Build the word ladder together

Agree the move before beginning the ladder

Write every word in capital letters, keeping the same number of letters throughout a challenge. On each move, replace exactly one letter in its existing position. Do not add, remove or rearrange letters. Every line must be an English word, and no word may be repeated within that attempt. For these challenges, exclude proper names, abbreviations and hyphenated expressions.

The aim is to find a valid route satisfying the stated checkpoint, not to prove it is the shortest route in the dictionary. The supplied solutions use ordinary words whose entries were checked in Merriam-Webster; the puzzle arrangement and checkpoints are our own. A different route can also work if every step and the checkpoint hold.

Use one shared sheet and let the pencil pass freely. A proposed word can go in a margin while someone checks it. Keep a branch that failed visible with a light line through it, rather than making a player defend why they suggested it. Passing is a complete contribution choice; a listener does not owe the group a difficult word.

Try three prompts before opening the answers

Challenge A starts at CAT and ends at DOG in three moves, giving four words including both ends. Its checkpoint is that the second move changes the first letter. Draw two blank lines between the endpoints. The first optional hint is to look for a different vowel in CAT. The second is to think of a tiny mark after that first new word.

Challenge B starts at COLD and ends at WARM in four moves, giving five words. The second word must be CORD. Draw three blank lines between the endpoints, then fill that checkpoint. An optional hint is to change the vowel before changing the first letter; leave the final letter until the end of the route.

Challenge C starts at HEAD and ends at TAIL in five moves, giving six words. Its third word must be TEAL. Put four blank lines between the endpoints and write TEAL on the third word line, counting HEAD as the first. An optional hint is that the second word can be an action associated with recovery. After the color word, look for a word about speaking.

Stop here while the group wants to work. A host can read one hint at a time without revealing the entire answer. These are separate challenges, so an unfinished route does not prevent anyone from trying another one.

Check the complete sample routes together

For A, one route is CAT → COT → DOT → DOG. CAT becomes COT by changing A to O; COT becomes DOT by changing C to D in the first position; DOT becomes DOG by changing T to G. There are three moves, and the required second-move change is satisfied.

For B, use COLD → CORD → CARD → WARD → WARM. The changes are L to R, O to A, C to W and D to M. Each change occupies one existing position. CORD is the second word, and both the four-move count and the final endpoint match the prompt.

For C, use HEAD → HEAL → TEAL → TELL → TALL → TAIL. The changes are D to L, H to T, A to L, E to A and the third-position L to I. TEAL is the third word. Five moves connect the six lines without adding or shuffling a letter.

Read a route backward as another check: neighboring words should still differ in exactly one position. That does not create a new proof of shortest possible length; it is a convenient way to inspect the route the group actually wrote.

Keep the ending cooperative too

The group can finish after one completed route, compare two valid solutions or leave a margin branch for another evening. A shorter solution to a different version is interesting, but it does not satisfy today's stated move count unless the group deliberately changes the prompt. Keep that new version on a separate line rather than quietly changing the old challenge.