Trace one-letter changes, spot legal and illegal rungs, and work out the shortest routes between familiar words.
The quiz also explores anagrams and the Victorian origins of this enduring puzzle format, with a steadily tougher finish.
Getting things ready…
Question 1 of 10
Which writer is credited with inventing the word ladder in the nineteenth century?
Which sequence correctly changes CAT into DOG one letter at a time?
How many moves are unavoidable in any COLD-to-WARM ladder?
Which word completes HEAD → HEAL →? → TELL → TALL → TAIL?
Which word is not one legal move from COLD?
What name did Lewis Carroll give his word-ladder game?
Which pair has different letters in all four positions, setting a four-move minimum?
What transformation turns LISTEN into SILENT while preserving every letter?
Which word meaning a reward completes BRINE → BRIDE → PRIDE →?
Which magazine first published Carroll’s Doublets puzzles in 1879?