedback each well-known opener would have given on this puzzle, and how many past Wordle answers would still fit after that one guess. Fewer is better.

OpenerFeedbackAnswers left
SLATESLATE46
CRANECRANE34
TRACETRACE103
STARESTARE105
RAISERAISE75
AUDIOAUDIO355

On this puzzle, CRANE was the most useful opener, leaving 34 possible answers. Read our guide to the best starting words →

How to Solve Wordle #201 Step by Step

Here is one efficient way to reach BANAL. We open with SLATE, then each next guess is the word, from those still possible, that leaves the fewest options on average. Every guess fits all the clues so far, so this path is also legal in Hard Mode.

GuessFeedbackWords still possible
1. SLATESLATE52
2. RALLYRALLY6
3. BANALBANALSolved

Solved in 3 guesses. After SLATE, 52 everyday words still fit. Try your own guesses in our Wordle solver to see which words were left at each step.

Letter-by-Letter Breakdown of BANAL

PositionLetterAppears in (all answers)In this exact spot
1stB11.5%7.5%
2ndA39.6%12.4%
3rdN24%5.7%
4thA39.6%7%
5thL28%7.1%

On This Day in Wordle: January 6

Answers from the same date in other years:

YearPuzzleAnswer
2026#1662OOMPH
2025#1297SPRIG
2024#931CABLE
2023#566BELIE

Wordle #201 FAQ

What was the Wordle answer on January 6, 2022?

The answer to Wordle #201 on January 6, 2022 was BANAL.

Was Wordle #201 hard?

We rate it 5.8 out of 10 (Medium-Hard), harder than about 66% of all Wordle puzzles.

What was the best starting word for Wordle #201?

Of the popular openers, CRANE did best, leaving 34 possible answers after the first guess.