This is the original game of `Bulls & Cows` that my mother knew from her mother. Nowadays some chap who got $1m from the NY Times is credited with a similar game plan. So this is the way it should be played.
We start with a word of 3 letters, which you have to guess. You guess a word and if you have a letter in your guess that is in the same place as the letter in the word then you have a `Bull`. If you have a letter in your guess that is in the word, but in the wrong place, then you have a `Cow`.
For example, suppose the word is "EEK".
FUN : 0 Bulls 0 Cows So you know the word doesn't contain `F`, `U` or `N`.
THE : 0 Bulls 1 Cow So you know the word contains `T`, `H` or `E`, and its not `T??`, `?H?`, `??E`
ELM : 1 Bull 0 Cow So you know the word contains `E`, `L` or `M` and it is `E??`, `?L?` or `??M`
HOT : 0 Bulls 0 Cows So you know the word doesn't contain `H`, `O` or `T` and so from (2) you know it must contain an `E` and from (3) that `E` is the first letter, and also from (3) that it does not contain an `L` or an `M`
EAR : 1 Bull 0 Cows Confirmed the `E` and know there is no `A` or `R`.
KID : 0 Bulls 1 Cow So there's a `K` an `I` or a `D`, so you're thinking of words beginning with `E` and having a letter (but not more as only one cow) from `KID`.
EKE : 1 Bull 2 Cows With 1 bull and 2 cows making 3 letter I have all I need in the 3 letter word There is of course only one option left.
EEK : 3 Bulls 0 Cows Got it!
Rememeber, help will always be given at Toneus for all who ask for it.