Poople #401 · Sat, Sep 19
Poople #401 Answer: FANS to POOP
FANS POOP
Hints for Poople #401
Sniff test (How many steps?)RevealHide
Which letter stinks? (Which letter changes first?)RevealHide
First plop (The first word)RevealHide
Answer (Full shortest path)RevealHide
FANS → CANS → CONS → COOS → COOP → POOP
Play Poople #401
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Sniffing out the word list…
Shortest path: 5 steps Easy
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How the Poople #401 answer works
Poople #401 asks you to turn FANS 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 5 steps. There is only one shortest path, so only one sequence of moves finishes in 5 steps.
Step-by-step explanation (spoiler)
- Change the 1st letter from F to C: FANS → CANS. 4 steps to go.
- Change the 2nd letter from A to O: CANS → CONS. 3 steps to go.
- Change the 3rd letter from N to O: CONS → COOS. 2 steps to go.
- Change the 4th letter from S to P: COOS → COOP. 1 step to go.
- Change the 1st letter from C to P: COOP → POOP. That spells POOP, so you are done.
First-move traps for FANS
FANS has 12 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 7 keep you at the same distance.
Which first moves to avoid (may reveal the first move)
Further away, so skip them: FANG, FENS, FINS, FUNS.
Sideways, at the same distance from POOP, which costs you a step: BANS, FADS, FATS, PANS, SANS, TANS, VANS.
How hard is Poople #401?
At 5 steps, Poople #401 is rated Easy. Across the 105 Poople puzzles on this site, the shortest path averages 5.7 steps. Of the other puzzles, 56 had the same length and 48 were longer. No puzzle on this site was shorter.
Try other words in the Poople solver, or play endless practice ladders in Poople Unlimited.