STARTING-WORD GUIDE

BOLL to POOP.

A reusable word-ladder guide, rather than a dated daily puzzle. Every move below changes exactly one letter.

3minimum moves
1shortest route
Easydistance-based rating

A shortest path from BOLL.

BOLL reaches POOP in 3 moves. The list includes 4 words because the starting position costs no move.

  1. StartBOLLThe starting word; no move used
  2. Move 1POLLReplace B with P in position 1
  3. Move 2POOLReplace L with O in position 3
  4. Move 3POOPReplace L with P in position 4

There is exactly one shortest route in this checked word list.

Which first moves work?

One next word keeps you on a shortest route from BOLL: POLL.

The table lists all 15 accepted one-letter neighbors. “Moves remaining” starts after that first move. “Total via this word” includes it, so you can compare that choice with the 3-move minimum.

Next wordMoves remainingTotal via this wordResult
BALL45Longer route
BELL45Longer route
BILL45Longer route
BOIL45Longer route
BOLA45Longer route
BOLD45Longer route
BOLO45Longer route
BOLT34Longer route
BOWL45Longer route
BULL45Longer route
DOLL34Longer route
LOLL34Longer route
POLL23Shortest route
ROLL34Longer route
TOLL34Longer route

Why 3 moves is the minimum.

BOLL differs from POOP in 3 letter positions, so any route needs at least 3 changes. This route meets that lower bound.

The solver searches the checked word graph in distance order. It reaches every word one move away before trying two moves, then continues until it reaches POOP. The minimum applies to this word list; another game or dictionary may accept different connections.

Our Easy label uses distance only: up to 5 moves is Easy, 6 is Moderate, 7 is Tricky, 8 is Hard, and 9 or more is Expert. It does not measure how familiar you will find each word.

Try BOLL with a different target or read the verification method.

More 3-move ladders.

These starting words have the same shortest distance to POOP in the checked list.