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HOW TO PLAY

Learn Rikivo Words in 10 steps

Use word knowledge and grid logic together to build one continuous route through every letter tile.

Watch how to play Rikivo Words

  1. The goal

    A puzzle has a 5×5 grid containing 25 physical letter tiles. Complete all five answer words in the listed order. Their routes join into one continuous route, and every physical tile must be used exactly once.

    A 5 by 5 shaded letter grid above five ordered word patterns, showing the 25 tiles used to make one route

  2. Read the word clues

    Each row shows the answer length and letters already fixed in their correct positions. Four boxes mean a four-letter answer, so F _ S _ might be FISH—but a likely word must also follow a legal route through the grid.

    Five ordered word patterns with fixed letters, including F blank S blank for the four-letter second word

  3. Follow the distance clues

    The colour of the tile you are leaving tells you how far away the next letter must be.

    WhiteMove 1 square
    Light greyMove 2 squares
    Dark greyMove 3 squares

    Move only in a straight line—up, down, left, or right. Never move diagonally. A two- or three-square jump may pass over other tiles; only the tile you land on is used. Routes may cross.

  4. Join the words together

    The words form one continuous route in the order shown.

    1. CLOCK
    2. FISH
    3. BRIDGE
    4. GARDEN
    5. HOME

    The final tile of one word must make a legal move to the first tile of the next. For example, the K ending CLOCK is light grey, so it must lead exactly two squares to the F beginning FISH. Only the final logical tile—the E ending HOME—has no outgoing move.

  5. Use two ways to solve

    The word clues and the grid work together. You can begin with either one.

    Word → grid

    Use the givens to identify a possible word, then test whether its letters connect using the shade rules.

    Grid → word

    Follow forced legal moves through the grid. The letters you land on may reveal the answer.

    A possible word must fit a legal route, and a legal route must match the givens. Each method confirms the other.

  6. Place letters in the word

    F _ S _ suggests FISH. Follow its legal route, then drag each grid letter into its word box. You can also select a tile and then select an empty word box.

    The F, I and S tiles selected along a legal route and placed into the second word F I S blank

    A given tells you the required letter, not which physical grid tile to use. Repeated letters are different physical tiles, so choose the one that allows the route to continue. A blue X marks a tile once it has been used.

  7. Look ahead when two tiles fit

    The S in FISH is light grey, so the final H must be exactly two squares away. Either highlighted H can complete FISH. Look ahead to BRIDGE before choosing.

    A route spelling F I S with two different H tiles highlighted exactly two squares above and below the S

  8. Check the join

    FISH must lead into BRIDGE, which begins with B. Test each possible H against that B. The top H is white but cannot reach the B in one orthogonal square, so it is a dead end. The bottom H is white and the B is one square to its right, so the continuous route can continue.

    Comparison of the top H producing no legal join and the bottom H making a legal one-square move to the B that starts BRIDGE

  9. Undo and correct

    If you choose the top H, select that misplaced letter in either the word or its crossed grid tile, then press UNDO. Its blue X disappears, and you can use the lower H before continuing to the B. RESET removes every placement when you want to begin the puzzle again.

    The corrected route spells FISH with the lower H and then moves one square right to the B at the start of BRIDGE

  10. Complete the puzzle

    The puzzle is complete when all five words connect in order and all 25 physical tiles have been used exactly once.

    Completed 5 by 5 grid with every tile crossed and a status showing 5 of 5 words and 25 of 25 tiles The completed words CLOCK, FISH, BRIDGE, GARDEN and HOME in their listed order
    • Follow the shade of every letter you leave, including between words.
    • The last tile of each word must lead to the first tile of the next.
    • All 25 physical tiles must be used once, even when letters repeat.
    • Only the final E in HOME has no onward move.
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