In the spirit of the What is a Word™/Phrase™ series started by JLee, a special brand of Phrase™ and Word™ puzzles.
If a word conforms to a special rule, I call it a Plus Word™.
Use the examples below to find the rule.
| Plus Words™ | Not Plus Words™ |
|---|---|
| ALERTEST | DROWSIEST |
| BULLIEST | DANDIEST |
| CLEANLIEST | GODLINESS |
| COARSEST | CORSAGES |
| CRANKIEST | CRANKSHAFT |
| CREEPIEST | CREEPIER |
| CULTURE | COUNTERCULTURE |
| ECSTASIES | ECSTASY |
| FITLIEST | FITTEST |
| FRESHEST | STALEST |
| HONORING | HONORABLE |
| HUMBLEST | HUMBLED |
| KNOWLEDGED | KNOWLEDGEABLE |
| LEVELEST | LEVELHEADED |
| LIGHTEST | LIGHTHEADED |
| LUCKIEST | LUCKY |
| MATCHLESS | PEERLESS |
| NAPPIEST | HAPPIEST |
| REPUTABLE | DISREPUTABLE |
| SIGHTLY | UNSIGHTLY |
| SLENDERER | SLENDER |
| SPICIEST | MILDEST |
| STANDARDS | STANDARDIZE |
| STATUS | STATIC |
| STRESS | STRESSFUL |
| STYLES | STYLISH |
| TOASTY | WARM |
| UNMATCHABLE | UNMATCHED |
And, if you want to analyze, here is a CSV version:
Plus Words™,Not Plus Words™
ALERTEST,DROWSIEST
BULLIEST,DANDIEST
CLEANLIEST,GODLINESS
COARSEST,CORSAGES
CRANKIEST,CRANKSHAFT
CREEPIEST,CREEPIER
CULTURE,COUNTERCULTURE
ECSTASIES,ECSTASY
FITLIEST,FITTEST
FRESHEST,STALEST
HONORING,HONORABLE
HUMBLEST,HUMBLED
KNOWLEDGED,KNOWLEDGEABLE
LEVELEST,LEVELHEADED
LIGHTEST,LIGHTHEADED
LUCKIEST,LUCKY
MATCHLESS,PEERLESS
NAPPIEST,HAPPIEST
REPUTABLE,DISREPUTABLE
SIGHTLY,UNSIGHTLY
SLENDERER,SLENDER
SPICIEST,MILDEST
STANDARDS,STANDARDIZE
STATUS,STATIC
STRESS,STRESSFUL
STYLES,STYLISH
TOASTY,WARM
UNMATCHABLE,UNMATCHED
The puzzle satisfies the series' inbuilt assumption, that each word can be tested for whether it is a Plus Word™ without relying on the other words.
These are not the only examples of Plus Words™; many more exist.
What is the special rule these words conform to?
