Poople Hints

Poople #359 · Sat, Aug 8

Poople #359 Answer: LAVA to POOP

LAVA POOP

Hints for Poople #359

Sniff test (How many steps?)RevealHide
The shortest path takes 6 steps.
Which letter stinks? (Which letter changes first?)RevealHide
Change the 3rd letter first.
First plop (The first word)RevealHide
Your first move is LAMA.
Answer (Full shortest path)RevealHide

LAVA → LAMA → LAMP → CAMP → COMP → COOP → POOP

All 8 shortest paths
  1. LAVA → LAMA → LAMP → CAMP → COMP → COOP → POOP
  2. LAVA → LAMA → LAMP → CAMP → COMP → POMP → POOP
  3. LAVA → LAMA → LAMP → LIMP → PIMP → POMP → POOP
  4. LAVA → LAMA → LAMP → LUMP → PUMP → POMP → POOP
  5. LAVA → LAMA → LAMP → RAMP → ROMP → POMP → POOP
  6. LAVA → LAMA → LIMA → LIMP → PIMP → POMP → POOP
  7. LAVA → LAMA → LUMA → LUMP → PUMP → POMP → POOP
  8. LAVA → LAMA → LUMA → PUMA → PUMP → POMP → POOP

Shortest path: 6 steps Tricky

Finish in 6 steps for a Royal Flush

How the Poople #359 answer works

Poople #359 asks you to turn LAVA into POOP by changing one letter at a time, and every word on the way has to be in the Poople word list. The shortest path takes 6 steps. There are 8 different shortest paths; the one explained below is the path the official game shows.

Step-by-step explanation (spoiler)
  1. Change the 3rd letter from V to M: LAVA → LAMA. 5 steps to go.
  2. Change the 4th letter from A to P: LAMA → LAMP. 4 steps to go.
  3. Change the 1st letter from L to C: LAMP → CAMP. 3 steps to go.
  4. Change the 2nd letter from A to O: CAMP → COMP. 2 steps to go.
  5. Change the 3rd letter from M to O: COMP → COOP. 1 step to go.
  6. Change the 1st letter from C to P: COOP → POOP. That spells POOP, so you are done.

First-move traps for LAVA

LAVA has 6 words one letter away in the Poople word list. Only 1 of them moves you closer to POOP.

Of the others, 4 take you further away and 1 keeps you at the same distance.

Which first moves to avoid (may reveal the first move)

Further away, so skip them: FAVA, JAVA, KAVA, LEVA.

Sideways, at the same distance from POOP, which costs you a step: LAVE.

How hard is Poople #359?

At 6 steps, Poople #359 is rated Tricky. Across the 62 Poople puzzles on this site, the shortest path averages 5.6 steps. Of the other puzzles, 38 were shorter, 16 had the same length and 7 were longer.

Try other words in the Poople solver.

FAQ

What is the Poople #359 answer?+−
Poople #359 (Aug 8, 2026) starts from LAVA. The shortest path is LAVA → LAMA → LAMP → CAMP → COMP → COOP → POOP.
How many steps does Poople #359 take?+−
The shortest path from LAVA to POOP takes 6 steps. There are 8 shortest paths.
What is the first move in Poople #359?+−
The official best path starts LAVA → LAMA.
Can Poople #359 be solved in fewer than 6 steps?+−
No. 6 steps is the minimum: every word one letter away from LAVA is at least 5 steps from POOP.
What was the Poople answer the day before #359?+−
Poople #358 started from SUED. The shortest path was SUED → HUED → HOED → HOOD → HOOP → POOP. Its hints are on the Poople #358 page in the archive.