August was a fun month in Wordle. We learned a bunch of new words and discovered interesting etymological facts that gave us a new appreciation for the evolution of language. Now it's September, and one of our goals for the new month is to help you keep your streak going. So, here we are bearing hints and tips to help you solve today's puzzle and get off to a good start. We'll also reveal the full answer in the second section; if you came for the spoiler, you can skip down for that.

Today's word is a noun and is the plural of a scientific term used to describe filamentous organisms that lack chlorophyll. You'd call mushrooms, molds, and rust [the solution word]. The answer features two vowels, "U" and "I," as the second and last letters of the word, respectively. Here's another hint: the solution word is the answer to the popular joke, "Why did the mushroom have so many friends?". Got it? Well done if you have. If you're still struggling, look below the next image for the full answer.

The answer to today's Wordle puzzle (#439 – September 1, 2022 ) is fungi, which is responsible for several common infections, including jock itch, the skin rash that often occurs as a result of wearing tight clothing that traps moisture (via CDC). It could also cause nail infections or thrush/yeast infections. Okay, that's enough talk about gross infections. The word fungi has Latin roots; it's from "fungus," meaning sponge. Speaking of, did you know scientists discovered a spongy fungus in Malaysia in 2010? They named it "Spongiforma squarepantsii" — yes, seriously. 

Today we solved the puzzle in three tries, which is much faster than the 4.2 guesses WordleBot says it took most players. We chose crate as the opening guess since it's one of WordleBot's recommended starter words. Unfortunately, it was an unlucky guess; there were 575 possible solutions left after that. Luckily, we guessed the word fluid next, and that gave us enough information to arrive at fungi on the third guess.