Chainle Answer November 12, 2026
Puzzle #85 · Thursday · unofficial answer page
The five official answers for Chainle #85 on Thursday, November 12, 2026 were
petition, ear, conference, temple and minute.
Below, each round explains why the word connects its clues, which other guesses would still have earned points,
and the tempting wrong answers that score almost nothing.
You can still play this day from the archive on chainle.io.
Chainle #85 answers at a glance
| Round | Type | Clues | Answer |
|---|
| 1 | Two-word bridge | rally, prayer | petition |
| 2 | Two-word bridge | audio, shoulder | ear |
| 3 | Two-word bridge | chat, league | conference |
| 4 | Three-word bridge | mount, university, ministry | temple |
| 5 | Closest connection | hour | minute |
Every round explained
For each round: why the official word links the clues, other answers that likely
earn partial points, and common wrong answers. Chainle scores any word by meaning, so near misses
still count; the official data only names the 1,000-point word. Links and near misses come from public dictionary and
word-association data: senses and synonyms from WordNet 3.1, related words from Datamuse, and phrases checked against
Google Books (a phrase is only called common if it is, and proper names never count).
Round 1 · Two-word bridge
rally·prayer
Round 1 answer
petition
Why petition is the link
Petition is the one word that serves both clues together.
Rally is the weak link: a petition and a rally are both ways to campaign for a cause: one is a formal written request, the other a large gathering meant to build support.
In the dictionary, prayer is a synonym of petition — they share a WordNet sense. A dictionary entry for prayer even mentions it: A request; a petition
.
Start from this sense of petition: a formal message requesting something that is submitted to an authority
.
Other answers that can score
No other accepted words are published for this round, but near misses still earn partial credit. Likely candidates (exact points are the game’s call):
- orison, request — near-synonyms of petition, likely the closest runners-up.
- collect — related to rally and prayer, but less tightly.
Common wrong answers
One-sided guesses score almost nothing, because the weakest clue drags the round down:
- muster — fits rally, but not prayer.
- Any clue word or a form of one (like rallies) — rejected outright.
Round 2 · Two-word bridge
audio·shoulder
Round 2 answer
ear
Why ear is the link
Ear earns the full 1,000 because it connects both sides.
On the audio side: audio is sound, and the ear is the organ that hears it.
Shoulder is the weak link: ear and shoulder are both body parts, so this side is anatomical.
The core sense of ear here: the sense organ for hearing and equilibrium
.
Other answers that can score
No other accepted words are published for this round, but near misses still earn partial credit. Likely candidates (exact points are the game’s call):
- head, auditory — close to ear in meaning, but weaker on the clues.
Common wrong answers
One-sided guesses score almost nothing, because the weakest clue drags the round down:
- audible — fits audio, but not shoulder.
- wear — fits shoulder, but not audio.
- Any clue word or a form of one (like audios) — rejected outright.
Round 3 · Two-word bridge
chat·league
Round 3 answer
conference
Why conference is the link
Conference earns the full 1,000 because it connects both sides.
Chat is the weak link: a conference is a meeting for discussion, a formal, planned version of a chat.
In the dictionary, league is a synonym of conference — they share a WordNet sense.
The core sense of conference here: an association of sports teams that organizes matches for its members
.
Other answers that can score
No other accepted words are published for this round, but near misses still earn partial credit. Likely candidates (exact points are the game’s call):
- lecture, collective — close to conference in meaning, but weaker on the clues.
Common wrong answers
One-sided guesses score almost nothing, because the weakest clue drags the round down:
- gossip — fits chat, but not league.
- club — fits league, but not chat.
- Any clue word or a form of one (like chats) — rejected outright.
Round 4 · Three-word bridge
mount·university·ministry
Round 4 answer
temple
Why temple is the link
Temple earns the full 1,000 because it connects every clue.
Mount and temple turn up together often in ordinary writing, so the association is a natural one. (“Temple Mount” appears mostly capitalized, as a name or title, so it does not count as an ordinary phrase.)
On the university side: “Temple University” is a proper name, so it does not count as an ordinary phrase; read temple as a building devoted to a high purpose, as in the old phrase “a temple of learning”.
Ministry is the weak link: ministry is the work of religious ministers, and a temple is a place of worship, so this side is the religious sense.
The core sense of temple here: place of worship consisting of an edifice for the worship of a deity
.
Plenty of words fit two of the three; temple is the one that keeps all three chains strong.
Other answers that can score
No other accepted words are published for this round, but near misses still earn partial credit. Likely candidates (exact points are the game’s call):
- church, hall — close to temple in meaning, but weaker on the clues.
Common wrong answers
One-sided guesses score almost nothing, because the weakest clue drags the round down:
- launch — fits mount, but not university or ministry.
- student — fits university, but not mount or ministry.
- Any clue word or a form of one (like mounts) — rejected outright.
Round 5 · Closest connection
hour
Round 5 answer
minute
Why minute is the link
One clue, hour, and the task is its nearest partner in meaning, not just something associated with it. Minute is the official 1,000-point word.
A minute is part of an hour, so the two belong to the same whole. A dictionary entry for hour even mentions it: A unit of time of one twenty-fourth of a day (sixty minutes)
.
The core sense of minute here: a unit of time equal to 60 seconds or 1/60th of an hour
.
Other answers that can score
No other accepted words are published for this round, but near misses still earn partial credit. Likely candidates (exact points are the game’s call):
- bit, instant — near-synonyms of minute, likely the closest runners-up.
- time, night — near hour in meaning, but not as close as minute.
Common wrong answers
Related is not the same as closest in meaning:
- endurance — goes with hour, but doesn’t mean the same thing.
- wage — goes with hour, but doesn’t mean the same thing.
- Any clue word or a form of one (like hours) — rejected outright.
About this puzzle
Like every Chainle, #85 had three two-word bridges, one three-word bridge, and a closest-connection
round. Each round was worth up to 1,000 points, for a perfect score of 5,000. The official game scores any
dictionary word by meaning, so the near misses above earn partial credit, while one-sided guesses barely score.
Today’s Chainle answers · Today’s hints · Chainle answer archive