Poople Hints

Poople #390 · Tue, Sep 8

Poople #390 Answer: NEWS to POOP

NEWS POOP

Hints for Poople #390

Sniff test (How many steps?)RevealHide
The shortest path takes 6 steps.
Which letter stinks? (Which letter changes first?)RevealHide
Change the 1st or 3rd letter first.
First plop (The first word)RevealHide
Good first moves: MEWS, NETS, PEWS, SEWS.
Answer (Full shortest path)RevealHide

NEWS → NETS → BETS → BOTS → BOOS → BOOP → POOP

All 9 shortest paths
  1. NEWS → MEWS → MOWS → BOWS → BOOS → BOOP → POOP
  2. NEWS → MEWS → MOWS → COWS → COOS → COOP → POOP
  3. NEWS → MEWS → MOWS → MOOS → BOOS → BOOP → POOP
  4. NEWS → MEWS → MOWS → MOOS → COOS → COOP → POOP
  5. NEWS → MEWS → MOWS → MOOS → MOOR → POOR → POOP
  6. NEWS → NETS → BETS → BOTS → BOOS → BOOP → POOP
  7. NEWS → PEWS → PEES → PEEP → PREP → PROP → POOP
  8. NEWS → SEWS → SOWS → BOWS → BOOS → BOOP → POOP
  9. NEWS → SEWS → SOWS → COWS → COOS → COOP → POOP

Play Poople #390

Try the ladder yourself before you open the answer. Old puzzles do not count toward your streak.

Unrolling…

Sniffing out the word list…

Shortest path: 6 steps Tricky

Finish in 6 steps for a Royal Flush

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How the Poople #390 answer works

Poople #390 asks you to turn NEWS 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 9 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 W to T: NEWS → NETS. 5 steps to go.
  2. Change the 1st letter from N to B: NETS → BETS. 4 steps to go.
  3. Change the 2nd letter from E to O: BETS → BOTS. 3 steps to go.
  4. Change the 3rd letter from T to O: BOTS → BOOS. 2 steps to go.
  5. Change the 4th letter from S to P: BOOS → BOOP. 1 step to go.
  6. Change the 1st letter from B to P: BOOP → POOP. That spells POOP, so you are done.

First-move traps for NEWS

NEWS has 8 words one letter away in the Poople word list. Only 4 of them move you closer to POOP.

Of the others, 4 keep you at the same distance.

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

Sideways, at the same distance from POOP, which costs you a step: DEWS, HEWS, NEWT, YEWS.

How hard is Poople #390?

At 6 steps, Poople #390 is rated Tricky. Across the 105 Poople puzzles on this site, the shortest path averages 5.7 steps. Of the other puzzles, 57 were shorter, 33 had the same length and 14 were longer.

Try other words in the Poople solver, or play endless practice ladders in Poople Unlimited.

FAQ

What is the Poople #390 answer?+−
Poople #390 (Sep 8, 2026) starts from NEWS. The shortest path is NEWS → NETS → BETS → BOTS → BOOS → BOOP → POOP.
How many steps does Poople #390 take?+−
The shortest path from NEWS to POOP takes 6 steps. There are 9 shortest paths.
What is the first move in Poople #390?+−
The official best path starts NEWS → NETS. Other shortest paths may start differently; the hints above list every good first move.
Can Poople #390 be solved in fewer than 6 steps?+−
No. 6 steps is the minimum: every word one letter away from NEWS is at least 5 steps from POOP.
What was the Poople answer the day before #390?+−
Poople #389 started from GIST. The shortest path was GIST → LIST → LOST → LOOT → LOOP → POOP. Its hints are on the Poople #389 page in the archive.