CARLSBAD, Calif. — One of the world's top crossword puzzle writers claims he has created a system to beat the word game Wordle. In this Zevely Zone, I went to Carlsbad to meet the King of Crosswords.

Saying “That’s fine” feels like settling, right? It conjures an image of a passive-aggressive person overlooking their partner’s irritating behavior, building resentment all the while, then boiling ...