PLAY ON TILEHIVE · BETA
Ladder Dash
One minute. One letter at a time. Complete as many word ladders as you can before the clock runs out.
How many ladders in a minute?
Change one letter. Make real words. Reach the goal, then race to the next one.
The clock starts when you press Start.
Preparing your race…
Saved in this browser. No pause: time away and refreshing count toward the minute.
One tab per race. Local scores are for practice; there is no online leaderboard.
A word ladder with a finish line
Ladder Dash adds a short race to the familiar word-ladder puzzle. Each step changes one letter while keeping the other three in place. Every intermediate word must be in the game dictionary. The destination changes with each new ladder, so watching the goal matters as much as finding any valid word.
Par tells you the shortest route from the starting word. It is a reference, not a move limit: a longer legal route still scores when you reach the goal. There are 1,381 directed pairs in this beta, with 461 different goals. Each pair has a shortest route of three or four moves. The pool is selected using word frequency and graph checks; that is an automated familiarity filter, not a claim that every player will recognize every word.
Make the minute count
Look at the letters that differ before typing. Changing a letter toward the goal can help, but the best route sometimes needs a detour to keep every step a real word. Think about familiar word families and different vowels. You do not need to use a hint simply because the goal looks far away.
If you spend too long on a ladder, Skip gives you another one immediately. It earns no points. Undo removes the last move of the current ladder and keeps the timer running. Completed ladders stay scored; Undo cannot go back into an earlier puzzle. Hint offers the next step on a shortest route that avoids words you have already used. When no such route remains, undo or skip.
For a slower introduction, try Poople Unlimited. It uses the same independent dictionary with a fixed goal and no countdown. Read our word-ladder strategy guide for more examples.
Questions before the race?
How is a ladder scored?
Each completed ladder earns one point. Par is the fewest moves, usually three or four. Detours are allowed; they cost time. Skipping earns no points and does not stop the clock.
Can I pause or refresh to get more time?
No. The minute begins when you press Start. Time away, refreshing and switching tabs count. A race that expires while you are away finishes when you return. Your browser saves progress when storage is available.
What happens when I use a hint?
Hint suggests one legal next word on a shortest remaining route. It marks the whole race assisted, including after skips and reloads. Assisted races can set your overall best but cannot set your best without hints.
Why is a real word rejected?
This version accepts 1,861 four-letter English words in an independent, versioned dictionary. It does not include every name, abbreviation, inflection or regional spelling. A missing word may be a coverage gap. You must also change exactly one letter and avoid words already in the current ladder.
Is this Poople or its official timed mode?
No. Ladder Dash is an original TileHive race inspired by word-ladder games such as Poople. It has changing goals, a 60-second limit and an independently sourced dictionary. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by Poople’s creators.
Is it free, and does sharing reveal the answers?
Yes, it is free with no account required. Sharing includes only your completed-ladder count, the 60-second format and hint status, plus a link. No starting words, goals or paths are included. There is no daily limit or daily streak.
What is saved, and can I play in several tabs?
Your current race, paths, hint status and local race statistics are stored in this browser. Use one tab per race; tabs share the latest saved snapshot. Clearing site data removes the records. There is no account sync or online leaderboard. If saving is blocked, the current tab remains playable.
Poople is a separate game by its original creators. Play the original at poople.io, or read our independent Poople guide.
Independent data & credits
Game code, rules text, layout and letter tiles are TileHive implementations. The acceptance list derives from ESDB/SCOWL revision 1e5b7d3a, with a documented BOOP addition. Copyright 2000–2026 Kevin Atkinson and upstream contributors. Full dictionary permissions and notices · Supplement evidence.
Word frequency: wordfreq by Robyn Speer, Copyright 2022 Robyn Speer, including SUBTLEX by Marc Brysbaert et al. and other sources. The frequency subset and derived selection data are available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Versioned dictionary and source hashes · Ladder Dash pair selection, changes and source hash · Full attribution · Upstream citations · Program license.
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