Semantle: Can you think like a computer?

Ahahahaha I gave up and checked the answer and now I'm so annoyed after spending all day at 994 but unable to just get all the way there. I was on the wrong track for a while because I got high scores with NIGHTMARE, DREAM, and TRAGEDY, which seemed to lead another direction.

On #21 I got a (low) green on my 2nd guess, then doubled the score on my 3rd by typing its antonym, which was very exciting but didn't help me at all in the end, as I took 399 guesses to get the word. Oh well!

I got stuck in a very similar rut to in orbit, stuck in the 800s with tragedy, calamity, misfortune and similar for ages. Even when I branched out to religion via rapture & armageddon it took me a long old time.

It's past midnight so I could do #22 now but I probably should go to bed at a somewhat reasonable time instead.

I solved Semantle #22 in 134 guesses. My first guess had a similarity of 6.54. My first word in the top 1000 was at guess #9. My penultimate guess had a similarity of 2.12. https://semantle.novalis.org/

satisfying, i usually tap out once im over 100ish or so guesses. had prob two dozen guesses in the top 90% for this one

I solved Semantle #22 in 60 guesses. My first guess had a similarity of 4.50. My first word in the top 1000 was at guess #20. My penultimate guess had a similarity of 2.97. https://semantle.novalis.org/

I couldn't wait until the morning, my first half decent score.

for a dyslexic who frequently misses words when typing and is a complete idiot. I feel like I'm getting quite good at this!

gave up on #22 despite having many many little green lines including 998/1000 - couldn't quite find that last mental zag, just kept zigging

I solved Semantle #22 in 25 guesses. My first guess had a similarity of 2.12. My first word in the top 1000 was at guess #11. My penultimate guess had a similarity of 21.00. https://semantle.novalis.org/

woo! also probably never topping this score again lol. The solution was imo very similar to the only green word I got, so I thought at most it would be another green - wasn’t expecting it to be actual word

when I get to 25 I'm going to bake a cake

Incredible feat!

fuck this sucks

I solved Semantle #22 in 173 guesses. My first guess had a similarity of 1.52. My first word in the top 1000 was at guess #22. My penultimate guess had a similarity of 21.53 (113/1000). https://semantle.novalis.org/

i had cleared 30% similarity by guess 32, and just kept grinding and couldn't get the precision needed to find the right word.

gah, this one took me 208.

I'm starting to know when I've won, even before the screen changes - I start to get a sense for which words are too close to what I've already entered, and then when I hit on a word with the right amount of distance, and connections to everything I've typed in so far, it just feels right.

389 for #22. Synonyms, man.

I gave up at 104 but I had been at 998 and 997 since the 50s.

I also said the word out loud and thought I entered it, but had not.

I solved Semantle #22 in 85 guesses. My first guess had a similarity of 1.10. My first word in the top 1000 was at guess #7. My penultimate guess had a similarity of 38.83 (988/1000).

…I started guessing synonyms around my 75th guess and zeroed in on it!

Personal stats are likely at some point -- they're in the top-five or so requested features. A leaderboard is not happening, because (a) the game is so deeply unfair and (b) it would be immediately filled up by cheaters, and (c) it's about the journey. But also it would require me to store stuff on the server, and that sort of programming is less fun than my day job.

"it's about the journey"

yep.

101 today, got to 970 within 30 but struggled after that. Think I put too much weight on synonyms, when I put an antonym in got it within 6 guesses.

Been stuck on 992 for 150 guesses, I have so much green pointing in one direction but either that's hugely misleading or there's a synonym (or antonym) that's eluding me.

Gave up today, frustratingly was 10 words away on my 28th guess but I wandered off the correct track, gah.

Ooooh got it in 66! That makes a nice change from recent hopelessness.

Very hungover, took me 205. Had a look at the nearest words and this one stood out as quite WTF: 872 footcandles 28.76 ?!?!?!

Forgot to do #21. Just got #22 in 14.

I was very close on #20 but never got it.

I solved Semantle #22 in 100 guesses. My first guess had a similarity of 1.84. My first word in the top 1000 was at guess #4. My penultimate guess had a similarity of 9.51. https://semantle.novalis.org/

emil.y that's hilarious! And..........inexplicable? Computers wtf.

the thing I'm realizing about synonyms is that I often tend to guess ten dollar words when the answer is a 5 cent word.

have to remind myself the answer is more likely to be simple, not shit like "sesquipedalian".

I was so mad yesterday because I knew exactly what the answer was looking forward, but I kept missing the synonym because I was getting too cutesy with it and the answer was of course much easier than what i was guessing.

ffs I guessed echelon, percentile, quadrant before I could think oh shit, "level"

Personal stats are likely at some point -- they're in the top-five or so requested features. A leaderboard is not happening, because (a) the game is so deeply unfair and (b) it would be immediately filled up by cheaters, and (c) it's about the journey. But also it would require me to store stuff on the server, and that sort of programming is less fun than my day job.

― David Turner (semantle), Sunday, February 20, 2022 8:01 AM bookmarkflaglink

that's awesome! and agree on the leaderboard, that would actually hurt my enjoyment of it a little. thank you for this new daily addiction :)

I solved Semantle #22 in 430 guesses. My first guess had a similarity of 7.40. My first word in the top 1000 was at guess #10. My penultimate guess had a similarity of 29.43 (895/1000). https://semantle.novalis.org/

And I cheated with a thesaurus. Was stuck on low (992) forever, tried all variations and antonyms, had a wall of green that all pointed towards ranking / grading. I never considered equality, though I've just tried 'equal' and it's cold, wtf. What were some words higher than 992?

surely using a thesaurus isn't cheating? lol I'm a total cheat if that is true. And sometimes I think using a thesaurus actually makes it harder in some ways!

well maybe not harder but it will send you in many more wrong directions

i used one last night but that was the first time and I also had a friend venting to me in a crisis so I couldn't focus like normal

it did cause me to waste guesses I woldn't have otherwise wasted as well

I think my definition of cheating would be using a thesaurus that was constructed using the same word algorithm semantle uses. But a human constructed thesaurus is a potentially useful tool if you use it well, but not a cheat.

I agree tbh. I mostly find it easier to just go from my own brain. it actually caused me to blow 30 guesses yesterday lol, and the thesaurus didn't pick u pthe right word.

Ah you can now see the top words after winning! The top ten is pretty bonkers imo and I'm not sure it would have helped me, even with a thesaurus.

good choice for baiting the hook for new players and for teaching people how to THINK LIKE A COMPUTER

hey dave you should post pictures of your pottery in here as it is fucking amazing

Pottery! Yes! (Though maybe take it over to the 'forks throws pottery' thread so as not to go too far off-topic here?)

oh yeah, i forgot dave is not an ilxor exactly:
forks throws pottery (and maybe you do too?) - An ILX Ceramics Thread
Many of the pieces in there are joint things with Dave! It's an embarrassing showcase, especially when i scroll up.

TOday's took 131 but I did it quickly. First green word was therefore - no real idea why. Got kind and grade and type quite early

holy fucking shit - I did it in 35!

I solved Semantle #23 in 35 guesses. My first guess had a similarity of 22.96. My first word in the top 1000 was at guess #6. My penultimate guess had a similarity of 7.64. https://semantle.novalis.org/

I got very lucky with try quite early

In a sea of 900s, still can't get it

This is so frustrating - I have 991, 992 and 995 and I still can't get it

same... i got 995 on my 25th guess, but can't close in more than 100 guesses later

my god, this was brutal

I solved Semantle #23 in 166 guesses. My first guess had a similarity of 0.66. My first word in the top 1000 was at guess #110. My penultimate guess had a similarity of 7.21. https://semantle.novalis.org/

110 guesses to even crack the top 1000. I was completely off base until then. and even after that I was off base again.