Chordle

Chordle asks you to guess a four-note chord in four tries. The field of possible answers is locked by theory: only the four diatonic sevenths are allowed (dominant seventh, minor seventh, half-diminished seventh, and major seventh), all in close position, all notes contained within the octave. The inversion is part of the answer. Input is via the computer keyboard or on a ring of notes, the "Keyring", which two buttons rotate one way or the other and a third toggles between sharps and flats. The footer numbers the grid.

1. Compose a four-note chord, using the computer keyboard or the ring shown on screen.
2. Adjust the spelling and voicing: rotate the ring clockwise or counterclockwise, toggle sharps/flats, use Backspace to undo.
3. Confirm with Enter. Each line must be a chord listed among the allowed entries, otherwise it is not accepted.
4. Read the colors column by column and try again, within the limit of four attempts.

The game was made by an educator, Nate May, for an online music school, and it shows: four attempts and a closed list of chords make it an exercise in harmony disguised as a grid. You review inversions by playing, which remains the least painful way to learn them.

The verdict comes note by note, and the column matters as much as the note. Green: correct note, correct column. Yellow: the note does belong to the chord, but not in that position, in other words the inversion needs to be revised. Gray: the note is not in the chord. The help panel also advises keeping the sound on, since each guess is played.

Numbered grid

A numbered grid in the footer. The site also displays its version number and a link to its changelog.

• The list of allowed chords is the real map of the game: four qualities of seventh, not one more. A triad or a ninth chord are not even accepted as a guess, so there's no point trying them.
• The inversion counts for winning, but not for proposing: you can find the four correct notes first, then focus only on the bass. Yellow is exactly the signal for that second phase.
• None of the chords on the list uses C flat, F flat, B sharp, or E sharp. Those spellings are excluded outright, which significantly reduces the field.
• Closed position is guaranteed: all notes fit within the octave. No need to imagine wide gaps or doubled notes.