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Poople #438 Answer: ANTE to POOP in 8 Moves
October 26, 2026 · Puzzle #438
Poople #438 ran from 08:00 UTC on October 26, 2026 to 08:00 UTC on October 27, 2026. Start at ANTE and reach POOP in 8 moves. Our checked word list has 1 shortest route.
Poople #438 at a glance
| Date | |
|---|---|
| Start | ANTE |
| Goal | POOP |
| Minimum | 8 moves |
| Shortest routes | 1 in this checked list |
What makes this puzzle distinctive
ANTE has two one-letter neighbours in this checked list, but only ANTS keeps the eight-move minimum. The checked list has a single shortest route: ANTE → ANTS → ANDS → AIDS → BIDS → BODS → BOOS → BOOP → POOP.
The first four moves change letter positions four, three, two and then one. The remaining four change positions two, three, four and then one before reaching POOP.
Step-by-step shortest route
| Step | From | To | Letter | Change | Moves left |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ANTE | ANTS | 4 | E → S | 7 |
| 2 | ANTS | ANDS | 3 | T → D | 6 |
| 3 | ANDS | AIDS | 2 | N → I | 5 |
| 4 | AIDS | BIDS | 1 | A → B | 4 |
| 5 | BIDS | BODS | 2 | I → O | 3 |
| 6 | BODS | BOOS | 3 | D → O | 2 |
| 7 | BOOS | BOOP | 4 | S → P | 1 |
| 8 | BOOP | POOP | 1 | B → P | 0 |
Shortest routes
The only shortest route is shown below.
- ANTE → ANTS → ANDS → AIDS → BIDS → BODS → BOOS → BOOP → POOP Selected reference route
First-move choices
One-letter neighbours of ANTE in this checked list: ANTI (adds at least one move) · ANTS (keeps par).
A first move keeps the 8-move minimum only when its remaining distance is 7.
How this answer was checked
This route was saved during its daily verification run. The 2398-word list was checked on October 26, 2026. We verified every displayed transition, the shortest length and the route count against that list.