If you see a T at the beginning of a three-letter word, buy an E to confirm, then call out an H. Words like THE and AND come up frequently. Outside of the categories, you should also be on the lookout for common short words in general. You can probably expect an “-ing” suffix if the category is “What Are You Doing?” If the category is “Same Name,” the puzzle is bound to have an “and” in it (if it doesn’t already have an ampersand). Thus, there’s probably an S at the end of a word. If the category is “Things,” the puzzle is probably a plural. They can also tell you about common words or letters you’ll find in those puzzles. The categories aren’t just a clue for what you might expect the puzzle to be. Vanna White Wheel of Fortune 2017 Rule 3: Learn Your Categories This will make solving the puzzle far easier. In all likelihood, either E or A (or both) will appear in nearly every puzzle. You might also notice that even though the dollar values on the wheel have gone up over the years, the cost for buying a vowel has remained the same: $250. And to solve the puzzle, filling in the blanks with correct vowels is infinitely helpful. If the goal is to win as much money as possible, why would you want to “spend” any of your potential winnings on buying vowels? That’s because the goal isn’t (just) to win money it’s to solve the puzzle. In that game, the most common letters are worth the least points. This roughly aligns with Words With Friends letter values. Depending on the source, the most common letters in the English language, in order, are ETAOINSRHL or EARIOTNSLC. Those six letters are among the most common, but they’re not necessarily the most common nor are they in the right order. And given that the “free” letters in the bonus round are RSTLNE, you’d assume these are the most common.

Wheel of Fortune contestants typically gravitate toward consonants they think are most likely. This may sound obvious, but it’s not as straightforward as you might think.

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