Today's Wordle answer #397: Thursday, July 21

Let me help you with today's Wordle. I've got hints, tips, tricks—absolutely everything you need to solve the July 21 (397) puzzle with ease. 

One of the things I enjoy most about Wordle is the unexpected mental exercise it brings to my day. I'll look upon some hopeless jumble of greens and yellows and tell myself I really don't know any five-letter words using that combination of letters… and then end up thinking of three. Brilliant.

Hint for today's Wordle: July 21

You'll need to think of insects if you want to find today's answer, specifically the incredibly small kind that likes to suck plants dry of all their juices. They're so small they consider ladybirds to be predators. 

Today's Wordle answer (397)

Too many yellows, and not enough guesses left to sort them out? It happens. The answer to the July 21 (397) Wordle is APHID.

Wordle help: 3 tips for beating Wordle every day 

• Today's answer may be the plural form of a four-letter word.
• A tactical second guess helps to narrow down the pool of letters quickly.
• The solution may contain repeat letters.

Learn more about Wordle 

Every day Wordle presents you with six rows of five boxes, and it's up to you to work out which secret five-letter word is hiding inside them.

You'll want to start with a strong word like ALERT—something containing multiple vowels, common consonants, and no repeat letters. Hit Enter and the boxes will show you which letters you've got right or wrong. If a box turns ⬛️, it means that letter isn't in the secret word at all. ???? means the letter is in the word, but not in that position. ???? means you've got the right letter in the right spot.

You'll want your second go to compliment the first, using another "good" word to cover any common letters you missed last time while also trying to avoid any letter you now know for a fact isn't present in today's answer.

After that it's just a case of using what you've learned to narrow your guesses down to the right word. You have six tries in total and can only use real words (so no filling the boxes with EEEEE to see if there's an E). Don't forget letters can repeat too (ex: BOOKS).

If you need any further advice feel free to check out our Wordle tips, and if you'd like to find out which words have already been used you'll find those in our Wordle archive.

Originally, Wordle was dreamed up by software engineer Josh Wardle, as a surprise for his partner who loves word games. From there it spread to his family, and finally got released to the public. The word puzzle game has since inspired tons of games like Wordle, refocusing the daily gimmick around music or math or geography. It wasn't long before Wordle became so popular it was sold to the New York Times for seven figures. Surely it's only a matter of time before we all solely communicate in tricolor boxes.